一探身心靈市集 / Exploring a Mind-Body-Spirit Fair

可能有些人會好奇，身心靈是甚麼？每個人都有身心靈三個層次，分別是身體層面(Body)、心理層面(mind)及精神靈魂層面(Spirit)，所謂「身心靈」指的是「生命的整體」，隨著現代人對身心健康的重視增加，身心靈這概念，也漸漸地深入人們的生活中。

我對身心靈其實沒太多的興趣，因為我是個務實派的工程師，比較講究事實及證據，但是之前我參加讀書會時，認識不少從事身心靈產業的朋友，在讀書會上比較多的是做水晶飾品、精油舒壓、塔羅算命等工作的專家，透過和他們的交流，我也稍稍地認識所謂的身心靈，至於我相信嗎？我是持保留的態度，但是我會尊重專業，這些專家說的話，我會拿來當作參考，但是還是要看證據。

某天，之前認識的身心靈專家，傳來訊息，說有個身心靈市集，她有在那裏擺攤，叫我有空的話，可以過去找她聊聊，於是，我就抱著探險的心態，來這個身心靈市集逛逛，一進入市集，媽呀！攤位還真是多啊！身心靈那麼有市場嗎？裡面有那些攤位呢？有塔羅占卜、香氛冥想、頌缽音療、花精諮詢，還有精緻飾品、香氛蠟燭，就連新鮮有機蔬果、香醇手作麵包、天然草本茶飲都有。

至於，我有沒有和認識的專家見到面呢？其實沒有，我去的那天，她剛好有事，請她的朋友代顧攤位，真是尷尬了，不過，每個攤位的老闆都很和氣，都會主動和人攀談，還好我已經練就金剛不壞之身，不論她們說甚麼，我都能從容脫身，不過，我覺得有些攤位的老闆非常有生意頭腦，硬是把他們的產品與AI扯上關係，像是AI冥想教練及AI心療等，不過，這些產品我是不會買帳的。

看看我身邊這些來逛身心靈市集的人，我不知道他們的背景，是來這邊找尋救贖的，或者是像我一樣，只是來這裡觀察的，但是人還真不少，攤位也是比我預期的多，可能是現代人在物質上已得到滿足，所以開始注重情緒、心理與靈性層面的平衡，但是人潮帶來錢潮，難怪身心靈市場會蓬勃發展。

Some people might be curious—what exactly is "mind, body, and spirit" (身心靈)? Everyone has these three aspects: the body (physical level), the mind (mental/emotional level), and the spirit (spiritual level). The idea of "mind, body, and spirit" refers to the wholeness of life. As people have started paying more attention to their overall well-being, this concept has gradually become a part of everyday life.

Personally, I’m not really into this kind of thing. I’m a practical engineer, so I focus more on facts and evidence. However, I’ve met quite a few people working in the mind-body-spirit industry through a book club I used to attend. Many of them specialized in things like crystal jewelry, essential oils for relaxation, and tarot readings. Through our conversations, I got a little insight into what this world is all about. Do I believe in it? I’m skeptical. But I respect their expertise, and I take what they say as reference, though I still prefer to see actual proof.

One day, one of my friends from the industry sent me a message, telling me about a mind-body-spirit fair where she was setting up a booth. She invited me to stop by if I had time. So, out of curiosity, I decided to check it out—like an adventure.

As soon as I walked in, I was like—wow, there are SO many booths! Is this market really that big? I started looking around and saw all kinds of stalls: tarot readings, aromatherapy meditation, sound healing with Tibetan singing bowls, flower essence consultations… and even things like handmade jewelry, scented candles, organic fruits and veggies, artisan bread, and herbal teas.

But did I actually meet my friend? Nope. She wasn’t there that day—she had something else to do, so she had a friend cover for her. Awkward. But honestly, the people at the other booths were really friendly and loved to chat. Good thing I’ve trained myself to have a bulletproof defense—no matter what they said, I could smile, nod, and smoothly make my exit.

That said, I have to admit that some of them were seriously business-savvy. They managed to connect their products with AI, claiming things like "AI meditation coaching" and "AI emotional healing". But honestly? I’m not buying it.

As I looked around at the people visiting the fair, I had no idea what their backgrounds were. Were they here looking for some kind of salvation? Or were they just curious, like me, checking things out? Either way, there were a lot of people, and way more booths than I expected. Maybe nowadays, since people have already satisfied their material needs, they’ve started focusing more on emotional, psychological, and spiritual balance. And where there are people, there’s money. No wonder this industry is booming.

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