In yoga, the manamaya kosha refers to the third level of our energy body, the part of us which is comprised of emotions.   E-motion, energy-in-motion, is the idea that whatever it is we are feeling is running through us, and that we are never entirely frozen into one feeling state.  Emotion is an interpretation of our sensations.  Pure feeling is physical.  When we assign meaning to physical sensation, we arrive at emotion.  When our feelings are “hurt” we can actually locate pain, for example, in our heart.

 Most people know that we feel emotional pain in our body, but most people don’t want to take the time to locate that pain physically and breathe through the pain in order to fully acknowledge what’s happening and move through the painful experience.

Of course not all feelings and emotions are painful.  But sometimes we feel too guilty to freely experience our pleasurable feelings, for example, sexual feelings.  Many times we somatize our troubled thoughts, meaning that we experience them as  headaches, stomachaches, and worse, because we surpress our fears or anger, and end up burying these emotions in our bodies.

The key to emotional healing is to express and release the emotion we’re trying to avoid or feel overwhelmed by.  Some experts say that expressing anger intensifies anger and that it is a counterproductive thing to do.  My experience is that if our intention is to heal, then expression of feelings is healing.  If our intention, even if it is unconscious, is to get revenge or remain righteous, then we may very well work ourselves up even more.

Owning our feelings is mature and responsible.   This may sound earnest and prissy, but the truth is that real maturity and response-ability makes life more gratifying and enjoyable … eventually leading to a spiritual awakening.  Owning our feelings means acknowledging the truth of what we feel to ourselves.  Eventually if we can reveal this truth to another person, someone truly understanding, and to God, we will be liberated from the weight of carrying fear, anger, guilt and shame.

From a physical standpoint it helps to relax, or soften the body.  We are carrying more tension in our muscles and organs than we realize.  If we state an intention that we would like to soften, open, release and heal, little by little this will happen.  Especially if we ask for spiritual help from Spirit Itself.  I have turned to many healers over the years and learned a great deal about how my body holds tension, how my body is a repository for my unconscious thoughts.  Now it’s a habit of mine to ask Spirit to enter into my relationship with any healer and to provide a healing for both of us, and the entire world, that is for the highest good for all.

Emotional healing is a direct conduit to God … any emotion on which we are fixated, be it bad or good, is a distraction from God.  When we turn our emotional health over to God we clean out our psychological closets, allow energy to flow freely through the manamaya kosha, and experience a direct mystical connection with God.  It’s very reassuring.