The True Meaning of Healing

And the Vital Role Spiritual Connection Plays in Discovering our Wholeness

The word ‘healing’ is used frequently by many of us. It is particularly well used by health practitioners and those in the wellness industry of course, but it also crops up fairly regularly in general lay conversation. We may not use this word with too much thought of its meaning but often we are using it to describe 'recovery from a poor state of health', a meaning our logical minds are comfortable with and one which Wikipedia agrees with: Healing - the process of repair and regeneration of damaged organic tissue. However, if we do start to contemplate the meaning of healing more deeply, we may find our left brain struggling to sum it up with words, as this is a term that speaks of concepts beyond everyday thinking and requires us to shift away from logic if we are ever to get close to it.

Considering the etymology, the direct ancestor of heal is the Old English word haelan, which is derived from the Proto-Germanic hailjan, and this from the Proto-Indo-European word kailo-, the meaning of these old words is ‘to make whole’. These word origins are probably not familiar to most of us, however the fact is, when we describe someone’s healing, we are actually speaking of them becoming whole again. This is interesting to contemplate and it raises the question as to why is there this ancient association between wellness and wholeness.  

When we think of health today, we think in terms of medicine rather than religion, but in the past, the boundary line between these two areas was drawn out differently. All ancient healing traditions incorporated a spiritual dimension, because in these times the spiritual and physical realms were considered to be merged and any aspect of physical life was directed and influenced by Spirit. At this point let me introduce another word, ‘holy’, which, in relation to an individual, describes someone dedicated to God. This word derives from the same roots as heal and therefore, ultimately, heal, holy and whole have the same meaning. In our wholeness, with Spirit as our foundation, we find healing.

“Our well-being and quality of life depend on finding greater wholeness in life. The words health, heal, whole, and holy all derive from the same root.” –Richard Leider, The Power of Purpose

So how is it that people become unhealthy, is it that they lose their connection to Spirit and therefore their sense of wholeness? I believe, that yes, this is the very reason people become ill. On the surface it may not look this way, instead we see people becoming ill through poor diet and lifestyle, through emotional stresses, and through exposure to toxins or pathogens. But if we dig a little deeper, we start to see the association. Poor diet, imbalanced lifestyle and emotional stress always results, sometimes through no fault of our own, from loss of connection to a natural way of living (including a healthy relationship with ourselves and others) and to Nature herself. Nature can be regarded as the physical manifestation of the Life Force that underlies everything in existence, and this Life Force, which scientists know exists but struggle to define, has always been regarded (until our recent age of materialism) as Spirit. When we lose connection to Life Force or Spirit we are no longer being sustained at the deepest most fundamental level. Sadly, most of us don’t follow a natural way of living or even understand what that is anymore as we inhabit a world where so much is run by machine, or is processed and artificial.

When it comes to toxins and pathogens, the links with Nature and Life Force are also pretty clear. And as we consider that our external environment is merely an extension of our internal bodily environment, when we disregard and shift away from a natural way of living, we find toxins and pathogens cause trouble in both settings. For example, pesticide sprayed crops, a sign of disconnection from Nature and disruption of our external environment, results in direct exposure to these poisons through our food. In addition, however, these toxins disrupt our internal microbiome causing overgrowth of pathogens and therefore a whole new set of toxins.

As we see, imbalance and loss of wellbeing occurs on all levels and in all ways when we disconnect from Nature and lose alignment with our fundamental Life Force or Spirit. We could even say that on the deepest level accidents that leave us damaged and sick, again through no fault of our own, are a result of misalignment with our Life Force. This will be a stretch for some I know, but many people describe how in hindsight their ‘accidental’ experience actually seemed to hold purpose and served as a wakeup call bringing attention to something that was out of sync in their life.

To restore health to our bodies and encourage healing, it is essential that we examine our connection with Nature, this earthly expression of our Life Force, and be honest with ourselves about all the ways we have disrespected it and disregarded its importance in our lives. As we are starting to realise, our planet needs a clean-up, and for many of us, so do our lifestyles. More than this however, we need to consider where our relationship ties may have weakened. We are social beings, it is ingrained in our nature to be connected with others and when we fail to nurture the ties with those close to us, we inhibit the natural flow of love, the flow of Life Force, within us and between us. The same is true when we fail to deeply understand ourselves (on a soul level) and ignore our needs and desires in the process. Once again, this interrupts the natural flow of Life Force, particularly if we are carrying unresolved emotional pain. Above and beyond all of this, however, is the relationship we build with the Oneness from which all individual souls emerge (I am referring to this as Spirit, some would call it God). Once we recognise Spirit as the foundation of all physical life and we start to foster a deep connection with it, we will find, quite naturally and without effort, that our relationship with Nature, with others and with ourselves will improve.

“Just as a candle cannot burn without fire, men cannot live without a spiritual life.” – Gautama Buddha

People are often concerned, when I talk about Spirit and healing, that they will need to develop some form of religious faith, but this is not true. Religion is one route to finding a connection with Spirit, and for some this is the most natural and inspiring route, but we can develop that connection in other ways too. If Spirit is equated to Life Force, it is also equated to love, love in its purest unconditional form. Therefore, anything that inspires us to fully open our hearts and experience that most expansive type of love is allowing us to touch in to Spirit. For some this may be music or art, for others working with the disadvantaged or being surrounded in Nature. Having said this, whilst such outer experiences are valid and important, the truest connection requires us to contemplate, reflect and find inner stillness so that we may come to understand that Spirit resides not ‘out there’ somewhere, but within us.

Let’s come back to the important issue of the true meaning of healing. This is a vital question to consider with modern living pushing us towards ever more disconnected states of being and chronic illness levels higher than in any other time in history. And it is vital too because although I said earlier that ‘healing’ is a common term in the world of healthcare, when it comes to conventional western medicine, quite incredibly, there is no consensus as to what it actually means.

Healing is a commonly used term, and yet rigorous research on the definition and meaning of healing has been published infrequently, and understanding of the concept remains confusing and inexact¹

A clear definition and solid understanding within medicine feels long overdue and something so obviously needed - how can health professionals ever hope to support patients in achieving the goal of being healed if there’s confusion as to what this state of being actually is? And the time is ripe for such important reflection as rapid development of technology and A.I., together with increasing dissatisfaction (from patients and doctors) with the ‘treat the symptoms, ignore the causes’ approach are currently driving a re-imagining of how medicine will be practised in future. This change within medicine is part of a much wider radical rethink and overhaul that will ultimately impact all aspects of our lives as we re-awaken to the ancient and profound truth of the interconnectedness of all things, now supported by the revelations of quantum science.

One individual who has started to envision how medicine will be shaped by a new worldview is renowned physician, Larry Dossey, who discusses his ideas in his book, Reinventing Medicine. Larry believes that in recent centuries we have moved through two eras of medicine with a third now emerging - the first, he says, regarded the body as a machine and the mind an emergent property of the brain, the second also sees the mind as a property of the brain but recognises the impact on an individual of thought, feeling and belief. The third era, however, is profoundly different and, built on foundations that are ancient and modern at the same time, sees consciousness as the ground of our being and mind as existing nonlocally, outside of the body. We are still currently immersed in the second era with lots of interest in psychosomatic diseases and the continued insistence mind is a neurological by-product, but slowly things are evolving and as the third era emerges there will, Larry says, be a complete revolution within medicine.

If we accept the understanding that everything is connected at the most fundamental level, then the disconnection that appears to signify sickness, whether that sickness affects our planet, our communities or ourselves, can in truth only ever be an illusion. And this is where spirituality comes in, because once we acknowledge our spiritual nature which shows us to be part of the great Oneness or All That Is, then healing becomes a case not of fixing something that is fractured and broken, but instead 're-membering' the truth that we are already whole and perfect. As we realign with this reality, we open wide all channels that allow Life Force to flow, with the result, if our soul intends it, that rebuilding of the body and re-harmonising of the mind can take place.

“Healing is the return of the memory of wholeness. Healing, health, whole and holy all mean inclusiveness. Body, mind, spirit, environment, relationships, social interactions are all one wholeness, and you’re a part of that one wholeness.” – Deepak Chopra

Coming up with a more expansive and truthful definition of healing is not an easy process. It may even be that it is impossible to define it in its fullness, as Paul Dieppe, Emeritus professor at the universities of both Exeter and Bristol, in the UK has stated – “I don’t know what healing is and I don’t think anyone else does either. It cannot be pinned down or defined as if it was a thing. It is experiential.” But I don’t think that should stop us from trying to find a definition or from discussing, debating and reflecting on the issue. Paul has certainly done a lot of reflecting during his years of researching the deeper meaning of healing and although he feels a concise definition may be elusive, he has come up with what he terms his ‘Schema of Healing’, which he puts like this (the words in capitals are his key concepts).

LOVING CONNECTIONS

Can lead to

TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGE for the better

Which can result in

Peaceful INTEGRITY of mind/body/spirit

Allowing

The individual and communities to FLOURISH

For myself, someone dedicated to promoting the healing power of the heart and who believes the heart is our Master Connector, its purpose being to ‘connect us through love’, the first two of Paul’s words say it all. For me, healing is realignment with Spirit, developed through re-establishment of a loving connection with Nature, with others and with ourselves. These are just my thoughts though, presented here alongside those of a few like-minded individuals, others may have different ideas. What I hope for is that this article will get people thinking and perhaps even ignite a few conversations that will contribute to the growing debate on the changing face of medicine. These shifting times are calling for us to ask the big questions, no longer should we shy away, and as we do this it is essential to consider not only where we stand now and where we are going, but also where we have come from. Our ancient ancestors had so much deep knowledge that we must learn from, only then, I believe, will we get close to understanding the true meaning of healing.

For further information on how the heart conects us and the importance of this for wellbeing, you may like to view a presentation given by myself at the Smart Ageing Summit in Oxford, June 2025.

References

1. Firth K, Smith K, Sakallaris B et al. Healing, a Concept Analysis. Glob Adv Health Med. 2015 Nov 1;4(6):44–50. doi:10.7453/gahmj.2015.056

Further reading

1. Reinventing Medicine: Beyond Mind-Body to a New Era of Healing, by Larry Dossey, Bravo Ltd 2000.

2. Healing and Medicine: A Doctor's Journey Toward Their Integration, by Paul Dieppe, Productivity Press, 2023.