Heart-opening is some of the most effective work we can do for the above reasons. Yoga, through all of the different approaches, attempts to remove any blockages we have that prevent us from understanding ourselves more deeply, and relating to others from a more authentic place. The effects can be immediate and also long-term. With heart-openers, we may feel a release of upset emotions, as well as a flood of joyful emotions. Through postures that extend, expand, lift, and add more mobility and space to the chest, we being to remove some of that tension in the tissues (softening the armour), and encourage more circulation of blood, oxygen, and prana through the area, and the heart chakra. This physical and energetic shield also restricts our emotional capacity to relate to one another, to open up and show our true selves, to love, feel compassion, empathy, and gratitude towards ourselves and others. The heart chakra (Anahata chakra) also has it’s physical location in the center of the chest – and partially depends on the circulation of energy, life-force, chi, or prana, to be stimulated and kept in balance. Stiff muscles and inelastic tissues, cause the bones (ribs, breast-bone, and spine) of the chest to fix in place, and restrict the mobility and flexibility of the chest & space around the heart. Heart-openers are widely used in yoga because many of us develop a shield, or a sort of armour around our heart-space from years of improper, or unsupported physical posture, and emotionally challenging or damaging experiences. We also consider the energetic realm of our self: chakras (energy centers that have a physical location in the body) being some of the more common considerations. In yoga, we largely focus on this – how the movements, postures, and breath within our physical body affect our internal landscape – shaping our thoughts, emotions and whole state of being. It’s nearly impossible to affect one without having an affect on the other. But in fact, all of these aspects of yourself are part of the many layers of your being, which are intricately tied together. Your physical structure of your body, the energy you have in your daily life, the way you perceive the world around you, the thoughts you have, and the emotions you experience – are not all separate functions that operate in isolation. So why do we work on that space so often in yoga, and how does this affect our lives off of our mat?įirstly, it’s helpful to understand how it all works together. Heart opening in yoga can happen through posture, breath, or meditation – and affects not just the physical structure of the chest (layers of tissue, bone and muscle) where the heart resides, but the energetic and emotional capacity (love, compassion, acceptance, gratitude, to name a few) of ourselves as well. This term, though often used to describe back-bending, chest-opening postures, actually digs so much deeper than that. If you’ve been to even just a few yoga classes, you’ve probably heard the term “heart opener”.
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