Principle of

REGENERATION

”There are constant cycles in history. There is loss, but it is always followed by regeneration. The tales of our elders who remember such cycles are very important to us now.”
   

- Carmen Agra Deedy


READ  and LISTEN along the Principle of REGENERATION

We now come to the end of the 7 Universal Principles that sustain life. That is of course, until we realise that everything is cyclic. For every seeming death or ending there is regeneration into the new once more. That sounds like our cue to introduce the Universal Principle of Regeneration:

”The process of life is composed of systems in a constant cycle of creation, preservation, destruction and re-creation. The process of renewal creates the lifespan and thus, the evolution of the ecosystem.”

We can now begin to appreciate that each principle is a complementary facet of every other principle. This is why the Principle of Regeneration also states:

”When each of the prior principles is functioning in the positive, the system as a whole is regenerating.”

Remembering our Principles

We saw that the Principle of Reciprocity was central to an ecosystem’s ability to create abundance. By doing so it supported the process of evolution as the system rebuilds, renews and regenerates over and over, onward and upward into greater complexity and integration.

 

We saw in the Principle of Resilience that, as environments change, certain species will boom and others will bust. Resilience used the twin methods of diversity and redundancy to ensure continued regeneration.

 

We saw in the Principle of Cycles that life is nether linear nor static. It renews and reinvents itself at every turn. Regeneration is dependent upon this cyclic renewal and reinvention so, “as the more things change, the more they stay the same”. Stability and the creation of surpluses are established.


From the seeming death of life in late Autumn and the sepulchral stillness of winter comes the vibrant rebirth of Spring teeming with new life and colour. Seasons become years, ages and epochs. Whole galaxies cycle through vast cycles of cosmic night and day as they pass through photon belts of light, wheel out into the darkness and cycle back to the light once more.


We saw in the Principle of Dynamics that natural systems were self-regulating and self-organising. The easier it was for each part of a system (and the system as a whole) to adapt to change, the stronger and more resilient it became, enabling constant regeneration.


We saw in the Principle of Return that creating value was a prerequisite for growth and ultimately, regeneration. This, in turn came about through the understanding that all energy is really borrowed. Such an understanding leads to the natural impulse to return and reciprocate, thus ensuring renewal for the next generation.


And finally, coming full circle, we return to the Principle of Unity where we saw everything is interconnected and interdependent. Our sustenance and the nature of our experience corresponds directly to the health of the greater whole. The regenerative health of the individual was linked to the entire system and visa-versa.


After all, a healthy organism cannot remain so if the health of the individual cells degenerates. Likewise, even the healthiest cell will not survive if the organism is irreparably damaged.


Speaking of cells and regeneration, it is time we checked into the microcosm of the body to see if the Universal Principles can be, well, universally applied.

WE ARE MULTITUDES

While it is easy to fall into the comforting hypnosis that we are a single, separate entity, playing a certain character – with which we have mistakenly identified – we are really a complex, dynamic ecosystem. What makes up ”us” are a multitude of other complex, dynamic ecosystems. What is more, the components of those are arising, maintaining, dying and regenerating all the time.


It is also true to say that we are dying all the time – at least on the cellular level. Even our longest-lived cells won’t make it past their seventh birthday and the lifespan of many other cells can be measured in days or even hours. With this in mind, how can we realistically say we are the same person we were a decade ago?


That is like saying: ”This old axe has served the needs of my family for seven generations. In all that time it has only needed one replacement axe head and three new handles.”


In the body, such ’mysteries’ are solved through the understanding that the multitudes of our microcosmic systems are, of course, regenerating.

Regeneration, not immortality

By definition, the life-sustaining Principle of Regeneration is not the immortality of a single, unchanging entity. A complex, dynamic ecosystem is not static. The sustaining of life does not happen through living in one form forever but through all the dynamic cycles of birth, life, death and of course regeneration.


The body knows this too. The ”immortality” of single, unchanging cells are known by a more infamous name: cancer. While healthy cells naturally die off and regenerate, cancer cells tend to stick around and that’s when they start to cause trouble and eat away at our health. It may be helpful at this point then to understand how regeneration’s opposite can occur.


Degenerating a healthy system

“When…more is pulled from the system than is returned, the scale shifts in the direction of degeneration. A system in a degenerative state can only continue its current functionality for as long as the surplus lasts. After which, it will begin to ‘eat away’ at itself, losing functionality or ‘health’ continually.”

Of course, all this can only occur if we choose – and that is the advisable word here – to only take and reinvest nothing. Our conscious choices can change even the seemingly inevitable.


On the level of human health for example, we have learned, only in recent years, that we do not need to be the helpless victim of our genetic inheritance. The nascent science of epigenetics demonstrates non-genetic influences on gene expression. That is, how we choose to live our life influences the very bedrock of our DNA. Here are some examples:


  • Healthy eating
  • Stress reduction combined with relaxation and pursuits we find meaningful
  • Exercise, fresh air and clean water
  • Regular contact with nature
  • Loving relationships
  • Creative expression and development of our gifts

All of these things not only improve our physical health but our mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing as well.

A new generation – of regeneration

Look around you at the world today. If you could make any world from scratch. Anything at all. Would the world you see now be your choice?


Here’s the thing: We may not be aware of it but we are master creators. Whatever we put in the focus of our creative lens we can manifest. For a good long while (and the post-industrial revolution period in particular) we have put money in the centre of the value system. While it has brought us amazing technological innovations and material possessions it has also depleted the natural wealth of our home, mother earth. We are now at a tipping point.


Here’s the thing behind the thing: We are not powerless. The power we see in the seeming juggernauts of misguided governments and greedy, short-sighted industry is merely the pale reflection of the power we have, thus far, given them. We have all the tools we need now. Today.


We can re-terraform and regenerate our planet with intelligent, compassionate tools, guided by the very Universal Principles we have been looking at. We can do it. All it takes is our collective will and choice to put these new values in the centre of our value system. Then the veil of old generational thinking falls away to be replaced by the re-generation of a new world.


Share by: