Do you have a good intuition?

Do you often feel disconnected in a crowded space? Do you take great comfort whenever you are out in nature? Do you have a hard time not caring? Do you feel attuned to the feelings of people close to you?

Chances are you are an empath.

Being an empath is an incredible gift, but it can be mentally exhausting. There is a limit to the empathy of a sensitive person, and these feelings can often be overwhelming if left unchecked.

Learning about which type of empath you are helps you utilize your gift for the betterment of those around you, instead of being staggered by it.

In this article, we understand what it means to be an empath, the different types of empaths, and how a spiritual seeker can cultivate empathy within their heart.

What does it take to be an empath?

An empath is derived from the word “empathy.” An empath is a sensitive individual who can sense and absorb other’s physical symptoms and feelings. When someone is deeply attuned to the physical and emotional feeling without even uttering a word, they are known as empath.

Very few people are empaths, and it is not an easy task to be one. One must be good at really listening to what others have to say. One must listen to others’ problems carefully and patiently. One has to pick up on how others feel emotionally. Empath always thinks about how others feel, and they are always followed by people seeking advice. If any tragic incident happens, whether it directly concerns or does not concern an individual, it always overwhelms the Empath.

Why is empathy essential in a seeker?
We all are connected with one true consciousness. Many people call it the oneness, the Divine or singularity. Understanding one another is the fabric of our ability to communicate with ourselves and with the universe. If you are gifted to be an empath, consider that the universe has a plan for you. It’s your duty to connect with people and know about their hardships, sorrows, and difficulties.

Empathy helps us understand others better. It makes us better listeners. It gives meaning to our life when we connect with others, when we give them our shoulder to cry on and when we offer a helping hand to those in need. Empathy is often termed as a source of unconditional love. In a nutshell, empathy makes a seeker open to new ideas, makes them open-hearted, kind-hearted, generous, and a better version of themselves.

What are the different types of Empath?
It could be physically and mentally exhausting to be an empath, often leading to confusion and overwhelming. But once you have recognized yourself as an empath, it becomes easier to figure out what kind of Empath you are to sharpen that divine gift within you. Let’s take a look at a few types of Empath.

Physical Empath: When you are attuned to others physical symptoms, and even you feel like absorbing them into you, consider that you are one of that physical Empath. Many physical empaths often do not choose to stop what they think, and hence often, they are labeled as patients with panic attacks, anxiety, fatigue, and depression.

Learning to ground yourself, take care of your mind, body, and soul balance, and strengthen your energy field are the best options for a physical Empath. Setting up healthy boundaries will help you filter out unwanted negative feelings that you might receive from others.

Emotional Empath: if you can easily read the room and quickly read the emotions from others, consider yourself an emotional empath. Often, these are the results of hyper-sensitive neuron systems within your brain, called mirror neuron systems, which are responsible for showing and feeling compassion towards others.

You can feel and participate in the joy of your friends, coworkers, and relatives when you are one of the emotional empaths. Many come to you with their problems, as you often advise them as if you are stuck in the same situation with your friends. However, these types of Empath must keep their distance from a narcissist and constantly cribbing friends, as they could easily take you down with their excessive negativity.

Intuitive Empath: Intuitive empaths can sense and pick up unspoken things on what’s going on. These individuals with extraordinary perceptive capabilities like receiving the messages heightened intuitions and communicating with nature.

These empaths are so in tune with their subconscious that they are experts in viewing the world with a broad perspective and see things coming towards them before anyone else can.

Dream Empath: Do you often receive messages in dreams? Can you correlate and decode them to help yourself and others? It’s because you might be a dream empath. Dream empaths have vivid dreams, which often begin in their early childhood, and they learn to decode them as they grow up. They might dream of their spirit guides, in the form of an animal, people, angles, or voices.

Dream empaths are known to travel to other realms or even to parallel universes, and often they feel comfortable while being in their dreams instead of the real world. Keeping a dream journal helps this kind of intuitive people. Writing down the goals while being in the hypnagogic state, a state in between awakening and sleeping, allows recording dreams and contemplating them later throughout the day. Dream empaths often find their life answers through the signals they receive in their goals.

Earth empath: Many people say that our earth itself is a living organism, and planet empaths are the people who can connect with plants, territory, and the entire planet. They are very closely attuned to nature, and all the changes mother earth goes through. Earth empaths sense to the energies of the earth. If they see greenery, waterfalls, or rain, they feel very positive, and whenever they see the factory chimneys polluting the skies, they feel incredibly depressed, sick, or even emotionally drained. Being an earth empath means being in tune with the moon and often experiencing seasonal affective disorders.

You can feel mother earth’s love for you, and when you see that earth is being harmed in any way, you feel deeply hurt. To feel alive, these empaths spend most of their time outdoors, in forests, near oceans, in the mountains to connect with the earth.

Animal Empath: If animals are attracted towards you without fear if you are drawn towards the animals rather than being with humans, the chances are you are an animal empath. Animal empaths have a special connection with the animals. They have exceptional abilities to recognize and understand any animal’s physical, emotional, and mental state, interact with them better and influence their behaviors.

Empathy is essential to a seeker. Understanding others along with understanding ourselves, that’s what makes us human. There is a particular Chakra related to empathy, and one can improve the empathy by meditating, focusing on that Chakra.

Which Chakra is linked with empathy?

Anahata or the Heart Chakra is the fourth Chakra, which represents transformation and love energy. Associated with the color green, a well-balanced Anahata Chakra allows us to feel open to new life experiences and love within everyone around us. The Heart Chakra is considered a deep bond with the universe, and it’s related to feelings like respect and compassion. This Chakra is closely linked with empathy and your ability to love everyone unconditionally.

How to balance the heart chakra?
‘Ha Sa Ka La Hrim’
Freshen yourself, and get into comfortable clothes. With closed eyes, get into the comfortable position for meditation, and start focusing on your deep breaths. After five minutes into the meditation, begin chanting this powerful Mantra while concentrating on the Heart Chakra. This potent Mantra helps in cleansing and balancing the Heart Chakra, enhancing the sense of gratitude and empathy within you, which are two essential qualities to be a sincere seeker. Before you take up this Sadhana, we will advise you to consult your Guru, as they know what is best for you.