What Is the Relationship Between Our Emotional Attachments and the Soundness of the Heart?
We are more than just physical bodies; our health cannot be measured solely by biological indicators. A vital part of our being is the soul or spirit — a complex structure with five dimensions: inanimate, vegetative, animal, intellective, and supra-rational. The supra-rational dimension, often called the “heart” or “divine dimension of the human being,” plays the most important role in our mental and spiritual health. Each of these five dimensions has its own desires and emotional attachments, called “beloveds.” This is because every dimension of the soul is naturally inclined to what brings it peace and makes it satisfied. For example:
-The inanimate dimension loves physical things such as houses, cars, gold, and clothes
-The vegetative dimension is drawn to food, physical pleasures, reproduction, and physical appearance.
-The animal dimension seeks marriage, fame, and status.
– The intellective level desires knowledge, understanding, and obtaining certificates.
– But the most important beloved of the human part, which is the highest part of our existence, is God.
The question is, how do these emotional attachments affect the human heart? Can their intensity or diversity make us ill? To answer this question, we must understand the functions of the heart. Just as we must eat a balanced diet including sugar, fat, and other elements, to keep our body healthy, we must also balance our emotional attachments to keep our heart sound. Excess and neglect in our emotional attachments disturb the balance of the heart.
Generally, the more time, energy, and attention we devote to material or finite beloveds, the more our heart is disturbed. In contrast, the more we attach to the Absolute Love- God- the sounder our heart becomes. This does not mean that we must stop feeling attached to other beloveds, but we must control our love and prioritize our Absolute Love over other beloveds.
Physical Health Means the Elements of Our Body Are in Balance
Before exploring the relationship between emotional attachments and the soundness of the heart, it helps to review what physical health means. Physical health depends on how well our organs and body system function. Molecules like sugar and fat, and minerals are essential for health as long as they are balanced, otherwise they cause illness. For example, low blood sugar causes dizziness or confusion, while high blood sugar causes diabetes. The same holds true for fats, calcium, protein, and other vital elements — excess of even a good thing can become harmful.
This means that the body also requires certain “dependencies” for its health, but not in an unregulated way. In other words, our body needs a balanced diet to be healthy. If we apply this same principle to the mind and soul, we realize that the human’s soul also needs beloveds and attachments — but they must be chosen and managed wisely.
Signs of the Infection of the Human Soul
We often define health as the absence of pain or anxiety — if nothing hurts, we assume we are fine. The same goes for our heart. Anxiety, worry, fear, and sadness are symptoms of spiritual imbalance and disease.
The more emotional attachments a person has, the more they have such symptoms. This is because the mind is preoccupied with taking care of and keeping what it has, or fearing the loss of its beloveds — whether material things, human relationships, and academic or social success.
Emotional attachments to objects or people cause anxiety. In this case, we constantly have fear of losing, comparison, or we feel we are not good enough. When the heart has too many beloveds, it constantly tries to regulate its relationship with them. This endless struggle drains our energy and leads to mental fatigue and deep emotional stress. As a result, overly strong emotional attachments can increase sadness and anxiety, which are major symptoms of both heart health problems and mental health issues.
How Do We Control the Infection of the Soul?
Sugar, fat, and salt taste good and our body needs them— but excessive intake of them is harmful. Emotional attachments are similar to these substances. They are essential and even interesting, but when uncontrolled, they lead to disease.
The beloveds of the first four dimensions of the soul are very attractive, but if they are not guided by our true Beloved, God, we will lose control. When the heart becomes entangled with many attachments, it loses its ability to focus, be peaceful, and sound.
Being attached to several beloveds is like waste accumulating inside the heart. If we do not dispose of waste at the right time, they cause infection. When our heart is attached to finite beloveds, it is hard for it to welcome the divine Beloved. In this case, if we want to turn to God, we find it hard to connect because the heart is cluttered and polluted. It is like pure water that lose its purity when it is poured into a dirty container. Similarly, a heart attached to worldly things no longer has the capacity to connect to its true Beloved.
The True Beloved: The Key to Balance and Well-Being
So far, we have discussed how attachment to finite beloveds harms the heart. But what is the remedy? The foundation of the heart’s soundness is its connection to the Infinite Beloved — God.
The heart was created to love something infinite, eternal, and absolute. That is why, even after gaining wealth, fame, or success, we still feel empty. In fact, none of these finite beloveds can truly satisfy the human’s heart.
If the heart connects to its true Beloved, other emotional attachments are kept in check; otherwise, even permissible and legitimate beloveds can lead to illness—much like food that can disrupt the absorption of beneficial nutrients if it interacts with medication.
When worldly attachments grow uncontrolled, they block divine love from entering the heart. But if the heart belongs to only one beloved — God — then reaches soundness and true peace.
Our heart is an infinite thing, and it is only satisfied with something infinite. If that infinite thing is God, then the soundness of the heart is guaranteed. However, if the heart is attached to finite beloveds, it will inevitably lose balance, leading to anxiety, restlessness, and chronic dissatisfaction.
In the end, understanding the relationship between emotional attachments and soundness of the heart shows us that by controlling our attachments and focusing on only one beloved, our hearts find peace and balance. Such a heart is called a sound heart.