In the article Bringing the Mind into the Heart, they write:
Just as the vertebral column keeps the human body standing upright, so too “The Prayer of the Heart is the backbone of the Church”. This image means that the Prayer of the Heart keeps the Faithful in constant contact with God, allowing the First Commandment to be constantly working in us and bearing fruit: “to love God with all our Heart, soul and energy”. It keeps us, the branches connected to Jesus the Vine, absorbing the constant flow of the Holy Spirit (the sap) (see John 15). It allows us in our turn to give that constant stream of Holy Spirit to the world: ‘He who believes in me […] out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water.’ (John 7:38).
We often dwell in our brain/mind and don’t understand the central advice of the Spiritual Masters, the Eastern Christian Monks who advise us to put our spirit/mind into our heart.
Theophan ... embodies the teaching of the Eastern Christian Monks when he says: “I will remind you of only one thing: one must descend with the mind (Gr. Noûs) into the heart, and there stand before the face of the Lord, ever present, all seeing within you. The prayer takes a firm and steadfast hold, when a small fire begins to burn in the heart. Try not to quench this fire, and it will become established in such a way that the prayer repeats itself: and then you will have within you a small murmuring stream.”
Others say: “bring your mind (Gr. nous) into your heart”. Some comment: “The descent of the mind into the heart is taken quite literally by the practitioners of Hesychasm and is not at all considered to be a metaphorical expression.”
This is an important part of the teaching of the Prayer of the Heart, a fundamental indication that comes from the Great Christian Masters. They had the experience, they had the discernment and the teaching. ...
Note how this is similar to Joseph Smith's experience of lacking wisdom regarding which of all of the conflicting Protestant sects is most correct. The answer to his prayer was not provided through philosophical theology, but a direct experience with a pillar of divine Light. The Book of Mormon in turn goes on to similarly emphasize having a direct experience of the Divine Light and seeing the Lord face-to-face in a visionary state. I see no reason to elevate this vision of acension to experience seeing the Lord face-to-face as something wholly supernatural as a kind of out of body experience, leading some people in Restoration Mormon sects chasing after this actual experience; or using the claim to such an experience to elevate their status to being more special or authoritative than others who have not actually seen the Lord face to face through the veil. I instead interpret the face to face ascension passages in the Book of Mormon as a guideline for contemplative prayer: as something one can practice as a form of meditation and visualization on God; just as Joseph Smith had those working on the Nauvoo temple, visualize seeing the temple, which they described as a real visionary experience of seeing the temple as if it was really there in its future embodiment. I discuss this in my document here. So too, I believe the Book of Mormon can more reasonably be interpreted as being designed, as Joseph put it as "the most correct book on earth" and that "a man would get nearer to God by abiding by its precepts, than by any other book ..." as meaning that (as I see it) the Book of Mormon gives contemplative guidelines on how to draw closer to God through its plain and simple Doctrine of Christ and Acsension passages.
The article by The School of Mary quoted above, goes on to describe the Eastern Orthodox Christian perspective and provides a diagram here. The article then goes on to give advice on how to practice a form of Christian contemplative prayer and how to move from being in the mind (overthinking brain) toward being more connected to God by centering more in one's chest and heart. So you are less stuck in thinking (in your "head"), but connecting with God from the inner area of the energy of the heart and your in and out breath, etc.
