Is Your Heart Guiding Your Decisions? If Not, Think Again!
The heart is much more than an organ that pumps blood. Spiritual leaders across various traditions have recognized this for thousands of years. For over thirty years, scientists have also demonstrated some of the heart’s unique powers, including its strong magnetic energy and its “intuitive” capabilities.
HeartMath has been studying the 3 Types of Intuition
HeartMath has been at the forefront of research in these areas. Dr. Rollin McCraty, the lead scientist at the HeartMath Institute for more than 30 years, has conducted fascinating experiments on the intuitive heart. Intuition is defined as knowing from within, and Dr. McCraty and others generally identify three types of intuition:
- Implicit Memory: This is the most common understanding of intuition, where previously learned knowledge is applied to new or random situations. For example, a highly trained nurse might immediately recognize that a person on the street is having a heart attack.
- Energetic Sensitivity: Our heart and nervous system can detect changes in the electromagnetic fields around us. Dr. McCraty tested this by measuring the heart rate variability (HRV) of his son Josh and his dog Mabel. He found that their HRVs synchronized when they were in the same room, even without verbal interaction or physical contact.
More on Intuition
Similar experiments have been replicated with babies and mothers and with groups of people. Group experiments showed that when several trained individuals achieved heart/brain coherence through HeartMath techniques, the hearts of nearby people synchronized with their rhythms without conscious awareness. This phenomenon, known as social coherence, is also observed in group prayers and meditations where collective love and compassion are directed towards others in need.
3. Non-Local Intuition: This type of intuition transcends space and time and cannot be easily explained by the other two examples. It involves a clear sense of something happening to a loved one far away, for example. Research, including studies by Dr. McCraty, has shown that the heart’s intuitive sense can be enhanced through HeartMath tools and techniques. In one study, electrodes were placed on participants’ hearts, heads, and skin to observe reactions to emotionally charged images. The heart rate anticipated the emotional content of the images before the brain and skin showed any response. This suggests that the heart senses experiences before the brain or gut.
Dr. McCraty concluded that the heart and brain are connected to a source of information beyond classical boundaries of time and space, known in physics as nonlocal information. He stated, “The heart appears to be an access point to the wisdom of our soul or higher source.” This research supports the long-held beliefs of many spiritual traditions, affirming the heart’s profound intuitive abilities.
With Heart,
Andrea
