Heart Meditation

The Heart Center Meditation is a lovely practice I first encountered when I was doing an Integrative Medicine fellowship through the University of Arizona.  Ann Marie Chiasson, M.D., an integrative physician and energy healer, taught this meditation of repeating four mantras.  It struck me deeply at the time, so much so that I wear a Navajo ring with four different colored gemstones to signify the four parts of the meditation.  I feel that these four qualities define the healer.

The Buddha taught that practicing the Four Heavenly Abodes or Sublime Attitudes leads to liberation of the heart, which is love.  Also known as the Brahma Viharas (in the original Pali language of the Buddha), they are lovingkindness (metta), sympathetic joy (mudita), equanimity (upekkha) and compassion (karuna).

Dr. Chiasson modified these slightly to be unconditional love, healing presence, inner harmony and compassion.  She teaches the meditation by recommending that you place your left hand over your heart, and then place your right hand over it with your thumb tips touching.  Close your eyes and repeat the four attitudes silently, one  with each breath.  Compassion is first invited into your heart.  She describes this as limitless and oceanic compassion.  With the next breath inner harmony is invited.  This is balance within leading to balanced action.  Next is healing presence, which is the desire for healing in the self and in others.  She defines this as love in action.  Last is unconditional love, which is reverence, awe or love while seeing things as they are.

This all sounds so simple, but repeating this meditation for five minutes daily can lead to a more open heart.

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