Unit 6: Exercises for Mind-Body-Spirit Wellness and Healing

1.      Universal Loving-Kindness

We learned in previous weeks that loving-kindness involves empathy for others. We have the ability to take in others pain and suffering and breathe out to them health, happiness, and wellness. The concept of universal loving-kindness is similar, yet we take these feelings, our open-heartedness, sensitivity, generosity, and emotional intimacy and spread them into all of our relationships. Universal loving-kindness allows us to see one another, acknowledge and hear another, be present with another, and feel one with one another in regards to lovers, partners, friends, strangers, and enemies. To reach integral health, we must extend these capacities to all of humankind. The following universal loving-kindness exercise expands our hearts and minds, serves as an antidote for hatred and anger, and helps to shift our focus to a universal loving-kindness rather than personal love (Dacher, 2006).

Exercise

Closing your eyes for a few minutes, rest into the natural ease of the body and mind and repeat the following phrases over and over for 10 minutes: “May all individuals gain freedom from suffering. May all individuals find sustained health, happiness, and wholeness. May I assist all individual in gaining freedom from suffering. May I assist all individuals in finding health, happiness, and wholeness” (Dacher, p.93).

2.      Integral Assessment

With integral assessment, you place the focus on the four quadrant (psychospiritual, interpersonal, biological, and worldly) to identify the areas that you wish to work on. You identify any urgent areas of distress and create a plan for developing them (Dacher, 2006).

First Aspect of Integral Assessment

Resting into the ease and stillness of the body and mind, release mental activity until quiet. Then ask yourself which aspect of life is the source of difficulty and suffering. Focus on this area. What is the line of development that is most essential for you? What is your current level and what will you aim for? (Dacher, p.115).

Second Aspect of Integral Assessment

Returning to the stillness, shift the focus from healing to promoting integral development. What area is ready for growth and development? Is it the same that needs healing? What does the next area look like? (Dacher, p115).

3.      Reflection

What I discovered about myself is that I have a strong and eager base. I was torn between focusing on interpersonal and biological. The area that I chose to be a focus of growth and development is biological. I felt that I have a strong sense of universal loving-kindness as I try to instill feelings of love in all areas of my life. It makes life more meaningful to me. I can further develop these feelings through practicing the universal loving-kindness exercise. Biologically, I feel that most people could benefit from developing this area. I would like to increase my knowledge and awareness regarding nutrition, and progress my fitness into a deliberate program that encompasses endurance, agility, flexibility, and strength. To foster greater biological wellness, I can implement a nutrition and fitness plan. I can use meditation to develop my subtle mind into a unity consciousness. Yoga a few days a week will be beneficial to enhance all areas as well. I can create a program that is tailored to my nutritional and physical needs and abilities. The levels of self-regulation progress from homeostasis to subtle  mind/body practices to highly refined spiritual/mind/body abilities. Once we are progressively experiences, our awareness, now being enhanced, can serve as an informal and ongoing assessment that can be used throughout our life (Dacher, 2006).

References:

Dacher, E.S. (2006). Integral health: The path to human flourishing. Laguna Beach, CA: Basic Health Publications, Inc.