Part 4 – The Power of the Heart in changing our world
When we use the word power, we are normally referring to nations, to armaments, to armies, to money, to leadership, to influence. It is no stretch to imagine what would be the power of the heart in a war situation.
Usually when we use the word power, we think of influence, argument, force, exertion, and power over. Governments or corporate leaders âexertâ power. The size of armies and the power of weapons critically affect victory or defeat.
We do not usually think in terms of a bodily organ as having power âin the worldâ. So, the association of the word power with the heart has huge impact. It can change the way that war or peace are thought about.
The most cohesive and accurate information I have found on the power of the heart comes from The HeartMath Institute. For more than 35 years, the HeartMath Institute Research Center has explored the physiological mechanisms by which the heart and brain communicate and how the activity of the heart influences our perceptions, emotions, intuition and health.
âEarly on in our research we asked, among other questions, why people experience the feeling or sensation of love and other regenerative emotions as well as heartache in the physical area of the heart. In the early 1990s, we were among the first to conduct research that not only looked at how stressful emotions affect the activity in the autonomic nervous system (ANS) and the hormonal and immune systems, but also at the effects of emotions such as appreciation, compassion and care.â âŠ
âWe also observed that the heart acted as though it had a mind of its own and could significantly influence the way we perceive and respond in our daily interactions. In essence, it appeared that the heart could affect our awareness, perceptions and intelligence. Numerous studies have since shown that heart coherence is an optimal physiological state associated with increased cognitive function, self-regulatory capacity, emotional stability and resilience.
We now have a much deeper scientific understanding of many of our original questions that explains how and why heart activity affects mental clarity, creativity, emotional balance, intuition and personal effectiveness. Our and othersâ research indicates the heart is far more than a simple pump. The heart is, in fact, a highly complex information-processing center with its own functional brain, commonly called the heart brain, that communicates with and influences the cranial brain via the nervous system, hormonal system and other pathways. These influences affect brain function and most of the bodyâs major organs and play an important role in mental and emotional experience and the quality of our lives.â
âScience of the Heart: Exploring the Role of the Heart in Human Performanceâ
An Overview of Research Conducted by the HeartMath Institute
What we are facing now in the crises rocking the Middle East is the exertion of vast power in the form of threat. That is, threat to use vast amounts of destructive power in the form of missiles and bombs. And we now see that these are not empty threats, those weapons are being used daily to kill people.
So, what can the Power of the Heart do in this situation?
As fellow humans, we may choose to undertake a meditation, to feel the heart going out to those in combat. We can offer them, from the heart, the clarity they need in the moment, to be able to make the right decision.
In your meditation you may become deeply quiet. Ask your heart what is needed in these places of violent conflict. If it is fear, hold it in your own heart and calm it. If it is bravado, offer that soldier a moment to stop and pause. If it is terror, simply hold a part of it in the infinite courage of your own heart, in the quiet of your home. Your heart will know exactly what to do. If we can offer our care for these troops, on whatever side they may be fighting, your care will bring some calm.
And then you may like to ponder what women in war situations have managed to do, by employing the power of their hearts:
The Civil War in Liberia had been raging for 14 years, over 200,000 people had died, one in three people were displaced, and rape was used as a weapon of war. Unable to tolerate any more fighting or killing, a small group of Liberian women made a decision to take the destiny of Liberia into their own hands and work with their hearts, a decision that would eventually change the war and the country.
In the UK, thousands of women surrounded a military base to protest nuclear cruise missiles being placed there. Some refused to leave and then camped for ten whole years at Greenham Common, using the power of their hearts and resolutely refusing to stop their protest until the missiles were removed. They continued for ten whole years until this happened.
After more than 50 years of armed conflict in Colombia, women insisted that they donât want others to make peace for them, they wanted to be at the table, making peace through the power of their hearts. They managed to establish a dedicated gender sub-commission with the mandate to ensure that gender perspectives and womenâs rights were included in all agreements.
In the Middle East, women from Israel and Palestine have made courageous efforts to work together to raise the capacity and collective impact of their member organisations. Their mission is to secure self-determination for all and to build sustainable peace in the region. They have employed the power of their hearts to do this.
To conclude:
We at The Mighty Heart wanted to share with you this research on the powers of the heart, for a good reason. In this immense crisis which could potentially cause the destruction of huge parts of the earth and its people, we all need fundamental resources to draw on to help make sense of the appalling destruction we are witnessing. Many of us feel powerless to know what to do, how to alleviate suffering, how to understand the un-hinged reasons for the acts of war we witness on our screens, how to mitigate the disasters being un-leashed.
For me personally there has been a huge increase in my energy in knowing more about the heart: I was delighted to discover at least some of the research that has been and is being done on the powers of the heart. Iâve been heartened by the experiences of those who have learned to adopt and rely upon the powers of the heart. I wanted to share with you what Iâve discovered about how the heart relates to violence, to crises, how heart power works in business, and the potential that lies in the Power of the Heart to change the future of our world. Knowing this gives me strength, and encouragement, knowing that our teaching courses on The Mighty Heart are now helping so many people â literally all over the world â find confidence in the powers of their own hearts.
Image – The HeartMath Institute