Body, Mind and Soul: Meditations on Authentic Alignment for a Lighter Life

By Alexa Jeffery Garza

In a post-pandemic world, I began to ask myself questions on an existential level. Why does living in alignment matter? What does it even mean?

During the aftermath of the first lockdown, I was seriously neglecting myself: I smoked and drank regularly, didn’t eat often and rarely exercised. I reflected on the way my life had unraveled, how my experiences had shaped my vices and how those repeated behaviors, patterns and habits negatively affected me every day.

It was only once I saw that clearly and objectively that I began to realise how vital it was to live in alignment and care for the Body, Mind and Soul as one.

When I talk about Soul, which I’ll use interchangeably with the Self or the Spirit, I am talking about this tiny, sometimes non-distinguishable spark within all of us that keeps us connected on a much deeper level than we consciously realise. Many philosophers believe that this spark actually sits in the pineal gland, a tiny structure inside the brain – they call it the Seat of the Soul. We can get to know that Soul (our true Self, not the conditioned Ego) and begin to care for it in the same ways we might care for our Minds and Body.

Living in alignment has a few important meanings. First and foremost, it means that your words, thoughts, feelings and actions are all on the same page. What you say and do truthfully reflects how you feel. You don’t engage with things or people that make you feel uncomfortable or unlike your true aligned Self. Secondly, it means that you are living fully in the present moment. You aren’t projecting your thoughts into future ‘what-ifs’ or past ‘if-onlys’. You are aligning your human experience with the current moment. How you live in alignment defines the kind of person you are.

Living in alignment is not for the faint of heart. It is a process that involves turning inwards to look at the Self and objectively examining how you speak, act and feel – and why. You may experience feelings of resistance, especially because it means potentially coming to terms with something bigger than yourself. If you can weather the storm, though, you’ll notice a significant shift in the world around you. As they say: where intention goes, energy flows.

When we neglect to care for our Body, Mind and Soul, the negative consequences are impossible not to feel. This is because the human experience works as an ecosystem – a complex network of interconnectedness – and when one aspect of being human is thrown off, so are the others.  

At the initial time of writing, I had placed a considerable amount of emphasis on caring for my Soul and Mind (for a glimpse into my perspective at the time, read this)  but very little on my physical body. This lack of care manifested itself, naturally, through feelings of nausea, sluggishness and extreme fatigue, among dozens of other symptoms. The perpetual exhaustion made me feel guilty, anxious and self-deprecating – negative emotional manifestations of the Mind.

These manifestations would ebb and flow with time, casting doubt onto my inner Self. Was that my anxiety talking or my intuition? I’d wonder about people, places and opportunities. Suddenly, just like that, I am completely out of alignment. These states of misalignment can last weeks, months, even years or lifetimes.

Re-centering the Self with its physical and energetic body brings the mind a sense of presence. It is a reminder not to lose time spent on anything outside of your control. What has (or hasn’t) happened will never be the present moment and all you can control is yourself; living in alignment means living with and in your unique presence. It means living consciously, not on autopilot.

I think it’s safe to say that nearly everyone understands the fundamental need to care for the Body, and how best to do that depends on the person. Similarly, it can be second nature to stimulate the mind on a daily basis. But learning how to care for the Soul can be harder to navigate, especially because it isn’t as tangible as the brain or the body, and thus some don’t believe it exists or needs caring for.

When you begin to live in the present moment, cueing into the needs of your body as they naturally fluctuate from moment to moment, you begin to honour your very existence; this is the energetic manifestation of self-love, and this is how to take care of the Soul. Passively neglecting to honour your needs is the opposite of self-love and will create its own negative manifestation of energy.

Honouring your Self through acknowledging (and acting on) the needs of your existence is the droplet that sends ripples of positive energy through you and into the Universe. It’s what many influencers and gurus refer to when preaching about manifestation. It starts within you before filtering outwards, energetically attracting people and experiences that grow closer and closer to the ones meant for you.

Manifesting begins with inner intention, which is shaped by our thoughts, feelings and actions. If these are out of alignment, we stop honouring our presence and our intentions get muddy and unclear. In turn, we begin to attract that which is unclear, and this can be a cyclical process. Sometimes, like I mentioned, lasting generations. It’s what kept me in a years-long struggle with nicotine addiction, among other vices.

I quit smoking in the Spring of 2022. In turn, I’ve started exercising more, eating better and loving myself harder. What I quickly learned is that honouring presence means managing it as well. It doesn’t only require acknowledging your needs earnestly; it should be combined with addressing those needs and celebrating the person willing to do the work (yourself!). For so long, I knew I had to quit smoking and felt helplessly chained to the addiction. By finally quitting, I was caring for the Body the way my Mind and Soul had been wanting to for years. It was part of a realignment I was desperately needing.

Over time, I found other ways to honour my Self, too. Setting boundaries, for example. Following my intuition. Gaining knowledge. Practicing kindness. Alignment looks different for everyone, but one thing is similar for the collective, and it’s this: for those that feel lost, invisible and unacknowledged, learning to live in alignment is the light that will forever lead you home.