Amma has often said in various ways that if we only did one thing to assist us in our lives, that one thing would be living from the heart center. From our heart center we are able to stay centered and grounded. That means we are able to handle the various experiences of life and stay in balance. We can also access our inner knowing much easier and on a consistent basis.

In our society we usually stay in our head. We attempt to think things through, analyze situations, events, relationships and even feelings. If we stayed in our heart center we would simply follow our inner knowing. (You can learn about the science of this teaching from www.heartmath.com who states on their WEB site “the HeartMath^® System, a set of practical, heart-based technologies and tools.” They have books as well as technological tools.)

Although the heart center is not usually seen with the physical eyes, you can easily experience the sensations of being within your heart center. The heart center, also known as “chakra,” is in the center of your chest, just to the right of the physical heart, assuming your physical heart is more to the left side of your body than to the right. (One of my dear friends has a son whose physical heart is on the right side of his body.)

Note the diagram. The heart center is the one going through the chest or heart area. Living from your heart center means that your awareness “goes into” your heart center. Some people find this difficult to do.

To facilitate your experience, notice what happens when I give you the following instructions.

Bring your attention to your right big toe. Notice what it feels like. If you are wearing shoes, is there anything in contact with that toe. If barefooted, as I am right now, do you feel the air on your toe.

Bring your attention to your right ear. Just pay attention to what you notice in your ear. Now bring your attention to the ear canal. Notice how your awareness goes “inside” your ear.

Now bring your attention to your heart center. You might facilitate this by placing your hand on the center of your chest just to the right of your heart. Feel your awareness in your heart center. Now move your awareness into your heart center. Imagine breathing in...and out...of your heart center. Notice what happens to your thoughts, your sense of self. Most people feel a calmness.

Refer to the diagram and notice that most of the centers have a front and a back. Pay particular attention to the back of the heart center as noted on the diagram. The back of the heart center is in the area between the bottom of your shoulder blades. Focus on this area. Now move your awareness into this area. Imagine “breathing” in...and out...of the back of your heart center.

Learning to live from your heart center

Living from your heart center is simply a matter of habit. Almost all of us have the habit of living from our mental. If you stopped right now and noticed where your awareness was focused in your body, where is it? For most people it would be in their heads. For some it would be in the heart, and still others, it would be in the solar plexus area. The following is a step by step process to assist you in living from your heart center.

Do each step for at least one week each. Listen to your inner knowing as to when to move to the second step. You will notice that you will soon be able to do all these steps in moments and while doing anything else you are doing.

Spend your time focused within the front of your heart center.

Simply be consciously aware of focusing on your heart center.

Begin your day spending time in your heart center breathing in...and out...

During the day, take a moment to notice where your awareness is located in your body. When not in your heart center, simply move your awareness to your heart center. Take a moment to breathe in...and out...of your heart center. Standing in line, waiting in the car, boring meetings are all times to check where your awareness is.

When you know you will be involved in a tense situation, be sure you are in your heart center. Consciously breathe in...and out...of your heart center. Being in your heart center is also a method of what can be called psychic protection.

End your day spending a few minutes focusing on your heart center breathing in...and out...

Spend your time focused on the back of your heart center. Use the same process as above.

Spend your time focused on both the front and back of your heart center. Again, use the same process as in Step 1.

You will now join your awareness in your heart center with that in your head.

Notice the diagram and where the energy center is in the head.

First be in your heart center, both front and back.

Staying in your heart center, bring your awareness to the energy center in your forehead.

Follow the rest of the steps under Step 1. For Step 4, your intention is to be focused in your heart and in your brow center. This brings together both the mental and the heart energies.

Message from Amma

Dear Ones, the one instruction I give most often is to learn to live from your heart center. People do not often work on this one suggestion for two main reasons. The first is they think it is too easy. “All I need to do is stay in my heart center?” They want something more difficult to do–years of meditation, years of denying the self, years of being a vegetarian, years of doing any other “technique.” The second reason is the paradox to the first. They find staying in the heart center to be too difficult. How can they live their day to day life if they are always having to learn to live in the heart center?

To come to know who you truly are, and that is love incarnate, you need to be in the one place where that truth is hidden. That one place is in your heart center. Learning to live in your heart center can be much more difficult than years of “meditation.” The way I am using meditation here is the sitting in a posture emptying your mind of all so that you may discover The All contained in that so called emptiness. Have you not met those who admit to meditating in such a manner for years yet you experience them as harsh and judgmental?

When you live your day-to-day life from your heart center you interact in a very different way with yourself and others than when you are not in your heart center. Meditation as described above teaches you to live in your heart center during those times of quiet focused intention. Learning to live in your heart center with every step you take, every word you utter, will change how you take those steps and what words you utter. This is a very different kind of meditation. It is similar to what some are now calling “mindfulness.”

Remember, your life is not about the “work” you do. Your life is about how you live. Your work, no matter how great it may seem, does nothing if you are not able to live from your heart. Those of you from the Christian tradition may liken it to the discussion in your scriptures about being able to do all manner of wondrous works, yet, if you have not love you are nothing. Learning to live from your heart has a distinct and important difference. In the Christian tradition the underlying belief is that you “must have love.” What I teach is that you are love.

The more often you live from your heart, the more often you are in touch with The Truth that You Are Love Incarnate. When you are in touch with that truth you will be living that truth. When you are living “I am Love Incarnate” you will be better able to recognize everyone and everything else as Love Incarnate. You will be able to be steady when the experiences of life surround you.

I greatly encourage you to work with the above process on learning to live from your heart. It will be the most productive meditation you ever do.
You are within my love, as you are my love. I Am Amma the Divine Mother and I am your mother.

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