In a very general sense there are three main areas of life that are good to maintain balance in, the Physical, the Mental and the Spiritual. Manifestations of these three aspects of life are discussed by everyone from the Buddhist to the Bahá'í and in various religions from Christianity to Confucianism, often as Body, Mind and Spirit.
While there is more to "it" than meets the eye, most would agree that everything from the marvelous to the mundane falls into one of these three aspects of life. The beauty of them is that everything needed to keep them in balance, everything needed to live fully and completely, is provided. None of it needs to be purchased, none of it is difficult to locate or hard to get to. The tools are provided or you already have them and how to use them is innate. It can become overly complicated, juggling is still juggling. The best thing we can do to maintain balance is to not get in our own way.
More on those Three Aspects:
1. The Physical: The physical aspect involves the basic, survival needs; water, food and the means to maintain physical health. All these things can be provided by the Earth itself. Food is the most obvious; we can grow it, hunt it or find it naturally. I have gone on many hikes where I came back with a fine dinner of wild lettuce, wood sorrel and other wild greens with some nice morel, chanterelle or shaggy mane mushrooms; it's a cornucopia out there and all I have to make is rice, maybe lentils too if I’m feeling frisky, they’re great with shaggy manes. Water is an obvious necessity and something like 80% of the planet is covered with it so it can be easy to come by. Even in the wild it’s easier to purify water than the people who want to sell you water-purification kits, among other things, would have you believe. As to maintaining health, there is more medicine growing in the forests, on the hillsides and in the mountains than a lot of folks would guess. Of course I’m not suggesting we all go out and live in the forest, that’s pretty extreme. To clarify, I’m just pointing out that it’s possible. With modern conveniences available, like going to the gym, it’s especially easy to be physically fit. Also, I don’t need to tell anyone paying attention in this world that diet plays a big role. I’m also in no way suggesting that people go out and ignore doctors so they can make their own remedies. Herbs are great for health maintenance, serious acute conditions, and even chronic conditions caught early. Dandelion won’t set a broken bone though, and that is but one of many examples. Chronic conditions are best treated with both, in a carefully considered, balanced and doctor approved way. These days most regular doctors have learned a thing or two about the efficacy of herbal treatments. Of course, some don’t bother looking beyond the threat to their livelihood if people took their health into their own hands more than they currently do. 2. The Mental: Mentally, people need one another. I have seen first-hand what happens to a person who isolates themselves from others for too long, it isn’t pretty. I hear all the loners out there saying that there are exceptions to that rule and I agree, those exceptions are people who have learned balance. What we can learn from others, unconditional types of love, the feeling of being supported, protection, encouragement and companionship to name a few, are all very important. Of course there is also the most basic and primal thing that drives us together, procreation. People need people, as cheese-ball as it may sound, it is true. It’s about mental health as well as mental acuity and both are up to the choices people make. It’s pretty remarkable what the mind/brain is capable of when it is finely tuned and unencumbered by lopsided thinking. 3. The Spiritual: Pierre Teilhard de Chardin said it best when he said, “We are not physical beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a physical experience.” Part of the reason why there are so many “spiritual truths” that seem to run parallel in so many differing religio-spiritual paths is that they are just that, truth. “Be here now” is a phrase often linked to Buddhism but it is true for all religio-spiritual constructs, just be. Be connected, so connected your path is your lifestyle. You know you’ve learned the lesson when living it is effortless. It is instinct, innate knowing that guides us, not gurus, books, weekend seminars, or online courses that give out fancy credentials and mythical made-up medals like Oprah gave out cars back in the day. Spiritually most folks already know their truth; all that is needed is faith in whatever it is they believe that truth to be. When it comes down to it the symbols are not needed. Crosses, pentagrams, stars or any other shiny bobbles do not bring us closer to our truth or aid us in walking our path. The approval of others will not help us to take a closer walk with anyone either. This is a path that one walks in independence, even within a group or church. No matter what box you check on the religio-spiritual application, Christian, Pagan, Eclectic, any of the "isms, or “Other”, the name means as little as the symbols. I don't mean to diminish the symbols or the insight gained from these things, it’s not that simple, It’s easy to know your truth, for balance, you have to live your truth, even when no one is looking, even when there’s no prize. Choosing resonance is innate and once one learns to live their truth without expectation of glory or kudos, or being right, when one learns to just Be, that is when there’s balance. A sure sign that you're on the right track is that you aren't overly concerned with the paths of others since your focus is on walking your own. It isn’t as though once you’re on the path there are no bends and curves and twists and bumps and rocks and fallen logs and such, you still have to pay attention. Another sure sign is that you aren't assigning blame. There is an old proverb which states that, "He who blames others has a long way to go on his journey. He who blames himself is halfway there. He who blames no one has arrived." That makes a lot of sense provided it isn't intentionally taken out of context. And that is really what it's all about: intent. Any time you're wondering what direction to go in ask yourself what your intention is, it can help to keep you moving forward. My final thought includes the physical, mental and spiritual. Mentally I ruminate once again on that comment from Pierre Teilhard de Chardin, “We are not physical beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a physical experience.” I say, what's the matter with being both? Both and so much more.
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Hanna Maxwell
All knowledge starts with self knowledge. Archives
July 2021
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