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This one was an irony of my situation. I had taken several courses at LCC which dealt with Maslow's Hierarchy of basic needs. After seeing it come back again, just one last time, I thought about it. Yes there were the right number of elements, and only one represented an ultimate achievement. The other four were building blocks to reach that achievement. They all fit into the Medicine Wheel in their own unique way.
- Physiological
- Basic fundamentals of life. This area covers food clothing and shelter. I found it fit best in the East, the area where the life cycle begins. This is realm of beginnings.
- Security
- Once the needs of the first level are met, then the security of the individual or family is addressed. Secureness in the warmth of summer harvests and heat from the South makes sense here. This need very locigally found it's way into the South and the next stage of the life cycle.
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Social
After the other two needs are met, we begin to look for connections with others. The social structure can then be established. This is an issue of relationships. In the West, relationships are born and are put to rest. We move on in our social lives to other relationships. It was logical to place it in the next stage of the life cycle, in the West.
Esteem
As we build relationships, we build our self-esteem and self-worth. This is the area where we look inward at what we've become and find ways to strive to better ourselves from within. This naturally falls right in line with the teachings of the North, where we look within and seek out truth.
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- Self-Actualization
- The ultimate goal in Maslow's Hierarchy is self-actualization. Few of us reach this goal, or obtain it for long periods of time. It is the culmination of a goal or project. This is the hardest of the basic needs to grasp and claim hold of. And once we do, it slips from our fingers again, so we must strive to reach for it again. We reach toward heaven in our search for the truth, and we call out to our Great Spirit who sees and knows everything. Only at the throne of our Creator can we truly find ultimate Self-Actualization!
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