Holistic Healing Of Mind Body Spirit
In the first part of this series we learnt about the ultimate reality of life. In this part we are going to study about the structure of the body, the faculties of the soul, and the different meanings of spirit.
To understand the concept of holistic healing of mind body spirit one needs to have a clear grasp of how a human being is created and functions. This guide gives a clear insight on each aspect and how the combination works as a unity. Understanding body and soul first is essential to grasp the aspects of mind, heart and spirit. This guide will fully equip you to practice self healing which includes healing of spirit, healing of emotions, and healing of mind which is the key to holistic health.
Basic Meaning Of The Spirit
In depth understanding of the visible material things leads to a superior perceptions of spiritual things that are not visible. The word spirit has numerous meanings and we will decipher each meaning as we learn more and more. To begin with we need to understand the basic meaning of spirit and matter.
All that we can see and or touch is matter. Matter exists in three states – solid, liquid, and gas. Water, ice, and steam are matter. All that we cannot see and or touch is spirit (meaning #1). This is the basic meaning of spirit. So the body is matter and the soul is spirit (meaning #2). With this information we are ready to dwell deeper.
Understanding The Body
On the earth there are four types of living creatures having a body. They are fish, birds, animals, and humans. The body consists of different organs like brain, heart, lungs, stomach, and others which deal with the various functions.
The brain is the manager of all the other organs of the body. It runs on a preset program which includes a set response to situations within and outside the body. This response is called instinct.
The heart circulates blood throughout the body which delivers all the vital ingredients required for survival. The lungs take in air and supply oxygen to the blood. The stomach takes in food and breaks it down in such a way so as to help the blood to carry it to all the destinations. So simply put a creature with a body requires appropriate food (solid & liquid), clean air, and a suitable environment.
The body has different organs and thereby various functional systems. These are the central nervous system, the respiratory system, the circulatory system, the digestive system, etc. The brain is the control center of all the organs and the systems. External information from the physical realm or visible world enters the brain through the five senses of sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell. The brain reacts in a preset manner (instinctively) to the internal and external information provided by the five senses. The brain can also communicate with the visible world using these senses.
Understanding The Soul
The intellectual superiority of the human has led to the acceptance that an entity resides in the human body. This entity is commonly called the soul. This entity possesses three basic abilities. These are intellect, emotion, and will. The intellect is the ability to think, reason, imagine, remember, etc. The emotion is the ability to experience feelings of love or hatred and happiness or sadness. The will is the ability to make decisions. These abilities make it possible to evaluate, communicate and thus build relationships. The soul besides its abilities is loaded from the onset with all the information required to grasp the purpose of life and to be good natured.
Like the body the soul also has various parts or faculties. The section of the soul that deals with thoughts is called the mind. The section of the soul that deals with emotions is called the heart. In the English language the word ‘heart’ is used to indicate the most important thing or place. For example the phrase ‘the heart of the matter’ indicates the most important point of the subject. The phrase ‘the heart of the car is the engine’ indicates that the engine is the most important part of the car.
The thought is the outer level of engagement. The emotion is far more deep rooted. The faculty of the will is located in the heart as well. Thus every decision is made here. Thus the heart is the seat of emotions and decisions.
All decisions are based on or influenced by the thoughts and or the emotions. The reason for any decision is logical (thought based) or emotional (emotion based) or both. Generally speaking decisions related to non living things are logical while those related to living things are emotional. Problems begin when priorities are confused. Here our focus is on the emotion called love. In logical decisions the priority is on what I will get. Decisions based on love are about what I am ready to give.
The decision to buy a computer has to be a logical one. Allowing emotions to influence the decision will lead to a bad choice. The decision to help someone in need has to be based on love. Allowing logic to influence the decision will adulterate the choice. Practically all decisions are a mixture of logic and emotion due to our imperfect human nature.
Understanding The Spirit
The soul can acquire information from the spiritual realm or invisible world through a part or faculty called the spirit (meaning #3). The spirit can speak, hear, touch, taste, and smell and thus communicate with the spiritual realm. This is sometimes referred to by some people as the sixth sense or the third eye. The location of the spirit is widely believed to be parallel to the forehead. The soul can communicate with the brain of the body via the spirit. The spirit can sense what is in the brain as well as send signals to alter its functioning.
More About The Spirit
The body is matter. All the organs of the body are matter. All that is contained in the organs of the body is matter. The five sense organs are matter.
Similarly the soul is spirit (#1). All the parts of the soul are spirit (#2). All that is contained in the parts of the soul is spirit (#3). The sixth sense is spirit (#4).
There are spirit persons (meaning #5) and there are spirit things (meaning #6). God, the angels, and the evil spirits are spirit persons. Words, thoughts, emotions, desires, love, joy, peace, etc are spirit things.
The word spirit can also mean a principle (meaning #7). When we say a group is having 'good team spirit' (#7), we refer to the existence of a certain principle.
Superiority Of Soul Over Body
So the body and soul can communicate with each other via the spirit. The combination of the two that forms the human person can communicate with the visible world using the five senses and with the invisible world using the sixth sense or spirit.
The brain works on a default preset program and controls all the organs of the body. The brain program controls the involuntary functions and the voluntary functions of the body. The beating of the heart is an involuntary function. Speaking is a voluntary function. The brain program also has a function called ‘instinct' that responds to external factors. The soul has the ability to override the brain program called ‘instinct’ with regards to all the voluntary functions of the body. The decisions of the soul have an overriding authority.
Usually any alteration in the functioning of the soul has a corresponding effect in the body and vice versa. A spiritually disoriented person can experience many problems in the functioning of the body. A person in bodily pain finds it extremely difficult to indulge in spiritual activities.
A bit of caution is warranted at this juncture. A problem in the body could be due to lack of proper diet, lack of proper exercise, lack of proper environmental conditions or just sheer carelessness (accidental). A simple medical approach can solve the problem. However if medical options are not giving any results it is necessary to consider the spiritual angle.
A combined approach to both the disciplines is the best option. Therefore holistic health is not possible without a holistic healing approach that does not combine both spiritual healing and physical healing.
Self Healing To Holistic Health
This guide is a series of three parts. The first part explains the purpose of human existence and the reality of eternal life. The second part provides information on how the human person is created and the various functional areas related to holistic self healing. The third part focuses on how things go wrong and talks about corrective options related to healing of spirit, healing of mind, and healing of emotions. You have just read part II.
Go to Part III
contributed by: Simon Nazareth
contributed by: Simon Nazareth