The Brain Myth: Your Intellect and Thoughts Originate in Your Heart, Not Your Brain

The Heart: The True Center of Consciousness

But what does it say? “THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. (Romans 10:6-10)

In Western culture, we have been conditioned to believe that the brain is the center of a person's consciousness and thoughts. However, an alternative perspective challenges this notion and suggests that our intellect and thoughts actually originate in the heart.

This belief finds its roots in ancient wisdom and spiritual teachings, including the words of Jesus Christ recorded in the Bible. He questioned why people were thinking certain things in their hearts and emphasized that the words that come out of our mouths stem from our hearts.

Heart Intelligence: A Different Paradigm

Heart intelligence is a concept that challenges the prevailing belief in brain-centered consciousness. It proposes that the heart is not merely a pump but also a source of intelligence and wisdom.

Research in the field of neurocardiology supports this idea. Studies have shown that the heart contains a complex network of neurons, similar to those found in the brain. These neurons enable the heart to communicate with the brain and influence our thoughts, emotions, and overall well-being.

The Heart-Brain Connection

The heart and brain are intricately connected through a bi-directional communication system. While the brain sends signals to the heart, instructing it to beat, the heart also sends signals to the brain, influencing our cognitive processes.

One of the key ways the heart communicates with the brain is through the autonomic nervous system. The heart generates a rhythmic pattern known as heart rate variability (HRV), which reflects the balance between the sympathetic and parasympathetic branches of the autonomic nervous system. This balance has a profound impact on our mental and emotional states.

Redefining Intelligence

Redefining intelligence to include the wisdom of the heart opens up new possibilities for personal growth and transformation. It challenges the notion that intellect is solely a function of the brain and invites us to embrace a more holistic understanding of human consciousness.

While the brain undoubtedly plays a crucial role in our cognitive processes, it is essential to recognize the profound influence of the heart on our thoughts, emotions, and overall well-being. By acknowledging the heart as the true center of our consciousness, we can embark on a journey of self-discovery and tap into the immense wisdom that resides within us.

So, the next time you find yourself deep in thought, remember that your intellect and thoughts may not originate in your brain alone, but in the depths of your heart.

Adapted from https://created4health.org

In the New Testament portion of the Bible, which was written in Koine Greek (the language of the common people), the word for “heart” is καρδία – kardia.

Many of our modern-day English words originate from this Greek word, such as cardiology and cardiologist, the study of the heart, as well as certain diseases that involve the heart, such as myocarditis, pericarditis, etc.

There are many verses in the Bible that teach our kardia (heart) is where our mind is, and where our thoughts, as well as our feelings, originate.

The most common Greek word in the Bible that is translated into English as “mind” is διάνοια – dianoia.

The Greek word διαλογίζομαι – dialogizomai, is most often translated into English as think, reason, or discuss.

Here are some verses where dianoia (mind) and dialogizomai (thoughts) are used together with kardia (heart.) I will highlight the English word that is translating dianoia or dialogizomai in blue, and kardia in red.

Jesus, perceiving the reasoning of their hearts, took a little child, and set him by his side, and said to them, “Whoever receives this little child in my name receives me. Whoever receives me receives him who sent me. For whoever is least among you all, this one will be great.” (Luke 9:47-48)

If anyone thinks himself to be religious, yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this person’s religion is worthless. (James 1:26)

Now some teachers of the law were sitting there, thinking to themselves, “Why does this fellow talk like that? He’s blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?”

Immediately Jesus knew in his spirit that this was what they were thinking in their hearts, and he said to them, “Why are you thinking these things? (Mark 2:6-8)

Then Simeon blessed them and said to Mary, his mother: “This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed. And a sword will pierce your own soul too.” (Luke 2:34-35)

They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. (Ephesians 4:18)

This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. (Hebrews 8:10)

There are a couple of verses where many modern English translations of the Bible use the English word “mind” to actually translate kardia (heart), because it would seem “strange” to modern Western Culture to use the word “heart” for kardia in these cases, since modern culture attributes our “mind” to our brain.

One is in the Book of Acts.

But when he was approaching the age of forty, it entered his mind to visit his countrymen, the sons of Israel. (Acts 7:23 NASB)

The word translated as “mind” here in the English is actually kardia.

But some English translations, like the older 1611 KJV, do still use “heart”:

And when he was full forty years old, it came into his heart to visit his brethren the children of Israel. (Acts 7:23)

Another one is in Luke 21:14:

So make up your minds not to prepare beforehand to defend yourselves… (Luke 21:14 NASB)

The word “minds” here is kardia. But again, some translations, such as the older KJV, do use “heart”.

Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer… (Luke 21:14)

In addition to our mind and our rational thoughts, the words spoken by our tongue/mouth are attributed to originating in the heart, not the brain.

You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. (Matthew 12:34)

But the things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man ‘unclean.’ (Matthew 15:18)

But the righteousness based on faith speaks as follows: “DO NOT SAY IN YOUR HEART, ‘WHO WILL GO UP INTO HEAVEN?’ (that is, to bring Christ down), or ‘Who will descend into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Christ up from the dead).”

But what does it say? “THE WORD IS NEAR YOU, IN YOUR MOUTH AND IN YOUR HEART”—that is, the word of faith which we are preaching, that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, resulting in righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, resulting in salvation. (Romans 10:6-10)

Modern Science does Not Disprove that the Heart is the Center of Rational Thought and the Mind

There is nothing in modern day science that disproves the ancient view that the heart is the center of our reasoning and mind, and not the brain.

In fact, if anything, there is scientific evidence that confirms the central place of our heart in our life.

This evidence comes from stories of people who receive heart transplants, and then find themselves thinking about and remembering things that the person who donated their heart experienced before they died, even though the recipient of the new heart never knew the donor.

Nobody has ever received a transplant of someone else’s brain.

A 2020 study published in Medical Hypotheses actually addresses this issue.

Abstract

Personality changes following heart transplantation, which have been reported for decades, include accounts of recipients acquiring the personality characteristics of their donor. Four categories of personality changes are discussed in this article: (1) changes in preferences, (2) alterations in emotions/temperament, (3) modifications of identity, and (4) memories from the donor’s life. The acquisition of donor personality characteristics by recipients following heart transplantation is hypothesized to occur via the transfer of cellular memory, and four types of cellular memory are presented: (1) epigenetic memory, (2) DNA memory, (3) RNA memory, and (4) protein memory. Other possibilities, such as the transfer of memory via intracardiac neurological memory and energetic memory, are discussed as well. Implications for the future of heart transplantation are explored including the importance of reexamining our current definition of death, studying how the transfer of memories might affect the integration of a donated heart, determining whether memories can be transferred via the transplantation of other organs, and investigating which types of information can be transferred via heart transplantation. Further research is recommended. (Source.)

See Also:

Memory transference in organ transplant recipients