Body, Mind and Spirit.
In life, there exists three planes of existence; or, rather, three realities that we can each tap into. These three are: the Physical Plane, the Mental Plane, and the Spiritual Plane.
Now, before you think I’m getting all woo-woo on you, this is actually quite logical and we tap into these three planes all the time—let me explain:
The Physical Plane
This level of reality is governed by your body. There’s a reason why we do things like yoga and marital arts in order to “tap into the moment” (some people also call this “connecting to the moment”).
Your body is quite literally stuck in this level of existence and you utilize it to navigate through the physical world. Your body cannot travel through time, or elevate your spirit, but you need the body in order to be here and (essentially) play within the world (because life is a video game*, remember?).
The Mental Plane
This level of reality is governed by your mind. It is your ability to “travel through time.” Not on a physical plane (that’s governed by your body), but on a mental, or “temporal” plane.
Your mind is what allows you to play with time. It’s why you can be can traumatized, plan for the future, learn from the past, or even make time “feel” like it’s speeding up or slowing down—time is relative, after all; but only to the mind.
The Spiritual Plane
This level of reality is governed by your (for lack of some better words) spirit; consciousness; soul; or whatever you want to call it. It is the “you” behind your thoughts which you can realize (satori) through meditation or entering into a state of no-mind (mushin). It is your Active Awareness; not thinking, but witnessing.
Your spirit is what is easily influenced by media like movies, music and the like. Listen to a really good song or watch a really good movie and it just “moves you” in a way like no other. You’re not thinking at this point, but feeling. The spirit is what is swayed by emotion, but it is not emotion. It is the canvas holding life’s paint—not the paint itself, but the paint is what helps to colour the canvas and brings it to life. Without the paint, the canvas is empty.
The important thing to note here is how these three planes work and interact with one another. In essence, the more we know about what makes up our reality, the better able to we are to manage our lives.
Feeling down? Maybe your spirit needs a pick me up.
Can’t get out of your head? Maybe it’s time to focus on the sensations within your body.
Want to build a lucrative business? Perhaps you need to spend more time in the future and work your way backwards to the present moment.
At its lowest level, these are just the three planes of existence. However, at its highest level, these are planes to help you achieve self-mastery; for, what else is more important to master in this transient life than your self?
-more tools to add to your toolbox.