Eight Universal Healing Principles

Cross-cultural anthropologist Angeles Arrien identified eight universal principles of healing from her research on indigenous cultures which sustain the health and well-being their people.. All eight are needed to sustain and balance our health, which are...

1. Balanced diet

2. Daily and weekly exercise

3. Time for fun, play, and laughter

4. Music, sonics, and chanting

5. Love, touch, and support systems

6. Engaged in interests, hobbies, and creative purpose

7. Nature, beauty, and healing environments

8. The presence of faith and belief in the supernatural

Conversely, the non-supportive behaviors and state of mind that leads to un-health & loss of well-being are:

1. Unbalanced diet

2. Lack of exercise

3. Loss of humor and lack of fun and play

4. Lack of music, sonics, and chanting

5. Lack of touch, love, and support systems

6. Lack of interest, hobbies, and creative purpose

7. Lack of nature, beauty, and healing environments

8. Lack of faith and belief in the supernatural

Invitation for Reflection & Action

Considering the universal principles of healing above for a moment, which principle(s) do you regularly practice to support your own health and well-being without thinking too much about it? Where and from whom did you learn these from?

More importantly, is there anything holding you back from putting into practice the other principles of healing that you tend to ignore or avoid? I invite you to experiment with all eight of these principles and experience how they bring your life and health back into equilibrium.