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Once thought to be a symptom of illness, stress is now best defined as a disconnection from our divine source. Times of stress may bring feelings of panic and mayhem, but when we call upon our inner resources, stress also provides the opportunity for spiritual growth.
Ageless wisdom suggests that achieving spiritual growth requires balance; to stand secure and grounded like a mountain, but to flow like water. This book reveals how we can achieve balance and peace in our lives.
These are stressful times. You can see it in people's eyes and hear it in their voices. It's a feeling that seems to be ever-present, despite our best efforts to overcome it.
Living in Washington, D.C., during the Bush and Clinton administrations, I became acutely aware of the daily stress people encountered. The pulse of the nation was a constant flutter of activity, fueled by egos and paced by capitalism—thinly disguised as democracy. I was quick to learn how popular hell had become in the nation's capital: lawyers from hell, security clearance from hell and politics from hell. And that's not counting traffic, parking and violence—all from hell as well. One auspicious night, I took a cab home from National Airport during an ice storm, only to hear the driver remark about the "weather from hell." It was all I could do not to think that the underworld had finally frozen over.
These truly are stressful times. The pace of life is fast, furious and becoming more so. A quick glance through the newspaper headlines, or a few minutes of television news, is enough to confirm that humans around the world are approaching a boiling point. The causes are many and varied: workplace intensity, government gridlock, AIDS, gang violence, downsizing, deforestation, ozone depletion, drug addictions, international terrorism, animal extinction and natural disasters. All of these problems put our planet and its people under immense stress.
While the nation's capital seems to epitomize the frenzy of human emotions, stressful vibrations echo across the country—and beyond. This fact has not gone unnoticed by the World Health Organization (WHO). From various surveys and studies conducted in virtually every country, WHO now cites stress as a global epidemic. The mounting tension and strife only confirm what we already know at a deeper level: Stress has become a prominent and permanent part of the human landscape. It may be hard to remember, but it wasn't always like this.
Before the 1960s, the topic of stress did not make headlines, nor was it a household word. However, the rapid rate of change, coupled with the increase of technology, has infiltrated all aspects of our lifestyles. Running right alongside it are the signs and symptoms of human stress. In essence, people are trying to keep pace with a hyper-productive society.
Sunday, once esteemed as a day of rest to honor the godliness of creation, is now merely a day to get caught up with shopping, errands and work before the deluge starts all over again on Monday.
Technology once held the promise to make our lives simpler and more efficient, and to provide additional leisure time. Yet research studies show that instead of more leisure time, we have less. Although gadgets like beepers, laptop computers, pagers, cellular phones, microwave ovens, fax machines, e-mail and voice mail appear to make us organized and efficient, we have in truth become slaves to these technologies.
In his book Modern Man in Search of a Soul, noted psychologist Carl Jung warned that advances in technology, accompanied with increased materialism, would lead to a greater split of the conscious and unconscious mind—in other words, the ego and the soul.(1)
This prophecy, made in 1933, has come to pass as we near the end of the twentieth century. The pace of life today has made us more distant from not only the elements of nature, but our divine essence as well. It is no coincidence that as technology (and the cultural values associated with it) advances to dizzying heights, we find ourselves in a period of spiritual dormancy.
I believe there is an inherent relationship between stress and human spirituality. What seemed obvious to me at the intuitive level was often dismissed in graduate school seminars—until I taught an undergraduate course in stress management. Then the pieces began to fit into a larger picture.
Upon assuming the role of teacher, I became aware of a number of interesting questions. The students were not so much interested in the relaxation techniques being taught as they were concerned about the issues of relationships, values and the purpose of life. On one hand I was surprised that none of these issues was found in any stress textbook; on the other hand these issues are so obvious, I wondered why they were not included. It became clear that these students were addressing matters of the heart and issues of the soul.
Detaching from my own problems and concerns, I could clearly see that stress and spirituality were not opposite ends of a continuum, but partners in the dance of life. I was delighted; one doesn't learn this in academia, especially not in graduate school. In fact, I think it's fair to say that in the mid-1980s, one didn't mention the word spirituality in the same breath as science. There was an unspoken assumption that they were mutually exclusive.
What I pieced together then, and what is coming to be better understood now, is that the spiritual dimension is not only present in the human equation; it is an integral, if not essential, part of it. In order to really understand the human journey, we must acknowledge and nurture these matters of the soul on a daily basis.
Thus began my exploration into the dynamics of mind-body-spirit integration, human consciousness and a synthesis of reflections on stress and human spirituality. This has been the focus of my own journey, both professionally and personally; I know I am not alone in this quest.
When we hear on the news about a crisis in a distant city or remote corner of the world, we can easily detach ourselves from it. But when stress and tension are in our own environment—at home and/or work—it is impossible to ignore it. It is becoming increasingly difficult to cope with these overwhelming issues.
The expression "stress with a human face" reflects a sense of compassion in a tense situation. Taken literally, it means a troubled mind. Our faces clearly reflect the intensity and volume of stress in our lives. Look at photos of Jimmy Carter before and after he became president of the United States. It looks as if Carter aged 20 years during one four-year term. While the job as chief executive is extremely stressful, anybody can experience the same effects of stress—even without being president.
About two weeks after Nancy Kerrigan fell prey to the emotional insecurities of Tonya Harding, I appeared on Fox Morning News to talk about competitive anxiety. Prior to that incident, I was on the faculty of the American University in the department of health and fitness, teaching a popular course in stress management. I also counseled several nationally known athletes, actors and corporate executives in stress management therapy. This particular interview was scheduled to be five minutes in length. The focus was Kerrigan-Harding, competitive anxiety and Olympic pressure on athletes.
Toward the end of this segment, however, the questions from the news anchor became more general in nature. With 20 seconds remaining, she asked, "How does anyone deal with stress?"
Watching the seconds rapidly tick away, I realized I could not do justice to this question in the remaining few moments. With a smile I said, "I can't answer that in a sound byte."
She gave me a nasty look, thanked me and moved on to the news.
As I left, I wondered if I could have given a better answer, since that question is posed to me fairly often. These days I can distill the message of managing stress into one word: BALANCE.
Balance is the ability to achieve a sense of symmetry in our lives. This is not an innate talent but a learned skill; one that must be practiced regularly and mindful of our spiritual essence. In other words, there are no quick fixes to stress. We must look deep into the soul to answer these concerns. This can be a long, arduous process with no speedy solutions. Unfortunately, people are looking for quick answers to monumental problems.
Some of my best teachers in college were my students. One day while discussing the concept of balance in my stress management class, one student raised his hand and shared an ancient proverb from his t'ai chi course. He explained that balance is a fundamental skill in t'ai chi, as well as a principle of the Taoist philosophy.
The saying is: "Stand like mountain, move like water." Now that's a sound byte.
The message is colorful, poetic, profound—yet so simple. The vision of mountains and water is one I find very soothing, but the significance of the message is even more so. The union of opposites as a means to achieve wholeness is common in the Taoist tradition. To stand like a mountain suggests a sense of stability, resistant to the winds of change. To move like water implies the ability to go with the flow, rather than trying to change things we have no control over. To move like water is to persevere, yield where necessary to gain strength, and move on once again. What this ageless wisdom advises is to have strength and security in your own being, like a mountain, yet at the same time hold the fluidity of moving water. Here was an ancient metaphor giving life to the concept of balance. I took an immediate liking to it.
The concept of balance can be found in virtually every culture since the dawn of humanity. Americans may be familiar with the aspect of balance in life through the biblical passage in Ecclesiastes (3:2-9), also made popular in a 1960s hit song, Turn, Turn, Turn, first by Pete Seeger, then again by the rock group The Byrds. Benjamin Hoff's popular book, The Tao of Pooh, also serves as a gentle reminder that the essence of Taoism is really a universal concept. The Native Americans have a similar phrase, "walking in balance," which they use to describe this ...
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Life Crisis Scale on "tilt" ? READ THIS BOOK!,
By A Customer
This review is from: Stand Like Mountain Flow Like Water (Paperback)
Get cruelly betrayed by some you love, that you though loved you. Loose something precious to you. Be cruisified for speaking the truth. And think that nothing makes sence. Then, pick up "Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water". As I read about Andrew, the paralized student that wanted to be admitted in an already filled college class on "Humor", I remembered that there are still things to laugh about and how good it feels to laugh. I read about a woman locked up in a Chinese prison and someone in Chicago who's child was taken away to a foreign country. Then I remembered how thankful I was for my own daughters and all that their lives bring to me. I read about Larry's message to his mother Carolyn and remembered that "holy moments" like that still happen. I felt the grace and peace and strenght that come from using "muscles of the soul" and knew that love is what makes this "flow like water". We are all - for the most part - "wonderful people with horrific life experiences' like Dr. Seaward has come to know and share with us through this incredible book. And, with flexing our soul muscles, we too can come back to the awareness that we can "Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water". So, when your "muscles of the soul" feel a little flabby, and you think you need a personal trainer to get back in shape, I highly recommend that you put this book in one hand, a nice cup of tea in the other and go SHAPE UP! :-)
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Finally, Someone got it right!,
By Lance (New York, New York) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Stand Like Mountain Flow Like Water (Paperback)
For someone who is spiritual, but not religious in the sense that there is ONLY one way, I highly recommend this book to anyone who is going through one (or many,as the case may be) life crises. This book is written in a simple manner on a very profound topic that meets you where you are and brings you up a few levels. Balance is the key to life, and I now have the key!
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water,
By Cassandra Barnes "Cassandra" (California) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Stand Like Mountain Flow Like Water (Paperback)
Psychophysiologist Brian Luke Seaward advocates finding balance in life as a way of overcoming stress. The title of his book, Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water: Reflections on Stress and Human Spirituality, is based on a t'ai chi saying. Seaward says "to stand like a mountain suggests a sense of stability, resistant to the winds of change. To move like water implies the ability to go with the flow, rather than trying to change things we have no control over."He says that balance can be learned, but doing so requires becoming aware of, and using, our inner resources. Inner resources include humor, creativity, courage, intuition, and faith, among others. Inner resources "can and should be employed every day," not just during times of crisis. Study after study has documented the harmful effects of stress on the human body. Seward says many people feel stress because they have betrayed their spiritual nature by not living the lives they know they should be living. He compares life to climbing up a mountain, with each of us picking out the one path that is best for us. He says "not only are there numerous paths, but we each move at a pace conducive to our soul's growth process." He adds that "it is impossible to get lost on the spiritual path. We can only be immobilized by our own fears." Confronting stressors overcomes those fears and brings balance to our lives. Seward drew from many disciplines, including psychology, theology, quantum physics, philosophy, sociology, and mythology, as well as from his experience as a therapist, to write Stand Like Mountain, Flow Like Water. He says that "it is my sole wish that the collective wisdom found among these pages serve as a reminder of what we already know, because the guidance we seek is really within us."
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