Importance of Physical Well-being

 

Photo Credit:Quotefancy|Joseph Pilates

Importance of Physical Well-being

As we grow up, we take our body for granted – we actually subject it to abuse by excessive eating, drinking, not exercising etc. When we are in our growing years, we really do not realise the impact of this abuse as the rate of recovery of our cells is much faster than the dying rate of our cells. According to Wikipedia, between 50 and 70 billion cells die each day in an average adult. Based on that, the average adult must make 50 to 70 billion cells each day to compensate for those that have died since this is an adult human and there is no net growth. To add onto that, your body needs to replace the red blood cells it loses. Every second, 2.5 million red blood cells die (a relatively small number compared the trillions of cells you have in your body). These are replaced at a rate of about 2 million per second (again, from Wikipedia).

The rate of red blood cell production slows as you grow older. In order to understand this, we need to understand cell division. In our cells, we have our chromosomes, which contain our DNA. The ends (or "caps") of our chromosomes are called telomeres. As our cells divide, these telomeres begin to shrink. Each time a telomere gets shorter, the chromosomes are less protected and finally, the chromosomes are exposed to damage, and cell division stops. So, cell division slows as you age. Furthermore, when you are younger, you are growing and so your body not only has to replace dying cells, but make new cells for growth. When you reach adulthood, your body ceases growth.

What I am trying to explain is that the more we take care of our physical well-being the greater the chance we are giving for our spiritual growth. We have to realise that we can focus on our inner well-being and growth only when we have a strong and healthy physical body. This is because the physical body houses our soul, so if the house is weak then there is no chance for the soul to make an appearance. It is therefore our duty to exercise, eat healthy food, meditate and do everything possible to rise above body consciousness into soul consciousness.

A healthy body leads to a healthy mind which leads to a quieter mind – all this leads you on your inner journey. The more aware you become of your physical well-being and  take care of your body, the more your body will support you in your spiritual journey. It will help you sit still, then once your eyes close in meditation, the mind will become quiet with time, with the quietening of the mind you will journey inwards into depths of soul consciousness whose experience will fill you with bliss, joy and indescribable happiness.