In the holistic approach we often hear people talking about body (physical), mind (mental) and soul (spiritual) alignment but what does it mean?
As physiotherapists we are taught to observe and transform body alignment, which refers to how the head, shoulders, spine, hips, knees, ankles etc. connect, relate and line up with each other, according to The National Osteoperosis Foundation, 2019 [online].
So it could then be said that body, mind spirit alignment refers to how the body, mind and spirit connect, relate and line up with each other.
In the physical dimension it is easy to SEE how our physical body is connected, and aligned. However, we are so much more than just a physical being!!! We are a multidimensional and energetic being who exists on other dimensions (how cool is that?!!) including but not limited to: the body (3rd dimension), the mind (4th dimension) and the spirit (5th dimension and beyond).
So how do we know when your body, mind and spirit connect, relate and line up with each other if we can’t see it?
Simply, we feel it. Lets explore that…
YOU-r spirit is the consciousness that is your true self. It connects you and has access to the All/the Universe. People can also refer to this as God, Higher Self, Source, The Universe, Unconditional love or whatever word resonates best with you. In order to experience itself your spirit projected a portion of itself into the physical container/body you see today, which houses YOU. YOU are the spirit living inside a physical body with the conscious ability to think infinitely possible thoughts.
The thoughts and beliefs that you think are the containers that give shape to the physical events and circumstances you experience and see around you. Experiencing our thoughts in a physical way helps you to imagine new ideas, which create your desires. Your desires are the creation of your spirit, and spirit aligns itself with your desires and moves you toward the conditions and opportunities necessary to manifest that desire. As Melissa Joy Jonsson eloquently says, ‘we are that which creates all thoughts as well as that which chooses to experience them’.
Your emotions in relation to that desire are then created by the thoughts you think with your conscious mind. In other words, the emotions are the interpretations of your thoughts.
We have the power to choose to think thoughts that find alignment with our desire, creating ‘positive emotions’ thereby allowing our spirit to move you towards the manifestation (joy/flow).
Or we can choose to think thoughts that resist the desire of our spirit, and remain out of alignment with that desire. This means thinking thoughts that go against our desire and then we feel ‘negative’ emotion (suffering).
So how do we know if we are in alignment?
Our emotions are the messengers that tell us if the thought we are thinking is in alignment with our spirit and the universe or out of alignment with our spirit and the universe. If we think thoughts out of alignment with spirit, we feel ‘negative’ emotion. If we think thoughts that are in alignment with source we feel ‘positive’ emotion.
So if we simplify it, being in alignment means feeling ‘good’. Feeling ‘bad’ means you are out of alignment.
Lets look at how communication could happen between your body, mind and spirit…
You are all snuggled up in bed, sound asleep and your alarm sounds to wake you up…WAY TOO early, of course!!As you try to turn over you feel a deep stabbing pain in your lower back, your thoughts immediately wonder to all the cleaning you HAVE TO DO at work today. “Ugh I hate my job, I wish I didn’t have this pain in my back” you think. With this thought you have communicated a desire to your spirit for something different.
Your spirit welcomes this desire and sends you back lots of lovely thoughts and inspirations that match your desire. You start to imagine your dream job, how it would be to live with no pain and total financial freedom, what it would be like to have time and energy to do some exercise and activity that enriches your life. With a continuing stream of these thoughts entering your head the alignment/connection and relationship with your spirit becomes stronger and stronger.
At this moment however, you can choose to open to the flow of these thoughts that align with your desire or you can choose to block the desire by thinking of all the reasons why your desire is not possible. If your desire goes one direction and your thoughts go the opposite direction, you create resistance; resistant thoughts flood your mind and the desire is blocked form manifesting. If your desire and thoughts flow the same direction, the desire is manifested.
Any desire you experience coming into your mind, is absolutely available for you to have in your life!!!! As Walt Disney said: “if you can dream it, you can do it” in other words if you can imagine it, then it is in your power to have it. If you couldn’t imagine it, you couldn’t have it!!!Your thoughts already brought it into existence. Invite your mind to follow your heart and allow your heart to guide you toward your desires.