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Fr. Sebastianf
[dropcap]E[/dropcap]arlier days the Philosophers taught that a human being was composed of soul mind and body. The soul is something spiritual that enlivens the whole person. A man is dead when the soul departs from the body. This soul is something that our eyes cannot see and the hands cannot touch yet it is fully present in the human being. Then there is the mind that does all the intellectual function in the humans. It is supposed to be seated in the brain that gives orders to the body to act or not to act at anyone point of time. The third component is the human body which gives the external form and shape to the person.This body cannot exist independently without the soul. There is an inter-relationship between the three components. The human person does not exist in three separate compartments. He is a united whole. All the three components work together as one entity. This unity or this inter-relationship is .so real that medical science and psychology have taken serious note of it. The psychiatrists began to probe into the causes of various illnesses and find that many of them originated from some mental problems. Medical Science also accepts that the cause of certain illnesses go far beyond the clinical laboratory. The modem healing system views the patient holistically and suggests remedies to heal both the mind and the body. This system does not see any bifurcation or dichotomy in the individual, He is one single entity, Today many sicknesses are claimed to be psychosomatic like heart disease, pressure, arthritis, asthma and diabetes to mention a few. It is believed that these sicknesses are caused by mental problems such as tension, pressure, worry, anxiety and depression. The way to recovery from these is through the treatment of the mind. The body and the mind are both inter-related. They do not function under separated and isolated compartments. They interact on each other. In fact a healthy man is a happy man. Health provides happiness and happiness contributes to health. If your health is affected your happiness goes and if your happiness goes your health too. It is not the quality of food alone that makes your body healthy. It is the quality of your mind that lends itself to make your body healthy even with the simplest of foods. In my neighbourhood in Kerala, there is a small factory know as Eddy Current controls. It manufactures metre boxes to control the flow of current that is supplied to certain very sensitive machines. There was a worker at the factory who during the lunch break would take a nap under the shady trees over a cycle laid on the ground. Many who saw him would wonder how he got his deep relaxation over such a make shift bed. He did have a cheerful look and a healthy disposition. He was only a labourer but lived happy and cheerful with what he had. When you are happy your body releases constantly enzymes necessary for your absorption of food and hormones enzymes for your growth and maintenance, When you are sad the body refuses to release the necessary hormones. enzymes and nutrients. Instead the body plays havoc with you by releasing deadly toxins into your blood stream. Is the relationship between your body and mind in balance?