Hi. Thanks for the fine post on a very relevant topic. The question of balance is rarely (if ever) discussed, and your post clearly offers some essential insights or guides into how we can live more "balanced" lives – be that in terms of the individual or society or anything else.

In many ways, our modern / postmodern lives are out of balance. And although we realize that something is askew, we often believe that the solution is to lean further to ... well, to beyond whatever is already askew.

Consequently, in politics, leftists lean further left, and right wingers lean further right. In society, conservatives take their conservative principles to extremes, railing against anyone who is "different" in terms of race, sexual orientation, religious headwear, and more. At the other extreme, liberals may demand that we tolerate everything.

As for individuals, you struck to the core of the issue, with your observation that we can find the true center of balance in the heart. If we posit that the essential being of any human comprises (or ranges from) body to mind to heart to soul to spirit, we see that the heart is at the center.

If we lean too far one way, we end up overemphasizing the mental or the physical. If we lean too far the other way, we get lost in pseudo-mystical mumbo-jumbo that is far removed from actual reality.

If we allow the heart to be the balance, we will achieve a true equilibrium, in which we can emphasize any aspect of our being (body, mind, soul, spirit) without limiting any of the other aspects.

And then we can bring that balance to other realms, whether that be interpersonal relationships, social relationships, or even the economy or politics. Then, maybe, we can bring life back into balance.