Heart-Centred Meditation: Connection with your Inner-Self
Have you ever wondered who you are? But not in what it says on your birth certificate, much deeper than that.
Who is the Inner-Self?
I was also curious and decided to embark on a self-discovery journey. I didn't know what I was searching for when I started my self-discovery journey. Despite that, I knew I would find what my Soul was looking for.
Where did I begin? You are probably wondering.
I had so many questions about life, myself, and my mind. Why do I react a certain way sometimes? Other times, it felt like nothing bothered me or triggered me. Why do I allow some thoughts to wander in my mind and not others?
Nine years ago, during my holiday, I read an article about someone training as a life coach. I didn't know at the time what a life coach was. But since I was little, I would listen to my inner guidance whenever I had to make a decision. It felt like this was something I would take action on.
Once back from holiday, I signed up to train as a life coach. In my first six months of training, I felt like I entered a new realm. One of my biggest revelations was that I can change my thoughts and beliefs if they don't serve me anymore.
My work during my 18 months of training felt cleansing for the mind and Soul. I began to feel better about myself, have more confidence, and learn that everything happens for my highest good and that trusting life only encourages the Universe to always communicate with me.
Of course, this was only the beginning of my Self-Discovery journey. Deep Transformational Coaching programme was next, a Spirit-based practice—followed by my Meditation Coach Training and becoming a student and follower of Ayurveda.
This is my story in a nutshell and how I started connecting with my inner self.
You might think it may have been easy for me to do all this work. To your disappointment, it wasn't. But I knew and felt from within that it would be much more challenging and painful long term not to do it.
Connecting to your inner self has countless benefits:
· increased self-awareness
· enhanced emotional resilience
· greater self-acceptance
· healthier relationships
· better decision-making
· stress management
· clarity of mind
· reduced conflict
· personal growth and development
· better mental and physical health
· reduced anxiety and depression
In the beginning, most of this work is done with the support of a coach or therapist. It would be helpful if you could have a sounding board that can reflect your thoughts, feelings and emotions back to you. Or if you can't afford a coach or therapist, then journaling can also help to go within and uncover your values and beliefs, your likes and dislikes, and your wants and desires.
We learn most things about ourselves when we connect with our bodies. When we let go of the outside world and shift our attention to our inner world.
I was also confused when I heard the saying that we all live in two worlds simultaneously: our inner world, composed of our feelings and emotions, and our outer world, the world surrounding us.
Now, you don't have to make massive shifts in your life to get to know yourself. It might feel like this, but there is no need to do that.
What you need is to start by setting an intention for yourself. Just affirming the words or writing them down, I intend to connect with my inner-self, can help you identify how to do it.
Most people spend all their lives hooked up by their inner voice playing in their heads like a broken record. We all have this voice, and this doesn't mean that there is something wrong with us.
To connect to your inner self, you must learn how to detach from the voice in your head. One way to do it is to practice heart-centred meditation. This practice helps you cultivate love, compassion, and connection with one's inner self and others.
If you have never meditated before, here's a simple guide on how to practice heart-centred meditation:
1. Find a quiet space where you won't be disturbed. Choose a comfortable posture, either sitting or lying down. Put your phone away and close the door to your outside world.
2. Close your eyes and begin focusing your attention inward.
3. Notice your breathing and take a few deep and slow breaths to relax and centre yourself. Inhale through the nose, softly holding at the top for two counts, slowly releasing tension and stress through the mouth.
4. Notice where is your awareness and what is the inner dialogue going through your mind right now.
5. Invite your awareness to join your breath, body, and the present moment. Take as much time as you need for your awareness to arrive at this present moment.
6. Now, I invite your awareness to drop from your head into your heart space and imagine feeling and thinking with the powerful energy of your heart. The heart is your centre of loving-kindness and compassion.
7. Cultivate loving-kindness by thinking of someone you deeply love, like a family member or a close friend. Imagine sending them feelings of love, warmth, and goodwill. Picture a beautiful green colour radiating from your heart and surrounding them.
8. Expand your love and slowly extend these feelings of love and compassion to include your neighbours, acquaintances and even people you might have conflicts with. Imagine sending positive energy and love to all of them.
9. With your next breath, send feelings of love, self-compassion, and acceptance to yourself. If this is your first time doing it and you find it hard to send love to you, picture yourself as a 5-year-old child and imagine healing and heartfelt energy flowing from your heart directly into the heart of the younger version of you.
10. As you breathe in gently and softly, focusing your awareness on your heart space, expand your feelings of loving-kindness and compassion to the whole beings on Earth. Visualise positive energy radiating out to the entire world.
11. As you do this, you may feel a surge of energy moving through your body, a sense of connection with your inner self and a deep connection to others.
12. Enjoy this moment for as long as it feels good and right for you. Bask in it for a few minutes or longer if you need to. It's important to honour yourself and your experience. Let go of the outside world and your never-ending to-do list.
13. When you're ready to finish, take a few deep breaths and slowly open your eyes. Reflect on the feelings of love and connection you cultivated during the practice. Express gratitude for this experience.
Heart-centred meditation is a practice that can build up your sense of inner peace, positivity, love and compassion and encourage a greater connection with yourself and others. It can be a powerful tool for increasing empathy, reducing stress, and enhancing emotional resilience. Repeating this practice over and over again can encourage you to open your heart and feel your constant connection with the world around you and for more information contact us.
