Summary

The author emphasizes the importance of viewing the body as a sacred space, advocating for self-care and spiritual connection as pathways to holistic health and enlightenment.

Abstract

The article "Your Body IS Your Temple" presents a personal perspective on the significance of treating one's body with reverence and care. The author, identifying as a Christian with a broad-minded approach, suggests that the Holy Spirit, or an equivalent universal spirit, resides within each individual. By tapping into this inner spirit through practices like meditation, prayer, and other holistic activities, one can achieve peace, healing, and a deeper connection with the divine. The author also stresses the necessity of physical care, criticizing the common neglect of the body, and points out the interconnectedness of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. The article aims to inspire readers to pursue a life of balance and wholeness, advocating for the importance of self-love and acceptance as a foundation for healing and personal growth.

Opinions

The author distances themselves from a stereotypical, judgmental Christian archetype, promoting a more inclusive and understanding approach to faith.
There is a belief that many self-identified Christians do not embody the true essence of God's love and kindness, which the author finds disheartening but predictable as per biblical prophecy.
The author asserts that the state of relaxation achieved through certain practices, like meditation or herbal remedies, can lead to profound experiences akin to enlightenment.
Achieving a state of 'rest and digest' through the parasympathetic nervous system is seen as an essential but often neglected aspect of health.
The article suggests that true healing and understanding come from a deep connection with the divine within, leading to feelings of wholeness and love.
The author expresses frustration with the societal misunderstanding and misinformation regarding basic physical needs and self-care.
There is a strong emphasis on the importance of mental, emotional, spiritual, and energetic health, alongside physical health.
The author is self-critical about their ability to convey the depth of their thoughts and experiences through writing.
The author expresses a desire to inspire and educate others through their writing, aspiring to become a successful writer with a significant following.
The author encourages reader engagement and support for writers on Medium, highlighting the impact of membership and interaction on the platform's community and content.

Your Body IS Your Temple

Why I believe this phrase is So vitally important, and how it can change your life!

For those who do not know, I am a Christian; however, I am NOT a close-minded, cult-like church going ‘holier-than-thou’, but really a judgmental hypocritical do not truly understand the meaning of God’s love and kindness, kind of Christian.

Don’t get me wrong, I have my faults and I have much to learn.

Also, my apologies for anyone reading this who takes offense to the above statement. In my defense, my experience (as well as many people who have confided in me), it tends to represent a larger number of so called ‘Christians’ then I care to believe is, or would/should be, true. Unfortunately, the Bible predicts this, but I am rambling and ranting sooooo back on topic!

The Spirit of God, Holy Spirit, Gaia, the Universe, your spirit, is WITHIN and accessable to you All the time.

I truly believe that by tapping into our inner-most-selves, we can tap into our soul/spirt and/or the Holy Spirit. We can do this for many reasons: peace, healing, insight, connectedness, etc..

This can be achieved in various ways, and one way is through meditation aka deep prayer. Other ways can be through hypnosis, being in deep contemplation and/or connection to/with nature, music for some, exercise for others, as well as even certain herbal remedies (and not just the ‘obvious’ ones).

I made myself an herbal tea a few weeks back that had me in such a relaxed state of contentment — I do not know if I have ever felt so relaxed and at peace in my life. I achieved parasympathetic at its finest and it was unbelievably wonderful. I could easily imagine that had I tried to achieve ‘enlightenment,’ I could have more easily. I do not remember exactly what I made but pretty sure this is what I used: Nettles, Oat tops (whole), Skullcap, Chamomile, Mullein, Catnip, and Wild Indigo Root.

Side note, the parasympathetic nervous system, otherwise known as the ‘rest and digest system,’ is the state of being we are ‘supposed’ to live in. Sadly many, if not most or even all, of us live in our sympathetic, known as the fight or flight, nervous system.

More on that in another article perhaps, but for now back to it…

I realize this idea of striving to reach enlightenment through meditation, and other factors, isn’t new information for many; however, I think it can go deeper and I believe that because I feel I have experienced it.

Trust me, I am not very ‘good’ at meditation and am definitely still very novice or green, but I have achieved a state of clarity, contentment, abounding love, and what I think is a tuning into the Holy Spirit. I felt an immense feeling of love and warmth that is truly beyond explanation.

If our bodies are in fact our temple, then searching inside ourselves for truth, love, meaning, answers, strength, etc., as well as the Divine is always within our grasp. I am not sure I can fully expand upon how profound and extraordinary this is, but I will try.

If we can tap into ourselves, the Holy Spirit, Divinity… that is where we find true love, healing, and understanding.

If nothing else, it is where we find wholeness, and how can we begin to heal when we do not feel whole, even if we are not fully aware of how incomplete we feel…???

I find it interesting how many of the stories of miraculous healing, is from learning to truly believe in and love oneself, as well as to Trust in God and/or the Universe. Not saying others who have died haven’t done this, but much of the time when I hear or read incredible stories of medically and/or scientifically inexplicable healing, it comes from Faith and Love. It comes from becoming one with God, the Universe, our Souls, and learning to truly love and accept ourselves…

I feel like if someone hasn’t experienced it, like so many other things in life (runners high, survivors guilt, etc.), that someone cannot quite explain or understand what I mean. Just the fact that it is so hard to describe should tell someone something though, right?

Anyway, moving on to another very important piece of the proverbial puzzle… our physical bodies and how taking care of them truly matters!

If our bodies are our temple, why do so many treat their bodies like garbage?

Not only are we responsible to and for our bodies and taking care of them, but if we do not, then how can we expect anything from them?

How can we expect them to work and function optimally when we use and abuse them so much? How can we expect to be able to heal or reach enlightenment? How can we expect anything?

Our bodies are freaking incredibly amazing and I LOVE them! I understand confusion about how to take care of ourselves and what is the best way to do so and so on, but what about the basics? I think eveyone knows that our bodies need physical sustenance like food, water, movement, etc., but why is there so much confusion about what those things mean/are?

Money, power, greed, control are perhaps some of the reasons, and the list goes on and so does to topic buuuuuut we shall save that for another time altogether.

For now, let’s tap back into something else that is also very important: social, spiritual, emotional, energetic, mental sustenance…

We need to take care of our mental, emotional, spiritual health just as much as our physical health. If our body is our temple, why do we let so much of it rot?

Actually, I digress. I do not think I am doing a good job trying to portray or convey my thoughts and ideas or ideals. I wish I had the words or something, but I scarcely believe I can even truly begin to explain through in person conversation let alone simple text.

Please forgive me for not completing, I truly do not know how…

With love light blessings, and a prayer for a brighter happier healthier tomorrow…

Your Idealistic HolisticNerd ~ Mind. Body. Spirit/Soul. ~

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