We can live our lives on different levels, which can be compared to certain animals and 5 different parts of the body.
I The Anus Level
The most basic level of living life may be that of the Anus or the Earthworm. Life lived on this lowest level is all about eating and excreting. That’s it, but that doesn’t mean this level is unimportant. It’s VERY important, as anyone with digestive or excretion difficulties knows. When we’re uncomfortable in this way, life is unpleasant. In the attempt to help avoid blockage, or getting stuck, at this basic level, wise and loving grannies, around the world, often advise those they love to “eat your greens.” (In other words, take in what's good for you, make good use of it, and leave a good wave in your wake.)
II The Genital Level
“This bonobo is doing what you think it's doing."*BBC (Image Credit: blinkwinkel/Alamy stock)
Moving up the body to the next level, we arrive at the level of the Genitals. Bonobos, a type of chimp, spend a fair amount of time rubbing their private parts, both by themselves and with each other. Apparently, this calms them and may distract them from anger, anxiety, etc.. Living a certain amount of our lives driven by this instinctual, second-to-the-lowest level is natural. In fact, our species likely wouldn’t be here without it. However, especially among humans, a life driven from the instinctual-genital level is easily twisted and torturously entangled with the other levels.
III The Gut Level
“The lions’ natural world…is shaped by one brutal, overarching force…the dreadful enemy.” **Smithsonian Magazine (Image credit: Ingela Jansson, Serengeti Lion Project)
Smack in the middle of the 5 levels is the level of the Gut. This central, power level is characterized by the struggle between domination and being dominated. Some studies about Lion dominance and submission present lions as a good example for the gut level. Lion power struggles tend to be about—food; access to mates and offspring; real estate and hunting grounds; and, DNA-connected traits, such as age, gender, mane size and color; and, other real-or-perceived fierceness or weakness.
Challenged over the rewards for their aims or efforts, many lions, like many humans, will fight. When injured, lions tend to display what humans might call “bravery” or “noble behavior." Humans may find this concealment admirable, but the simple truth may be that revealing weakness, at least to those existing primarily on this Gut-Power level, can invite attack.
IV The Heart Level & V The Head Level
The level of the Heart seems to be at its best when combined with the level of the Head.
Horses appear to be a good, non-human example of those who can live life driven from a combination of the two, upper levels—the heart and the head. Horses are known to be intelligent and emotionally connected, both to each other and to other creatures, such as humans.
So, the fourth stop, on our way up the body, brings us to the upper-level of the Heart. "Ya gotta have heart," right? It does seem that having a healthy amount of it helps. Also, love, which can be key to happiness in life, exists at this level. (Most people do want to love and be loved.) Plus, denying our heart-felt feelings often leads to a real mess in life. Nevertheless, any being living solely on this emotional level is likely in for a life of heartache.
It’s difficult to identify an animal that demonstrates this heart-felt level to an extreme, but some humans certainly identify with it and “wear their heart on their sleeve.” In other words, some people tend to lead with their heart—their heart seems to arrive before they do in life. Appeals to their emotions, by others, easily manipulate them. Their pure, heart-driven emotions define them and determine the course of their lives, lived from one emotional decision, to the next, to the next....
Finally, on our way up the body, we land at the upper-most level of the Head—the brain, logic, reason. A good brain can be a great asset. However, living solely on this brain-driven level is also a prescription for a rough road in life.
Once again, it’s difficult to name an animal that demonstrates life dominated by the level of the thinking head. As far as humans are concerned, some with high-functioning autism seem tormented in life by their abundance of logic and lack of heartfelt understanding for others, with whom they have a natural, human need to connect.
Aligning Our Levels
Each level is important. If even one level is far enough out of whack, we can be miserable, in jail, or dead. The key—as many Eastern, Asian, and Native-American philosophies teach—is balance. When our levels are working well, on their own and together, we have a healthy flow to our lives.
So that we’re not miserable, or worse, we appear to need—to eat things that help our bodies function well; to respect our own instincts but NOT to utter distraction and WITH respectful recognition for the urges of others; to feel our true feelings; and, we need to think straight.
Overall, it does seem best to live life based primarily on the mid-to-upper levels and led by a combination of the honed instincts of the gut, the heart, and the head. In other words—does what we’re up to, in life, not only feel right and true but also make good sense to us?
Getting stuck on one of the 5 levels is what some cultures call having a blocked “chakra,” a center of spiritual power in the human body. Some people fast or meditate to straighten this out. Some say, simply belching helps us clear a blockage, which helps us balance ourselves. Balanced, the levels can help bring us peace, help tune us in, help give us what some call a good aura, good karma, good dharma, or soul.
Knowing the level(s) on which we're living our lives seems especially important these days.
Out Here,
Megan
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Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-functioning_autism (High-functioning autism-- “Individuals with HFA may exhibit deficits in areas of communication, emotion, recognition, and expression and social interaction...”)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asperger_syndrome (Asperger’s syndrome--“...a neurodevelopmental disorder characterized by significant difficulties in social interaction and nonverbal communication...”)
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