Instinct, intuition & intelligence

Ahhh…here is a wonderfully succinct distinction between instinct, intellect and intuition.

Intuition – Knowing without Logic, by Osho

“When the body functions spontaneously,
That is called instinct.
When the soul functions spontaneously,
That is called intuition.
They are alike and yet
Far away from each other.
Instinct is of the body–the gross;
And intuition of is of the soul–the subtle.
And between the two is the mind, the expert,
Which never functions spontaneously.
Mind means knowledge.
Knowledge can never be spontaneous.
Instinct is deeper than intellect and
Intuition is higher than intellect.
Both are beyond the intellect, and both are good.” – Osho

In a nutshell:

body «» instinct

mind «» intellect

soul/subconscious «» intuition

So how do we tap in to all of these, intellect, intuition and instinct at the same time to improve the quality of our life?

Focusing! This is the one simple way I get in touch with all, listen to and integrate all three ways of being in this world.

Focusing validates our living experience and assumes that when we listen to ourselves in this particular way, at the interface between body-mind-subconscious we will find the next right step forward in our life. As I have written many, many times, I can’t imagine a life without Focusing. My mind can get confused, critical, and carried away. My body can send signals I can’t interpret and my subconscious simply operates covertly.

Focusing engages my compassionate, clear mind. It interprets and checks what my body wants me to know and it  makes engages my subconscious overtly.

I use Focusing to enhance my meditation practice, to make decisions and to explore if there are more options than my mind can create. I use it at work as a manager to sense into what else is going in any given situation and to improve my practice. You could say Focusing gives me my creative and empathic edge. Essentially, for me, Focusing allows me to integrate instinct & intuition with logic and experience.

With all those benefits you’d think it would be hard to learn! But no! Here is the absolute beauty of Focusing. We are wired to do this – it is just that we have forgotten. You know you see kids do it all the time. They have these flashes of insight, of brilliance that takes your breath away.   All we adults have to do is reconnect with that awareness and this is what Gene Gendlin did. He made reconnecting simple and learnable.

You can learn Focusing in 5 or 6 hours – on a course or by phone. Just search my blog for more on Focusing or contact me directly  if you are curious.