Conclusion
“Your body hears everything your mind says.” ~ American musician Naomi Judd
The human body is a motile vehicle: the physical interface between self and all else. Human hands afford unsurpassed object manipulation: providing the power to alter the environment in ways and to extents that no other organism can.
Our lives are lived through our minds. The brain is merely a physiological correlate to the mind, an organ of interface to the physical world.
Senses provide data points that are collated via perception into the movie of our existence. The baseline quality of that ongoing mental production is set by the body. The body is the film stock for life’s feature presentation.
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The ecology of humans begins within. All animals are oversized microbial colonies in motion.
The microbiome is only 2nd in influence on development to the genes that provide the blueprint of being. The microbiome defines health. We eat and our nurturing gut microbiome feeds us. This is why a healthy diet is so important. An impoverished microbiome does not nourish the body.
The immune system has scant chance of fighting pathogens without the aid of a microbial community that has an affinity for its homestead.
Our desires and modus operandi are a partial product of our single-celled friends. We are merely the unwitting mayors of our own personal microbial metropolis.
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The body and mind are intertwined. While the quality of life is ultimately a matter of consciousness that takes form as perspective, physical health is a significant determinant of the level of struggle involved in enjoying existence.
That basic biological urges are contradictory to optimal health is ironic. The body enjoys eating too much and exercising too little – spiritually, it seems a setup.
The path of health is a product of the mind, namely force of will. Discipline is the most important ingredient in living the most fruitful life possible. That discipline extends to the mind.
“To keep the body in good health is a duty, otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.” ~ Buddha
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Spokes of the Wheel continues with Book 5: The Echoes of the Mind, which explores the mind and its machinations.
