Saturday, August 24, 2019

August 24--Giving Our Bodies a Chance to Thrive


Remember that the body is the temple of the soul.  Those who mistreat the
body tend to mistreat the soul within.  Observe vital health laws, such as
exercise, healthy diet, and self-control.

Susan Santucci

* * * * *

Today's Meditation:

So many of us treat our bodies as enemies.  We abuse it through neglect, overuse, covering it with chemicals, filling it with chemicals, and all sorts of other activities that don't serve at all to prove that our bodies actually are temples for our souls.  This body is a wonderful gift, and if we abuse it, we're making sure that it doesn't function properly and therefore diminish the quality of our time here on earth.

In addition to being a temple, though, the body generally gives an accurate reflection of how we treat ourselves as spiritual beings, too.  Do we neglect our bodies, not giving them enough exercise or healthy foods?  Then there's a very good chance that we neglect our spiritual side, too.  Do we mistreat our bodies by indulging in harmful chemicals from things like cigarettes and unhealthy foods?  Then guess what?  We're probably mistreating our spiritual selves, too, by introducing unhealthy thoughts, ideas, and images.

Most people don't even tend to think of some of their most unhealthy habits as even being related to the body.  It's easy to drink four or five sodas a day without even thinking of the effects of the caffeine and the corn syrup on the bodies we have.  It's easy to eat fattening foods and highly processed foods and even too much food without keeping in mind that for every pound of fat we put on, our hearts have to work that much harder and our muscles have to compensate to carry around more weight and our joints are strained and unable to function at optimal levels.

Taking care of ourselves is a full-time job, obviously.  But just how do we care for ourselves?  Are we fully aware of all that we're doing--and not doing--to make sure that we're giving our bodies the best of chances to be healthy and functional?  Some people may want subconsciously to have a body that gives them problems because that gives them freedom to ignore other deeper, more important problems, but that really is no way to live.  Our bodies are the temples of our souls, and we really should treat them with respect, dignity, and care.

* * * * *

Questions to consider:

How does it become so easy for us to neglect our bodies over long periods of time?
What kinds of things do you do that keep your body from being the best that it can be?  Why do you do them?

What does it mean for our bodies to be the "temples of our souls"?  How do we normally treat temples when we visit them?

* * * * *

For further thought:

The body is the soul's house.  Shouldn't we
therefore take care of our house so that it
doesn't fall into ruin?

Philo Judaeus




More on the body.






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