What is a wholistic lifestyle?

As Plato, the Greek Philosopher said thousands of years ago – Treat the Whole Person (tolle totum).

I realized that no health product used in isolation as a supplement can be a clinical solution if they are not used within a wholistic lifestyle framework.  Many of us failed to appreciate this point and work on it. We have the belief that the cause of diseases is external – my children, my spouse, my boss,  the environment etc. This is why medicine doesn’t work on such people. The cause is always the ‘devil’, not me. The person would go from doctor to doctor, without a permanent cure.

This wholistic framework is so important that I pen my first book Leaf to Life, based on this topic.  The book may not be appealing to some because it is about inner revolution.

So, what is Wholistic Lifestyle?

• Nurture the inner doctor – the vital force in our body assisted through natural remedies and regulation of life, in harmony with nature’s laws of health;
• Treat and heal the whole person – internally and externally;
• Peace within my whole being – body, mind, and soul, with others, the community, and the environment.

Let us start with the first one – Nurture the inner doctor. 

When I watched my mum take her last breath and die peacefully in my arms, I was convinced that life extends beyond the physical level. Call it what you like: we each have a spiritual body and a spiritual inclination towards and longing for the divine and the sacred dimensions of life. When we embrace ourselves totally — body, emotions, mind, and spirit – then our lives are complete and whole.

Excerpt from book Leaf to Life (Buy now in Amazon books).

You and I are gifted with a vital force.  This vital force is the energy that animates a living creature and even plants.  Different traditions describe it with different names – permission of God (Islam), the breath of God (Christian), chi (Chinese), vital force (naturopathy).

Thus I see a person’s vitality through his eyes (St Hildegard mentioned that signs of death can be observed through the eyes), pulse, and the tongue.  The vital force is manifested through the vitality of the person without signs of adrenal exhaustion. The vital force is very important. This is why we see people who are diagnosed with cancer yet they survived for years, sometimes without any medical intervention.

This vital force always seeks to balance your body, mind, and spirit.

The role of a naturopath /herbalist etc. is to help you strengthen this inner doctor.

Do know that you are given a self-healing force. Nurture it through natural herbs, diet, rest, spiritual pursuits, emotional balance etc. and the body can heal itself.

 

 

 

 

 

 

To be creative, learn the art of wasting time

A very happy National Day to all Singaporeans.

 

Like many of you, I did serve my country in my little way (see photo dated in ROC, Taiwan, 1984). Please congratulate yourself. You did a good job to create a proud Singapore.

 

However, I believe to move our country forward, our people need to be creative, especially for our younger generation. We have no natural resources. We may be hardworking but so are the Chinese, Malaysians, Thais etc.

 

I like the way the Jesuit psychologist Anthony de Mello put it – To be creative, we need to learn the art of wasting time. The Post-It pad was not invented in the office but was inspired while singing in a church.

 

We and our children can’t be creative when we are overly stressed and clued to the smartphone. I learned this while working in the United States – Creativity has no deadline.

 

I often got inspirations during my quiet morning walk in the park or in quiet prayer time. Do we spend time in nature or in silence?

 

To be creative, we can’t be conformist. I was told that I needed to be an engineer, doctor, or an accountant to make it in life. I was told that my Cantonese language and heritage (and so do Hokkien, Teochew etc.) was second class compared to Mandarin. And my generation believed it.

 

To be creative, we can’t always be YES people. I am proud that one of my godsons decided to take a road less travelled – study naturopathy in New Zealand.

 

We need more creative people. And I believe we need more naturopaths and herbalists and healers too!

 

Creativity needs to be balanced with emotional intelligence and moral values. We are in trouble if our children don’t know how to say HELLO and THANK YOU and don’t care about taking care of their aged parents.

 

Have a wonderful day and I pray that Singapore will continue to thrive wholistically.