The Good Intentions Our Bodies Have For Us…

This quotation is heard frequently in certain circles from the Jesuit mystic, Teilhard de Chardin:

We are not human beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a human experience.

I can’t exactly argue with this statement, but I admit, it’s always rubbed me a bit the wrong way. Why? Because in the hierarchy of values, it lifts “spirituality” over “being human” (that is, being incarnate, in a body). And at that point, I start getting antsy.

What if being human was, really, the whole point of being here? What if we couldn’t REALLY talk about a spiritual experience vs. a human experience, because they are kind of the same?

And what might all this mean for our bodies, especially for those of us who have chronic illness or any difficulty with our bodies? In fact, what if this quotation by Friedrich Nietzsche carries a very important truth?

There is more wisdom in your body than in your deepest philosophies.

For some of us, that wisdom includes a real experience of pain, limitation or even sometimes shame. Let’s properly include that–for some us, being in bodies ain’t easy. It can lead us to desire freedom from that pain, and that’s where spirituality seems to be a gate to something better.

So, let’s combine the two, and their shared wisdom. Let’s hear our bodies and spirits speak of what they have to say, and under it all, let’s hear the voice of healing, however that might show up.

Please join me for my upcoming workshop, How To Get Our Brains & Ancestors to Support What We Want With our Bodies & Health, July 13th, 4-7p at 830 Bancroft Way in Berkeley. We’ll find the wisdom in our bodies, and see if there is a better way for it to experience what we would like.