Wholeness, Health and Healing (Part 4) Health and Recipe

It is important to understand that we operate on the basis of various kinds of energy. When we consume a meal we are replacing the physical energy which we use every day. This energy, as is well-known, must be maintained at certain optimal levels for good health. A second type of energy, which is just as important, if not more so, is emotional energy. Although more subtle than physical energy, emotional energy may be even more important in the maintenance of one’s health. It is well-known that we may often become emotionally “drained” in the face of some traumatic experience, or, on the other hand, when we feel elated, our energy to engage in life’s activities is almost magically multiplied. We find ourselves able to do things beyond our normal limitations.

There is yet a third type of energy, which is even more subtle, and which many people may not be so aware of, and that is spiritual energy. Not so many people are able to utilize this kind of energy effectively because it takes certain disciplined training to recognize, access, or utilize it. One often visualizes the Buddhist who meditates for hours in a secluded place. But everyone can tap into spiritual energy if they understand the nature of spiritual energy. Those people who are devoutly religious, or who are spiritually inclined, know the tremendous support which a clear, firm faith conviction can give one, even in the most trying of times. A sense of hope, of meaning, and purpose animates a person beyond what might reasonably be expected. Compared with the average person who may be burdened with life’s many inconveniences, and burdened by a sense of hopelessness, or meaninglessness, a person who is able to tap into spiritual energy, is able to meet life’s challenges well, with vigor and enthusiasm.

Let me now turn, more briefly, to Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich (69). Although not a doctor per se, and not addressing the topic of health directly, Hill is yet another writer who emphasizes the power of our thinking, not only on our health, but on every aspect of our life, and indeed on our ultimate success in life. He says “Your mind is your spiritual estate! Protect and use it with the care to which divine royalty is entitled.”(70) Here again we see the incredible power of the mind and of our thoughts on reality. “Verily, there is nothing, right or wrong, which belief, plus burning desire, cannot make real.”(71) Here is really elaborated the power of positive thinking. It is stated in his book: “Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe it can achieve.”(72) Again, “Through some strange and powerful principle of ‘mental chemistry’ which she has never divulged, Nature wraps up in the

impulse of strong desire ‘that something’ which recognizes no such word as impossible, and accepts no such reality as failure.”(73) Again, “all thoughts which have been emotionalized (given feeling) and mixed with faith, begin immediately to translate themselves into their physical equivalent or counterpart.”(74) These statements again show the incredible power of our thoughts over our lives (including our health), but to relate this to our topic here, health and healing, it is interesting that of the thirty-one major causes of failure, Hill lists “Ill Health” as number six:

No person may enjoy outstanding success without good health. Many of the causes of ill health are subject to mastery and control. These in the main are: a. Overeating of foods not conducive to health. b. Wrong habits of thought; giving expression to negatives. c. Wrong use of, and over indulgence in sex. d. Lack of proper physical exercise. e. An inadequate supply of fresh air, due to improper breathing. (75)

In what I have stated so far, I have tried to bring to our attention the fact that a number of individuals, doctors and otherwise, are emphasizing certain ideas about healing which are fairly new (and not to be found as playing an important role in traditional thinking about health and healing, especially in the West). I hope it has become clear how vitally important is the mind-body relationship, and, perhaps even more importantly, in the context of that relationship, an appreciation of the mind as a very powerful, even dominant, factor in its influence over the body in the maintenance of one’s overall health and healing. Trusting that I have sufficiently established these points, let me now turn to the second of my subtopics: the relationships between people.

David met the True Parents in 1972 while serving in the US Army in Korea, and studied Unification Thought with Dr. Sang Hun Lee. Returning to America he taught Unification Thought at Belvedere, helped with Madison Square Garden, Yankee Stadium and Washington Monument campaigns and was selected by True Father to attend UTS. Upon graduation, he worked in Upstate NY and was then called to UTS to teach Divine Principle, Unification Thought and world religions. In 2004 he returned to Korea, teaching at the Cheongshim Graduate School of Theology in Chung Pyung until 2014. He presently lives in Indianapolis, engaged in church outreach.