Holistic Health-- 4 Compass Points: Spiritual

The Spiritual Compass Point helps us grapple with the ultimate questions of life and our place within it. It is also the basis for the ethical code that will guide our actions. Ethics involve both what we do and what we refrain from doing. Humans have always struggled with these questions, but the Internet has created all new challenges for age-old ethical issues like being honest and not harming others. Here are two real stories.

As a high school student, Nelson downloaded a paper from the Internet and turned it in as his own. His classmates knew about this, but no one said anything, and the teacher never found out. He was accepted into an elite college. 

Rosa, who was mad at her friend, Amber, violated a confidence by mentioning on Facebook that Amber’s father had gone to prison—a fact that Amber, who was deeply ashamed, did not want to reveal. The public posting of this private hurt so devastated Amber that she became physically ill and dropped out of school, because she could not face her classmates. She was so ashamed that later, she transferred to a different school, where slowly she made new friends.

Time went by, but neither Nelson nor Rosa paid any attention to the spiritual compass point in life. Here is how things turned out for them. Nelson became a successful attorney but stole client trade secrets and was arrested on felony charges. He spent time in prison and was financially ruined because of multiple lawsuits and disbarment. He developed a drinking problem, which destroyed his marriage and relationships with his children. Meanwhile, Rosa never explored the basis for her behavior with Amber and repeated this mistake in later relationships. In one instance, she became jealous of Anne’s closeness with Joyce and sought to harm their relationship by reporting to Joyce a confidence Anne had shared relating to Joyce’s declining memory. Joyce was upset and discussed the situation with Anne, who apologized, explained the basis for her concern, and asked for forgiveness. By contrast, when Anne confronted Rosa, Rosa because angry and defensive, flatly denying what she had done. Anne and Joyce shared ethics from their shared Christian beliefs, which helped them to mend their relationship and go forward, but both eventually had to leave their relationships with Rosa, who lacked the spiritual tools and emotional integrity to acknowledge her problematical behavior and need to change.

Perhaps you have already established a spiritual base and a sense of ethics, or you may be so busy that you don’t even think about this compass point at all. If so, take a moment to consider it, because life inevitably presents all of us with ethical problems that we have to decide. There are many pathways to an ethical life, including Buddhism, Christianity, and other philosophies. Even Alcoholics Anonymous provides a 12 step system that gives participants a way to turn things over to a higher power, work out problems with others, and manage emotional stress in order to avoid relapses. Whatever ethical system you choose, practice it daily as a means of living a life of integrity with the spiritual tools to build strong relationships with others and good will in your community. Haven’t started this yet? It’s never too late. Give it a try and watch your life open like a beautiful flower.