Writing poetry and prose using the heart

“Poetry that springs from a devout heart leads kindred hearts to the ever-sweet One and makes of them a Republic with Him for President. No other divine faculty perhaps has a greater power of transcendence over limits to the illimitable. In the bright days that are dawning upon the earth well may we look for the leaven of transcendental poetry to uplift the whole human mass.”

Sri Chinmoy, Philosopher-thinkers: the power-towers of the mind and poet-seers: the fragrance-hours of the heart in the West, Agni Press, 1998

Once every long while, I get a feeling that my heart becomes the captain of my life-boat. How to write using the heart?

What is to write using the heart?

What the heart writes is not a sequence of conflicts, a quest for desires, or fulfilment of personal desires, but instead a natural and luminous realization.

“Poetry that springs from a devout heart leads kindred hearts to the ever-sweet One…” – Sri Chinmoy

The spiritual heart is a place of boundless happiness. The fact that spiritual Masters often stress that the seeker should look inside his heart points out to me that living in the heart is the near future of the human race. The heart will make you feel liberated, quite fulfilled and with a sweet, serene happiness that is still very tangible – usually near your physical heart, not in your stomach area nor inside your brain.One can feel like a holy being scattering divine Love all around.

It is possible to stay in the heart for some time and, being in the heart, our actions will be more susceptible to its angelic light, at least for that period of time.

How to stay in the heart – a daily discipline

The heart is the seat of your spiritual life. Meditation, service, love of God, love of God in mankind, prayer, oneness with the creation, reading really spiritual books written by or about realized spiritual Masters, are some ways to lead you to your heart. Practice earnestly everyday.

Find something that takes you into your heart more easily. While a doing translation of a book of Sri Chinmoy’s poems yesterday, I felt so much in the heart. Each poem was more beautiful than the previous one, and at some point I was there. It has come and gone over the last 48 hours, but my days have been beautiful! Everything became more beautiful, simple, pure – like a child. I myself feel a bit like a child now. Meditation became easier and more spontaneous – and even more pleasant than before! Then, this morning, after meditation – there it came – I wanted to write!

Other things that I found that help me staying in the heart: spending time with children when I have a chance, watching innocent cartoons, etc. Also, doing something which requires my full attention can help me feel the heart more – as in a concentration exercise, where after concentration you can enter into meditation. Everything can be based on daily spiritual disciplines.

Writing with the heart´s beauty – going inside from the outside

Whether poetry or prose, to write using a little of the heart, we need first replenish ourselves with a feeling of divine love. This love is latent in us – like a true birthright, our heirloom.

It helps if one reads about spiritual topics, God, spiritual Masters. Read their works, re-read, meditate and re-read, pray and re-read, day after day, year after year. Slowly one can assimilate some of the divine beauty inside the writings.

Your own inner beauty will start to resound and manifest according to your openness, purity and surrender. Again, these qualities may come from your daily spiritual practice – and why not from Grace divine as well?

Practical tips for writing from the heart

Practice your spirituality daily, consciously, diligently.

Wait for a tiny divine inspiration. You will know when it is a mental inspiration or a more divine one. Take the opportunity – leave everything aside and write.

Keep reading spiritual books to get these inspirations too.

Be detached – just offer your writings. If you expect a particular result, it might mean that the heart is not there anymore.

Enjoy good companionship. I got inspired a few days ago after talking about making decisions using the heart with a friend that practices meditation. Coincidentally, soon after that, I read an article about writing using the heart. All this together has brought me here today.

Some suggested books.