The Five States of Consciousness
with Heart Rhythm Meditation

1.	Heart Focused "Conscious Heart Rhythm": Be constantly aware of your heartbeat in your chest, throughout the breathing cycle. Be aware of your pulse in any part of your body you choose. Notice the delay between your heartbeat and your pulse. The method used to attain the Heart-Focused state is called "Concentration".
2.	Heart Centered "Being in your heart": In addition to the heartbeat, be aware of the constant sense of pressure within the heart, pressing outward against the ribs, and the heart's magnetic field. This is the stage of the discovery of the emotional dimension of the heart. The method used to attain the Heart-Centered state is called "Contemplation".
3.	The Universal Heart - Alpha Unity "Heart Consciousness": This is the discovery of the Universal Heart, the heart of all, the heart that all hearts are part of and the heart within all hearts. The expansion of the heart expands the mind, (It's not that the expansion of the mind expands the heart.) and the mind also becomes transpersonal. One temporarily loses individuality in the realization that one's own heart is a pool shared by all, and one's mind is its surface. The method used to attain the state of Alpha Unity is called "Meditation".
4.	Instrument of the Heart "The Heart operates through you": While retaining the experience of the Universal Heart, one's individuality re-emerges. This new sense of individuality, your true self, appears within a vast and rich atmosphere of heart that surrounds you wherever you go. You can literally walk around within this heart. The method used to attain the Instrument state is also called "Contemplation", but it is the universe contemplating the individual instead of the individual contemplating the universe.
5.	Representative of the Heart - Omega Unity "Microcosm": The mind and heart work cooperatively, with the mind acting as a lens to focus the radiance of the heart toward those people, situations, and aspects of the self that need the heart's understanding, courage, creativity, and peace. The heart radiates peace, sending out wave after wave of vibration that harmonizes all those it reaches and creates an integrated, harmonized, convergence of purpose. The method used to attain the Representative state is again "Concentration": the universe concentrating itself into an individual aspect of itself.
Progression through the stages is like a spiral, not a ladder. As we become more experienced, we fill in the experiences that we touched upon earlier, and are able to maintain each stage for as long as it is needed. There are many types of meditation; Heart Rhythm Meditation has different physiological, emotional and spiritual results than other types. For a comparison, see The Types of Meditation.