There is an interesting dynamic that takes place between the mind and the heart and many factors determine which leads and which follows, this will be different for each of us. The weighting and leadership between these two (mind and heart) will pretty much determine our experience of the world.
It is clear that our society as a whole is out of whack. Our adoration of the intellect and of the rational keeps us distanced from our beautiful, intuitive hearts. More importantly, the patterns and grooves we have ingrained from our lifetime can make it difficult to shift permanently out of our minds to anchor ourselves firmly and squarely back in our hearts.
I keep coming back to this by Ram Dass “The mind is a wonderful servant but a terrible master” as a loud reminder to myself to consider who am I leaving in charge as I go about my day.
The mind in and of itself is not a bad thing, in fact, it excels at the jobs it has been designed to do. However, when we leave it in charge and give it free rein we will be separate, we will favour the comfortable, the familiar and the secure and we will inevitably fight to protect this position. Our heart carries with it all the qualities that if we truly let it lead could and would change the whole game for us. Love, compassion, intuition and deep wisdom bring us together, to create, to grow, to evolve and for each of us to thrive and be the best we can be.
Consider all the moments we get to choose how we respond – from the mind or from the heart? Automatic reactions tend to come from the mind, reflecting just how much we (our social conditioning) value the intellect and how ingrained it truly is – yikes!
Creating more space to pause before we react, focusing on responding and consciously choosing is a good way to start to move any imbalance. Our meditation practice supports us to shift gently toward compassion and love, for which I am eternally grateful. In some ways, it gives us a responsibility to live our best lives and create the ripples that positively impact not just ourselves but those around us. So today, I am striving to lead from Love.
Love,
Jo x