Many wisdom traditions reference the metaphor of darkness and light, with light illuminating all that it shines upon and darkness cloaking and concealing in the absence of light. Light refracts into a spectrum of color we witness as rainbows. In the Yoga tradition, the energy of the heart is represented by the emerald green color. It is well known that greenery enhances healing. Entering the garden of the heart may be a familiar phrase, reflecting the association with how greenery reflects vitality.
A comforting practice is to imagine or invoke a memory of being in a lush green place. Direct your breath in an orbital pattern from heart to brow, back to heart. Imagine a circle of crystal clear Emerald light orbiting these locations. Breathe out, brow from your brow to the center of your chest. Breathe in starting from deep within, behind the heart, to the muscles between your shoulder blades, up the back of the neck, then through the back of the head to behind your brow.
The back of the heart or shadowed side of the heart is a metaphor for the unrecognized emotions that have such a profound influence upon our behavior. The brow center is a place we often touch when in deep thought or when trying to remember. Orbiting the emerald light can be a practice of inviting the shadow side of the heart to be illuminated so we can heal. It can also be a practice of inviting our head to be guided by heart’s wisdom.