A Pilates teacher once suggested that if you ever suffer an ankle injury, it helps to practice standing on that foot alone (when it is sufficiently recovered) as often as you can. Why? Because the nerves are also injured in sprains and the neural connectivity between the foot and the brain is undermined. Standing on one leg restores the passage of information from the ankle to the brain so that your balance and movement become more resilient again.
I find this a good metaphor. Balance is a shifting and dynamic notion; not about achieving a static point but sustaining dynamic equilibrium, which is far more fluid in living systems. It tells me that what is important with a balance is opening and restoring the flow of information. We could say that we become imbalanced whenever we block or close down to a wider understanding of our situation, our relation, and our context. We lose the ground upon which we stand and substitute for more abstract thoughts and memories. It is as if we literally lose our understanding.
This happens for me when I fall back on old patterns and get stuck. It could happen when I repeat past judgments and ideas about a person or situation that has changed, and get into conflict. We can see this happen with our friends, families, bosses, and also in political situations all the time.
It seems that we have to apparently lose our balance, our old stance, in order to find a new one. We have to sometimes let go of what we hold on to in order to keep our sense of upright strength, in order to move forward and explore new territory. Is this what we do every time we take a step and walk forward?
Within psychology, there are many different ways to make sense of how we lose balance in our relationship with the world:
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هذه القصة مأخوذة من طبعة April 2023 من Heartfulness eMagazine.
ابدأ النسخة التجريبية المجانية من Magzter GOLD لمدة 7 أيام للوصول إلى آلاف القصص المتميزة المنسقة وأكثر من 8500 مجلة وصحيفة.
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TIME IS A PRECIOUS RESOURCE
SARA BUBBER tells a story about a king who set a challenge in order to find an assistant. The outcome teaches us the value of time. She also gives us a thoughtful heart activity, and tells us some fun facts about time.
WHEN A BIRD SINGS, DO YOU ANALYZE IT?
SIDDHARTH KAK is an Indian documentary maker, television producer, and presenter, best known as the producer and presenter of Surabhi. Here, he is interviewed by PURNIMA RAMAKRISHNAN at the Global Spirituality Mahotsav about being stoic, and he shares two unique stories on how culture and language can transcend borders, time, and unexpected circumstances.
Become Your Own Influence
AARYAN ARORA is a young actor, musician, and composer. He was interviewed by PRAGYA MISHRA during the Global Spirituality Mahotsav on the impact of meditation on his creativity and sense of inner balance, and the advice he would give young people struggling to find their way.
Cultivating Peace: Water, Wetlands, and Biophilia for a Loving World
SRAVAN BANDA reminds us of the importance of water in a peaceful world. He especially focuses on wetlands, often referred to as the Earth's kidneys, and asks us to continue the work of World Water Day throughout the rest of the year.
It's Time for Love to Go Viral
DR. ROLLIN MCCRATY shares the science of the synchronicity between the heart and mind and, when they are in sync, how the love that is created can positively connect us to each other and everything in the world.
HUMAN FELLOWSHIP
NILAKSHI RAJKHOWA is the Director, Office of Public Affairs, National Spiritual Assembly of the Baha'i Faith in India. During the Mahotsav, she challenged everyone to join together to overcome our current crises, by starting with the heart.
There Will Always Be PROBLEMS
GOUR GOPAL DAS is an Indian monk, lifestyle coach, motivational speaker, and former electrical engineer. He talks about the inevitability of problems and how developing a state of inner peace can help us to navigate those problems, and not allow them to hold us back from living a fulfilling and whole life.
An Honor Bestowed
On the final morning of the Mahotsav, the Right Honorable PATRICIA SCOTLAND, KC, Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, spoke about the role DAAJI has played in bringing spirituality to the world, unifying people of all faiths and cultures, and nurturing nature. In honor of his work, she bestowed upon him the title of Global Ambassador for Peacebuilding and Faith in the Commonwealth. Below is the speech she made while conferring the honor.
Love for the Sake of Love
On the second day of the Mahotsav, DAAJI spoke about the purpose of the gathering, why there are different religious practices in different faiths, how to nurture the soul, and how all people can come together for a better world.
RECONNECTING WITH YOUR INNER CHILD
DR. JOSEPH HOWELL is the founder of The Institute for Conscious Being in the US. During his keynote address at the Global Spirituality Mahotsav, he guided the audience through an exercise to help them find spiritual connection by connecting to their inner child.