Feeding the Mind and Healing the Soul
Stevenson Memorial Hospital is an institution that is necessary for us all. For that reason, we all need to support its existence. Through the work of skilled practitioners and modern science, the Hospital mends what is broken and heals what is sick, augmented if not supplanted by the strength of the mind and soul.
Lucretius was a philosopher from antiquity (99 to 55 BCE) who taught truths that were buried for more than 1000 years until discovered in the 1400s in a Monastery in Germany. It is over 7000 lines of poetry translated from Latin and is at once laborious and enlightening reading. Lucretius, in “On the Nature of Things,” develops Epicurean thinking around the concept of “atoms” or “seeds” being the building blocks of All of nature, including flora, fauna, weather, the earth, and, by extension, the whole of the universe, including human life on earth and anywhere else life may exist. There are only two things in nature…atoms and void. Everything is made of these two things, including the mind and soul.
Lucretius argues that the mind and soul are single entities consisting of very small atoms and voids (just like the body) that occupy and dominate our entire body or frame. The mind and soul need to be fed just like any other living part of nature. If the mind and soul are sick, they don’t regulate the frame very well, allowing the frame to weaken and die. As the mind and soul die, so does the frame, and vice versa.
How does one nourish the mind/soul? First, since it is made of atoms it will need physical sustenance no different than the body. It would likely enjoy macaroni and cheese. Second, since it also guides the body, it must be fed learning and knowledge to command it appropriately.
I offer the reader this thinking because when someone we know has cancer or is ill, we all want to do something meaningful to help. We want to participate in their illness journey. And so, I humbly suggest;
Fill their freezer with pre-made meals to sustain their body and mind throughout treatment, leaving their mind space available to assist them in battling their adversary instead of worrying about what to make for dinner. In doing so, we enable them to be strong of mind and body and participate tangibly in their fight with the knowledge that they are doing what they can to stave off the adverse effects of their cancer or illness. In addition, please give generously to the redevelopment of your local hospital. A healthy mind and a healthy hospital are both needed for healing.
Show your support by donating today:https://transformingstevenson.ca
By: Dr. Ted Vandevis – Board Chair, Stevenson Memorial Hospital Foundation
Source:
Lucretius, T. (1st Century BC). On the Nature of Things. Unabridged text from the 1916 English translation of De rerum natura by William Ellery Leonard,Timaios Press, Sweden.