Heart Meditation

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HEART MEDITATION

 

This meditation is loosely based on an ancient Tibetan practice

known as Tonglen, and has been used by many generations to

cultivate bodhichitta, or compassion. Once the steps have been

practiced it becomes very simple. It can be used as a way to

open and heal one's own heart, to develop the skill of living from

the heart rather than from the head, for dissolving the feeling of

separation and isolation, and for giving unconditionally to others,

specifically or globally.

 

The description here is taken from Relaxing Into Clear Seeing

by Arjuna Nick Ardagh, a modern teacher of awakening and

transformation:

 

THE MEDITATION

 

Step1: Get Comfortable

Find a comfortable place to with with your back fairly straight

and your chest area open. Now close your eyes and take a

minute or two just to settle and tune in to the environment

around you.

 

Step1: Fan the Flames of the Heart

Begin to focus the breath into the middle of the chest in the

" Heart Center " to the right of the physical heart. As you spend

a few minutes focusing the in-breath in this way and allowing a

gentle sigh on the out-breath, you will notice the Heart center

beginning to change... to glow or radiate. You may find it useful

to imagine that you are fanning the flames of the Heart with the

in-breath and allowing the warmth of those flames to travel

through the shoulders and down the arms into the hands and

down the chest into the belly on the out-breath.

 

Step 3: Mount Form on the Breath

Once you feel the Heart radiating in this way, you can start

to imagine the Heart center as a window into the emptiness or

vastness which is your true nature. You might even have the

sense of being limitless and looking out through this window into

the world of name and form. Now you can imagine breathing in

form through the window of the Heart and allowing it to dissolve

into formlessness, and then breathing formlessness back out

through the window of the Heart into the world of form.

 

Step 4: Mount Thought on the Breath

Notice thoughts now as you continue to breathe form through

the window of the Heart into the formlessness and breathe

formlessness out through the window of the Heart into form.

You may also begin to notice the way that thoughts arise and

fall spontanenously in consciousness. Sometimes we suggest

seeing them like little children playing, sometimes squabbling,

sometimes running, sometimes slouching. You can begin to use

the in-breath as a vehicle to carry thought back through the

window of the Heart into infinite silence, into formlessness.

 

Try it now: With the in-breath absorb thought through the

window of the Heart into the silence that is free of thought;

with the out-breath allow the same silence to burst forth and

permeate the field of thought.

 

Sometimes people like to visualize this as waves on the shore.

A wave breaks on the shore and then falls back into the ocean,

drawing with it whatever is on the beach; then another wave

breaks and floods the shore again. Continue to absorb thought

back into silence with the in-breath and allow silence and form-

lessness to permeate the field of thought with the out-breath.

 

The feeling is like a mother standing at the door of the house

welcoming her children home at the end of the day. With the

in-breath you open your arms wide, as if to say, " Come home,

thought. It's okay to come home to that which gave you birth. "

Whether the children have been fighting or playing, lazy or pro-

ductive, it doesn't matter, for they are all children of emptiness.

With the in-breath you can bring them home to rest and dissolve

like so many streams and rivers brought back to the ocean from

which they originated. You are embracing thought with the in-

breath, kissing it, hugging it. With the out-breath you are allowing

vastness, silence and the mystery of formlessness to burst forth

once again as Lord into the field of thought: fresh, original,

spontaneous.

 

Step 5: Mount Emotions on the Breath.

Take all the time you need to allow the previous step to become

natural, like the waves breaking and disappearing on the shore.

Now continue in the same way with emotions. First notice the

way the emotions shift and change. Then with the in-breath

absorb the emotions back into the stillness of love, and with the

out-breath allow the vastness, the safety, the warmth of the

Heart to permeate the field in which emotions arise. You may

find your own images to represent this process.

 

Step 6: Mount Physical Sensations on the Breath

Now continue in the same way with physical sensations. With

the in-breath absorb all sensation back into the blissfulness of

the Heart. With the out-breath, allow that same blissfulness to

radiate into the body.

 

You will need to allow yourself plenty of time with each step to

start to feel this becoming real.

 

Step 7: Mount Everything on the Breath

Now you can continue to absorb with the in-breath, and bless and

radiate with the out-breath without making any distinction between

thought, emotion and physical sensation. All form is absorbed and

dissolved back into formlessness. All vibration is dissolved back into

stillness. With the out-breath the Heart itself is radiating its fullness

back into form, permeating form with formlessness. You can continue

to practice the Heart meditation with eyes closed, or you can open

your eyes and go about your day, continuing this rhythm of absorbing

and permeating.

 

Always start with yourself.

Once you feel it flowing freely with yourself, you can extend it.

 

~~~~~