Welcome to Episode 10 in 12 Minutes to a More Mindful Life — a guided mindfulness series by Jerry Varghese, Certified Mindfulness Teacher (IMTA) and founder of Nihshreyasa, a holistic wellness studio based in Fort Kochi, Kerala, India.

In this session, we explore Heart-Centered Awareness — a gentle practice that invites you to rest your attention in the heart space and connect with qualities like warmth, ease, understanding, and compassion. Instead of trying to manufacture emotion, we simply arrive, soften, and allow the heart to express whatever is naturally present.

Through this 12-minute guided meditation, you’ll:

- Connect with the heart space through breath and awareness- Breathe ease and spaciousness into the chest

- Invite qualities of warmth, compassion, and gratitude

- Expand this gentle awareness to your whole body and beyond

- Rest in a quiet sense of presence and aliveness

This episode also includes a Mindful Activity for your day: A Heartful Breath in Conversation. During a conversation with someone you care about, take one mindful breath through the heart. Notice if softening your chest helps you listen more deeply, respond with warmth, or feel more connected. Sometimes it’s our presence—not our words—that creates the real shift.

After the practice, take a moment to reflect:

• What did you feel when resting attention in the heart?

• Did warmth, ease, or emotion arise naturally?

• How has your mood or breath shifted compared to when you began?

Heartfulness grows quietly — breath by breath, moment by moment — and with practice, it begins to shape how you relate to yourself and the world.