WHOLENESS: THE FOUNDATION OF A MEANINGFUL LIFE
Wholeness is the understanding that every individual is inseparable from a vast cosmic reality. It urges us to appreciate the sacredness in all creation, from the universe’s expanse to the complexities of the human soul. Furthermore, wholeness calls for embracing the paradoxes of life. It encourages us to harmonise opposing forces like light and darkness, good and evil, joy and sorrow. By integrating these dualities, we move beyond narrow viewpoints and gain a deeper understanding of reality’s complexities. This journey allows us to accept our flaws and foster empathy for others.
Many religious texts invite us to view humanity as a single body. The Prophet Muhammad is purported to have said, ‘The Muslims are like a single man. If the eye is afflicted, the whole body is afflicted.’ In Christianity, wholeness is often associated with salvation and spiritual completeness through a relationship with God. The teachings of Jesus Christ emphasize love, forgiveness, and the unity of the body of believers, often referred to as the Church. This wholeness is personal and communal, reflecting the belief that humanity is interconnected through divine love and grace.
One more example of this ‘one body’ metaphor comes from the Baha’i Prophet Bahá’u’lláh, who wrote to his followers: ‘Be ye as the fingers of one hand, the members of one body.’ This imagery is reminiscent of the Hindu notion that each individual is like ‘the crest of a wave in the ocean of Brahman’. The implication of this Hindu belief is that wholeness lies within, as the composition of each droplet of the wave is identical to the ocean as a whole, and we all share the same fundamental essence: atman. Taoist practice also strives for wholeness through the inner cultivation of a balance between the two forces of yin and yang.
The Abrahamic religions, with the doctrine of the ‘fall’, claim that we have fallen out of grace with God and are incomplete versions of what we were and are meant to be. Here, wholeness means reforming ourselves so that we more closely resemble our divine nature as beings originally created in God’s image.
Through millennia of human observations, research, knowledge, and wisdom — whether through science, religion, or another discipline — we have learned that the natural state of the world is one of profound unity and interconnectedness. Restoring wholeness is imperative in our world today.
Insightful Quotes on Wholeness
Christianity
“That all of them may be one, Father, just as you are in me and I am in you. May they also be in us so that the world may believe that you have sent me.”
- John 17:21
Islam
“The believers are but a single brotherhood: So make peace and reconciliation between your two (contending) brothers; and fear Allah, that ye may receive Mercy.”
- Quran 49:10
Hinduism
“A true yogi observes Me in all beings and also sees every being in Me. Indeed, the self-realized man sees Me everywhere.”
- Bhagavad Gita 6:29
Buddhism
“When you do something, you should burn yourself completely, like a good bonfire, leaving no trace of yourself.”
— Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Buddhist monk
Confucianism
“If a man remembers what is right at the sight of profit, is ready to lay down his life in the face of danger, and does not forget sentiments he has repeated all his life even after having been in straitened circumstances for a long time, he may be said to be a complete man.”
— The Analects (14:12)
Taoism
“The Tao gave birth to One. One gave birth to Two. Two gave birth to Three. Three gave birth to all things. All things carry Yin and embrace Yang. They achieve harmony by combining these forces.”
- Tao Te Ching, Chapter: 42
