Opening to Divine Love: A Heart Meditation

Experiencing Divine Love

Yogananda taught that the greatest love you can experience is in communion with God in meditation. When you meditate deeply, love grows, and you may feel what he described as 'millions of thrills passing through your heart.' This meditation will guide you toward that experience.

Understanding the Experience

What you're about to practice is not metaphorical. Divine love is tangible spiritual energy that you can actually feel in your body. You may experience waves of tingling, warmth, goosebumps, or blissful sensations moving through your chest. This is the actual experience of divine energy flowing through your being.

Preparation (3 minutes)

Sit in a comfortable meditation posture with your spine straight. Place both hands over your heart, one on top of the other. Close your eyes and breathe naturally. Feel the warmth of your hands and the gentle beating of your heart. This is your anchor point — whenever your mind wanders, return to the feeling of your heartbeat.

Remembering Love (5 minutes)

Recall the best moment of your life — a time when you felt pure joy, deep love, or overwhelming gratitude. Maybe it was holding a baby, watching a sunset, hearing wonderful news, or a moment of connection with someone you love. Don't just think about it — actually feel it. Let that feeling build in your chest. Notice any warmth, tingling, or expansion. This is the doorway to divine love.

Amplifying the Sensation (7 minutes)

Now, keeping that warm feeling in your heart, drop the specific memory but keep the sensation. Focus solely on the feeling itself. With each breath, imagine it growing stronger. Breathe into your heart. Imagine you're breathing in pure love with each inhale. With each exhale, feel waves of love radiating outward. If the sensation fades, bring back the happy memory briefly, then release it again while keeping the feeling.

Opening to the Divine Source (10 minutes)

Now recognize that this love you're feeling is just a tiny drop from an infinite ocean. There is a source of unlimited love — call it God, Divine Mother, Spirit, or simply Love itself. Imagine opening the top of your head like a flower opening to the sun. Feel divine love pouring down like liquid light, flowing into your heart. With each breath, more love flows in. Your heart becomes a fountain, receiving from above and radiating outward. You may begin to feel tingles, warmth, or waves of energy. This is normal — it's the divine energy activating.

Resting in Divine Love (10 minutes)

Stop trying to do anything. Simply rest in the feeling. If waves of bliss come, let them wash through you. If tears come, let them flow — they're tears of joy. If you feel your heart might burst with happiness, know that you're safe — this is divine love expanding your capacity to receive. Yogananda said that if you could feel even a particle of divine love, so great would be your joy that you could not contain it. Just be present with whatever arises. Breathe. Feel. Receive.

The Millions of Thrills

In deep states, you may experience what Yogananda described: rapid waves of blissful energy moving through your chest, like standing under a waterfall of joy. Each wave is a 'thrill' — and they come so fast and continuously that they feel countless. If this happens, simply witness it with gratitude. If it doesn't happen yet, don't worry — you're building the capacity. Each meditation deepens the channel.

Expanding the Love (5 minutes)

Now, filled with divine love, begin to share it. Visualize someone you care about. Send them this love from your overflowing heart. Then expand to include more people — friends, family, strangers, even those who've hurt you. Finally, expand to include all beings everywhere. Feel yourself as a channel — receiving infinite love from above, sharing it with all below.

Closing (3 minutes)

Bring your hands back to your heart. Silently give thanks for this experience of divine love. Affirm: 'I am sustained by divine love. It flows through me always.' Take three deep breaths. Gently open your eyes. Carry this love with you throughout your day.

Daily Practice

Practice this meditation regularly. The sensations will grow stronger over time. You're not imagining them — you're training your awareness to notice and receive the divine energy that's always present. This is the love that Yogananda said is greater than any human love, the love that changes everything.