The Ocean is Spiritual

….all of us have in our veins the exact same percentage of salt in our blood that exists in the ocean… We are tied to the ocean. And when we go back to the sea, whether it is to sail or to watch it, we are going back from whence we came.” - John F. Kennedy

I have loved the beach since I was a small child. Coming from a dysfunctional family it was the one or two weeks per year that we behaved as normal. I have been to a few beaches along the East Coast; I can count at least 9 off the topic of my head. Just planning to go to the beach contains certain rituals for me that I know I mimic from my own mother. Once I got older I immediately took my husband to two beaches in our first year of marriage. There were some years where I couldn’t go due to finances, but I am back to going steady again.

The ocean is magical. The ocean is spiritual. If you simply sit in the warm sand and look at it… everything else seems meaningless and it melts away. The sound of the ocean waves are just naturally relaxing. The further you gaze out into the water the more you realize how small you are. For me, it is the perfect place to be.

So we just got back from a 7 day beach vacation. It was awesome to do nothing and make no plans, have no responsibilities. We brought back some Real Estate info because my husband who had never been to a beach before he was 23 yrs old is now committed to moving to it… and I couldn’t want anything else too!

I took the photo above with the sun in my eyes and a glare on the camera lens yet it still came out perfectly vivid and soothing.

The Alternative Approach

Today I was reading a message board that a friend actually led me to. My friend was recently diagnosed with something that I don’t want to mention since it’s her private business and not relevant to this post. She led me to this forum because even though I keep my religious and spiritual beliefs to myself… little tiny tidbits do slip out in my behaviors and my speech. She led me there to get my input on spiritual healing. I think I ended up giving her quite an earful.

I believe that spirituality is often misconstrued. Like anything whether it be business, hobbies, or entertainment etc there will always be human beings who jump on the band wagon with the latest hot topic. We will all catch ourselves (if we pay attention) to getting caught up in the seeking itself verses in the true feeling of being connected to our own God/Goddess/Pantheon. It’s like always seeking the experience, the big thrill, or the ultimate fix.

What ever religion we believe in….. the first and foremost is celebrating our God/Goddess, recognizing that source of all things that we personally believe is responsible for our soul development. And it’s not even as simple as celebrating this in our lives… its bigger than that. Its also about who WE are to THEM and vice versa. It’s very easy to get caught in the spiritual process, the procedure, to try all the available ways to be spiritual and then forget WHY we really want it.

“There is a hunger for being connected with a divine force. The hunger is not just for philosophy, but for experience,” says James Redfield, author of Celestial Prophecy.

Perhaps the hunger takes over and throws us off our balance when we seek the experience instead of the philosophy. The basic premise of the term New Age is about seeking a mind-body connection. But where is the “divine” in that?

I saw this today on the message board my friend sent me to today. Aromatherapy, past life regression, psychic healing, detoxifying diets, drinking green tea, crystal power, chakra healing, color therapy, reiki, the law of attraction, prayers, fire walking, reflexology, meditation, herbal medicine, chiropractic therapy, magnetic therapy, iridology, acupuncture, and so on.. are some of the hundreds of methods people use to seek answers, help, and quick fixes. I practice several things myself that are considered pseudo-psychology/therapy, but I don’t rely on any of it without pursuing the matter with myself, science, and my God/dess. To do so…. is just really a matter of being bored.

I knew someone who recently DIED because they stopped all medical treatment with doctors, went off their medications and solely followed Alternative Medicine. This person wasn’t someone very close to me but I still found it very sad. He got so into the holistic approach for about 3 years straight; then got so ill from it, he literally died. The final straw was a detox type of approach, only it was not healthy for him, and there is a good chance he was actually allergic to one of the herbs he was taking. Many Alternative Treatments are ancient, and were used by many cultures because science didn’t really exist at the time. I believe them all to be complimentary healthcare today, but none are provable by science, and they do not work the same on each person. No one should diagnose themselves or practice it without their doctor being informed. No amount of alternative medicine is going to replace common sense/logic or science.

The excuse that the doctor isn’t listening is bullocks. Make a mind-body connection fast, and open your mouth until you are HEARD. Doctors do not have super powers, they are human and it’s up to you not to let them disregard you. Diseases and health issues are BIOLOGICAL not spiritual..not emotional and not in your head unless you have an assortment of other issues going on. And even still a doctor can refer you to a good therapist LOL.

I advised my friend of my opinion just as I wrote it here. There is no single answer, all diseases have a remission-like sensation, so you have to recognize and accept your REALITY. If you believe in mind over matter solely then you aren’t seeing to the biological parts that are involved. I told my friend I was able to suggest some simple things to her (herbs, yoga, etc) that MAY enhance what her doctor is suggesting as long as she verifies it all with him.

Trust me, I’m a witch; I have beliefs in these ancient methods, but if any of them actually worked on everyone for curing diseases it’d be all over the news and common practice instead of an alternative.