This blog looks at the 4th Cakra as one part of the whole system in building a road map to an integrative personality. This cakra is located at the heart center and thus known as the Heart Cakra. The heart is the symbol of love. Let’s look at the “traps” or imbalances versus the “treasures” or balanced cakra.
Falling in love is a beautiful process! To give love and to be loved makes life richer, juicer! We open ourselves up becoming vulnerable in giving our heart to someone else for safe keeping. But sometimes, our trusting hearts get wounded along the way and we become guarded. Heartache, heartbreak…you know the terms. And chances are you have felt both heart elation and heart ache as you move through this journey called life.
What if we could fall in love with ourselves? My heart says, “YES!”
The 4th cakra “treasures” are the qualities of openness, compassion, love and gratitude. This cakra is about CONNECTION to self and the ability to connect in our relationships on a deeper level. We all have stories that were created in our childhood. These childhood experiences laid down patterning of how we operate in our day to day interactions. In Sanskrit, deep patterns are known as samskaras.
When we practice yoga as a meditative practice, we begin to see, feel, and listen from the heart. This is a slow process like the planting of a garden in which a seed gets nourished and begins to sprout. With the right nutrients that sprout continues to blossom until one day we see a beautiful flower (I’m picturing a Sun Flower here). The art of Self-Care means you are taking actions to give yourself the right “nutrients” to begin to blossom. An example of self-care could be to start dancing when you feel like it (my favorite) or resting when you need it. When you fill up your tank, it’s because you value yourself. Try to reduce the self-criticism and look at yourself with a heart of compassion. Fall in love with yourself! You’re pretty cute, you know! When we connect with the ability to love ourselves, we begin to have a deeper level of seeing others from a place of compassion. We have gratitude in our hearts for the present moment. We might begin to play more even in our work.
The 4th cakra is located at the center of the chest and is referred to as the heart cakra. The element of air, the sense of touch, and the color green are associated with 4th cakra, known as Anāhata . When out of balance, the “traps” emerge. We may experience anxiety, anger, impatience, jealousy or fanaticism. Intimacy (speaking of a non-sexual intimacy) may be lacking as our openness becomes guarded and connection becomes more challenged.
Were you taught that leading from your heart is risky business? I say excluding the heart in your decisions is riskier business. Here’s a quote from an article titled “Could the Energy of Our Hearts Change the World?”
“The heart is really the source of emotional intelligence, transferring intelligence to emotions and strengthening our ability to manage them.” says Rollin McCraty, PhD, founder of HeartMath Institute, whose purpose is to help humanity. McCraty goes on to say, “Technology isn’t going to shift the problems we have in society and the planet—it’s going to take a shift of consciousness for that to happen.” You can read more about this article here. https://goop.com/wellness/spirituality/could-the-energy-of-our-hearts-change-the-world/
At the heart of the matter, yoga teaches that we can break free from our samskaras, or patterns. We can become conscious of how our thoughts limit us and keep us from falling in love with that face in the mirror! I for one am determined to let me heart lead the way.