By Russ Gerber
The concept of mind we’re all familiar with is gradually becoming the mind of the past. The decision-maker, the seat of knowledge, the repository of hunches, innovation, emotions, judgment, memory, opinions, will and so on is actually a rather narrow concept we’re finding out. Human mind 1.0.
Evidence continues to mount that the mind is also the main factor regarding the body’s health and longevity. “What if Age Is Nothing But A Mind-Set?” asked the New York Times Magazine some years ago, in which Harvard professor of psychology Ellen Langer commented on how a slew of experiments and research in this field have convinced her of the dominating influence of the human mind on the body.
The concept that the human mind influences the body and that our nature is a grab bag of good and bad emotions and beliefs, some of which are detrimental to health, is actually an ancient one. What’s gaining wider acceptance today is the degree to which the body is the servant of the mind, the mental regulator of the human system.
This concept of the broader realm of mind raises additional questions that need answers. Which mental qualities produce and sustain health, or can have the reverse effect? Can we eliminate harmful ones, and if so, how? If health-producing mental qualities aren’t the product of brain chemistry, where do they come from? Is there a source for them that we have yet to understand?
Like everyone, I’d love to have all the answers. But you don’t need to fully understand everything about any concept in order to start exploring and taking advantage of its potential.
The most promising concept of mind would be one that’s less rooted in a vulnerable human nature and instead embraces a diviner nature, one that’s purely good and loving, and that positively affects life. It’s a mentality that comforts, brings greater confidence, underpins sounder relationships, is peaceful, less fearful, fosters better health, and contributes to the larger good of society.
A marvelous aspect of having such a conception of life and the positive experiences that come with it is that it’s not a miraculous or unnatural feat, and it isn’t something we have to wait to do. It’s a matter of consistently assimilating more of the goodness and, patience and compassion that we intuitively feel belong in our lives, and that would naturally emanate from a Mind that is solely good and loving and available wherever we are.
To do this takes humility, and every effort to stay on track with it. Expecting much to change by merely putting on a cheery veneer now and then, or by counting on effortless short-cuts, would end up falling short.
This is about consistently taking advantage of a relationship that’s always existed and where there’s always an open door – a constant, close, and natural relationship with the Divine. While that may be a new concept for some, it isn’t a new relationship.
Those who have taken advantage of this relationship throughout history have found that the more one embraces a diviner idea of life and puts it into daily practice, negative thoughts and experiences such as loneliness, anger, fear, or despair begin to lose their grip. Lives are made better. As Paul noted in his letter to the Romans, we’re transformed by the renewing of our mind.
The New York Times Magazine piece and others like it remind us of the researchers and pioneers who are carrying on an exploration of the infinite range of the mental realm and its potential to better human lives. It’s an important field of study and practice for them, even life-changing. It can be for all of us.
Russ and his wife moved back home to Southern California after working in Boston as the media manager for the Christian Science church. With a background in publishing, most of his time is spent writing, reading, volunteering and grandparenting.
