Living in a Toxic World

Life is a miracle in itself. Being alive is a miracle. Having your breaths is already a miracle. Everything in life is a miracle.

Unfortunately, many of us are too busy even to notice our breaths, not to mention to know who we are and what we are doing. We are forever living in the past or in the future, except in the now. As a result, we don’t see the miracle of life around us. We have eyes that don’t see, and ears that don’t listen; we see only what we want to see, and hear only what we desire to hear. Accordingly, most of us live as if nothing is a miracle, and this perception becomes our reality. In addition, our perverted perception is further distorted by the toxic environment we are living in. We have become the farmer in Aesop’s fable who, out of greed, killed the goose that laid the golden eggs, thinking that it wasn’t a miracle, and thus turning a once-miracle into a no-miracle.

In truth, we are living in a toxic world, very different from that of our ancestors. As a result, our minds, bodies, and souls have become toxic to a greater or lesser extent.

First of all, our minds are toxic. In this age of advanced technology, we are often over-loaded with information and over-stimulated by sights and sounds that are mostly toxic in nature, although we may not be fully aware of it.

A case in point, while growing up, many are facing different challenges and struggles that come in many different forms, such as being too tall or too short, being skinny or overweight; being too rich or too poor, and the list could go on and on. On top of these, many need to belong to or be a part of a group in order to find their true identities, without which they always feel that they are insecure and worthless. Toxins corrupt the mind. Indeed, growing up in a toxic environment is not for the faint of heart.

Stepping into the adult world does not make life any easier. Pursuing a career, finding a love relationship, starting a family—many are, more often than not, filled with hurdles and obstacles in the form of anger, betrayal, bitterness, competitiveness, envy, frustration, and many other toxic emotions and thoughts.

Growing old is even more difficult. Time is running short as well as running out. Adding insults to injuries are frailties and infirmities of the body and the mind, both of which may have become over-toxic by then, and thus devastating the soul.

The reality is that life comes in different stages, and each stage is full of its own challenges and problems that often turn into toxic thoughts in the mind, which create toxic emotions leading to toxic actions and reactions, and they have become toxic memories, haunting the mind, infesting the body, and staining the soul.

A toxic mind is responsible for a toxic body. The human body is connected with the mind in the form of biochemical reactions in the body and nerve impulses in the brain. This invisible and intricate communication is subtly responsible for the alignment or misalignment of the flow of life-giving energy between the body and the mind; hence, if the mind is toxic, the body is also naturally vulnerable to its toxicity. In addition, you are living in a physical environment that in itself is very toxic and polluted; therefore, your susceptibility to body toxins increases by multi-folds. Your toxic body only further poisons your toxic mind.

A toxic mind produces a toxic body, and their toxicity taints the soul, ultimately making the soul become toxic too. A toxic soul is incapable of guiding and directing behaviors, actions, and reactions in their physical forms in the mundane world.

The body, the mind, and the soul work as a system of energy. This state of being, which is the overall feeling of health and wellness of any individual, is dependent on the intricate interconnection between the body, the mind, and the soul. Without that interdependent relationship, you are simply existing, and not living; in other words, you are living as if nothing is a miracle.

The mind always affects the body, which speaks the mind, while the soul illuminates the mind, which connects and communicates with the soul. Therefore, the alignment, misalignment, and realignment of the body, the mind, and the soul for holistic wellness attests to the miracle of life and living.

Remember, the mind is the map, the soul is the compass; without both, the body is going nowhere.

To conclude, wisdom in living is ridding the mind, the body, and the soul of their respective toxins. Rethink your mind, renew your body, and reconnect your soul—realigning the body, mind, and soul is the essence of wisdom in living in this contemporary world. Realignment of your being opens your eyes, enlightens your mind, and awakens your soul, so that you will live your life as if everything is a miracle.

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau

ASIF