Overview
In this post we explore a way of looking at your life that will help you to gain wholeness. Although based on ancient Judeo-Christian thinking it can also be found in ancient western philosophy.
How are we put together?
There is an approach to life that can help build happiness and success. It finds its roots in many of the major world religions and in ancient western thought and is also grounded in modern approaches to life management.
We are made up from four different aspects. These four combine to make the whole of who we are. Within life we should seek harmony within our self. Harmony is about achieving balance through control. When a choir is in harmony it is not because they all sing what they fancy but because they are controlled by the music (and usually the choir director). Self-discipline has always been an important part of success. Self-discipline is about control.
Now to most of us control might seem like a bit of a dirty word. It reminds us of dictatorships and nasty rules and regulations. If we had to come up with some words we associate with control I expect many of us would say stuff like: boredom, slavery, misery etc.
However think about athletes who reach the top of their game, think about business people who become very successful, think about pretty much anyone who has ever achieved anything, and you will discover that self-discipline and control played a vital part in that success. Far from being limiting and miserable self-control and discipline can lead to great happiness and success.
Now don’t get me wrong here. I don’t have a picture in my mind of a sergeant major barking orders at a brow beaten soldier. I mean self-discipline that is born out of knowing yourself very well and working with your self to achieve what you can. This is self-discipline not other-discipline.
Have you every tried to achieve anything and failed? Was it through lack of self freedom that you failed? Was it because you felt like you could keep going for ever but decided to give up anyway and so you did that you failed? Or was it through lack of self-discipline? Was it because you hit a bad patch and so because of the struggle you gave up?
Self-control and self-discipline are vital parts of success.
Anyway here are the four aspects that are important followed by an explanation of the control one must exert over the other:
Soul, Mind, Heart and Body.
Each aspect of life is important and each aspect exerts an influence on the other. There is a hierarchy involved in those aspects following the order shown above. This hierarchy is important and is often overlooked when people talk about finding balance in life. This hierarchy enables your self to find true balance and without it there is anarchy.
I’m afraid much of what I talk about is metaphysical. That is it about something other than the physical world. You can’t see or touch these things but that does not mean they are not there. People have long believed that these things exist and have given them all kinds of names.
Let’s start by thinking about the body and working our way up.
Body (the physical)
The body represents the physical side of life. It is sometimes also described as “the flesh” or “the world” etc. Without the physical we would not be born and we would be deprived of many sensations that make up an appreciation of life. However although vital in the makeup of a person the physical is the least important aspect of life. This is shown in the truth that even if we are disabled or our health deteriorates it doesn’t make us any less of a person. The physical world is the domain of the scientist. How we experience the physical can have a profound effect both – good and bad – on the other three aspects of life. If you ever doubt this then go for a walk in the countryside or on a stormy day and you will see what I mean. If we suffer physically then we can also suffer mentally. Sadly many people spend an inordinate amount of time on only the physical and neglect the other aspects of life.
Heart
When we talk about heart we do not meaning the muscle that pumps blood around the body but a concept, an idea. The heart is the inner self. That part of us that feels and (together with the mind) decides. It is the seat of love and hate; joy and sorrow; peace and bitterness; courage and fear. The true character or personality of a person. The body has a profound effect on the way that our heart reacts but our heart tends to have a controlling aspect over the body. Without heart we are just existing and not experiencing life.
Mind
The mind is the thinking side of life. It is the understanding, thoughtful and reasoning side of life. Although we often think of the mind as morally neutral it can be corrupted as well as being the source of great good. If you doubt the evil nature of the mind then read a few history books to see how very reasonable people have taken evil courses. The mind gives us the ability to make plans and execute them. The mind must take precedence over the heart and the body. Sometimes our hearts can deceive us into believing that something that feels nice must be good but our minds help us to see through the gloss. There is a famous wise old saying that says “all that glisters is not gold”, a reminder that our minds must take precedence over our hearts. Our mind is constantly struggling to become the ruler of all. However it needs to be kept in check or it will dominate everything making our emotional life non-existent. Thankfully our mind is not the ruler of all our parts – that honour is given to the soul.
Soul
The soul is the part of us that gives us a sense of beauty and creativity. It is the essence of being human. It is the part of us that seeks the divine and the eternal. It is the part responsible for morality, justice, understanding and appreciation. It is in essence the very core of a person and that which makes him/her alive. It allows us to see beyond the physical to understand the spiritual. For most of us in the west the soul has become the most neglected part of who we are. This is not the place to debate the reasons for this but whatever the reasons the soul is much neglected to our detriment.
These four aspects of life make up a whole. If we ignore one aspect we become less that we should be but when they work together as a whole then we become more than we might have been.
