by Donna Quesada:My spiritual path took a great turn because of three words, “Follow Your Heart.”
This very simple advice was given to me by Gurmukh Khalsa, founder of the original Golden Bridge Yoga, in Los Angeles. It sounds strange, but the simple idea of following my heart was peculiar to me. I was an academic—a philosopher—so, anything not based on carefully crafted argument was unacceptable. Following my heart became a great experiment for me… a dive into unknown territory.
I did follow my heart and from that point on, I never again doubted what my heart was telling me. The heart is the holder of all great truths and secrets. And if we respect its wisdom, we will never be at a loss for direction.
The only veil shielding us from us the extent of our capacity as creators of our own lives is our ignorance of that capacity. The key to that realization is locked up in our hearts. When you open up your heart, you are simultaneously opening the door to your soul and to your own divine wisdom—this is the turning of the key to true fulfillment in life. It is the only thing that will enable us to let go of our fears and doubts so as to trust in ourselves fully.
We aren’t taught to listen to the message of our hearts and further, its silent voice often goes unheard because our head is busy presenting arguments for what we should or shouldn’t do. We’ve all been taught that rational arguments and pros and cons lists are the way to make grounded decisions. The problem is that we can craft an argument for anything, even a great lie. And we do, to protect and defend our world view. Or worse, to fulfill someone else’s expectations of us.
When I received the message from Gurmukh, to follow my heart, it was as if someone had told me to go run in the ocean in the middle of a hail storm. But, this is what good teachers do—they push us out of our comfort zones when we’re stuck. And some teachers pass through your life quickly, with only one important message, like a bird landing on your window sill, chirping a special message…only to fly away again. This is the way that Gurmukh appeared in my life.
I now see the head-only approach as a weakness rather than a strength. When our connection to our soul is strong, we are able to attune ourselves to our truest callings. But without that connection, we end up feeling easily confused. It is wrongfully assumed that leading from your heart is akin to following emotions willy nilly. But conversely, it is a higher level of knowing. It is not exactly emotional, nor is it rational. It is conscious.
As opposed to the sway of passing emotions, it is an opening up of our intuitive faculty—what the Yogis call the third eye. As opposed to the careful analysis of all of our choices and decisions, it is an opening up of what we seeas choices, in the first place. And unlike the convincing façade of a well-crafted explanation, it is a softer, inner assuredness that has no need for defense.
Although the realm of the heart is deeper and vaster than the realm of everyday emotions, as explained above, the way into its chambers is by dropping into the realm of feeling, rather than through thinking. Especially by becoming super aware of how our entire body feels in various situations and the signals it gives us.
This is the feminine aspect of spiritual practice; it is all about learning to feel the down-flow of energy, the descent, rather than constant focus on the upflow, the ascent, into the concept known as “enlightenment.” It is the Yin to the Yang. The “feel-flow,” like the Beach Boys song. And in this aliveness of body, we can step into clarity and easiness. It’s the realm of grace and magic. It’s also about learning to have total trust in yourself, without needing to consult with anyone, and without needing to know the details of how everything will unfold.
The sense of delight that wells up within you when you embrace your heart’s wishes and thus, your true path, is both cause and consequence of a surprising new willingness to let go of that which no longer supports and nourishes you. This is freedom. This joy.
