Note: For background on this series, please read the Introduction to the 32-Parts Project.
Human heart. Photo courtesy Wikipedia
“Buddhism is all about being in the head,” my friend said. “Sufism is about being in the heart. It’s about love.” The conversation focused on the various differences between the two spiritual points of view, and my friend insisted that because Sufism was heart-centered instead of mind-centered it was superior. I tried to explain that Buddhism makes no distinction between the heart and mind as emotional centers in a human being. They are the same thing and are sometimes referred to as the heart-mind. My argument made no impression.
Her confusion is easy to understand. Thinking – an activity of the mind – feels as though it takes place in the head, where the brain resides. If it feels that way today, surely it must have felt that way to every human ever capable of conjuring a thought.
Emotions, however, seem as though they emanate from the viscera. If feelings of passion cause an increase in heart rate, the heart certainly must be center of love and all the other emotions that swirl around it. We use terms like “gut feeling,” “butterflies in the stomach,” and “visceral response” to express other feelings that do indeed seem to have an origin in places other than the brain. This is as real for us today as it must have been for our forebears.
As the study of anatomy evolved and the physiology of nervous system explored, the part of the nervous system that controlled the the viscera was isolated and termed the autonomic nervous system. Even on a scientific level, there was a time when control of the visceral organs was thought to be autonomous (separate) from the brain. Further study has revealed that the autonomic nervous system is not a separate system of control. Rather, it is a complex branch of the peripheral nervous system. The peripheral nervous system is outside of – but connected to – the central nervous system of the brain and spinal chord. The endocrine (hormone) system exerts powerful influence over the autonomic nervous system and the organs – most notably the heart. It’s no wonder the heart has the reputation as the center of love.
However, the heart is just another part of the physical form of the body. It is the primary component of the circulatory system, which also includes arteries and veins. The circulatory system transports blood (Part 23) throughout the body. The heart is a muscle, but it is unlike skeletal muscle (Part 6). It is self-stimulating on the whole, and it’s fibers are interconnected and capable of stimulating those adjacent to it to maintain its characteristic beat.
The heart’s structure is that of a pump. It’s job is to rhythmically contract to keep the blood flowing. Although the heart is self-stimulating, its rhythm and force are regulated by a number systems in the brain. It will beat faster and more forcefully – thereby circulating more blood per minute – when dictated by other bodily needs and desires.
The beating heart, like the ever-present breath, is a constant reminder of life within the body. It is a worthy object of meditation as one beat leads to the next in a constant flow of beginnings and endings. Each one of us has a heart, regardless of our mental states. Contemplating what will happen when a heart – anyone’s heart – stops is an exercise that may lead to insight into the true nature of things.
For background on this series, please read the Introduction to the 32-Parts Project.
One Comment
Nice post Paul…much appreciated. From the Biblical sense, people sometimes think that the “heart” is the seat of emotion, whereas it is actually the stomach (i.e. Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Isaiah, etc). The “heart” in the Bible is the seat of motivation. As in Buddhism, when the heart stops beating…all motivation and forward momentum cease, regardless of permanence or otherwise. I’m a Bible scholar, in the literal sense, in my former life. It’s only helped me augment my ongoing appreciation for Buddhist teachings thus far, though I know it has also held me back in other ways. More to come.