Does the body rule the mind or does the mind rule the body ?

It's more like they are dance partners, both capable of stepping on each other's toes - but also capable of amazing feats.

the mind is very powerful.

Well, it's a stupid remark, but without the brain, the body still exists, albeit a comatose state, but brains are very hard to keep without a body and are essentially useless. The body's physical state includes the brain, like fatigue, pain, etc. Performance of the brain is hampered when distracting senses are prevalent.

The mind an body cannot be seperated.

false dichotomy again. In that the body couldn't really function w/o the brain (and I thoroughly expect the biogeeks to correct me), the brain rules the body. Moreover, the 'personhood' of a person resides in the mind. I'm sure this flows into the personhood debate which is swirling around the abortion issue. Bill: your comment rocks.

The mind is an apparant effect of body. That is all.

Another question that oversimplifies the mind/body duality. See my answer to the "Do we have free will?" question, 'cause I don't want to spend all that time typing again.

After reading Marvin Harris, I think body needs and environment are ever forcing us to do things that we latter justify with very depth toughts. *** Hey! I love the comment from djo23, it's exactly what I think!

They both do some ruling, I think, but I believe that you can learn to manipulate each to gain more control over both.

I think this is a false dichotomy. I mean, the mind is part of the body, the interaction goes both ways, a stomach ache makes your mood low, but a bad mood can give you a stomach ache. Mind/Body is not analagous to Master Blaster, y'know?

Damn that Morrissey! They're inextricably linked, of course.

The dichotomy is illusory.

I picked the 2nd for scientific reasons, but for others ;) I believe the opposite.

Though, why can I hear Morrissey's voice in my head all of a sudden?

BIG BIG CHEERS **Pomeranian and **weth, you spotted it ! This was a dual-purpose survey,I also wanted to see if someone out there really liked the Smiths.So,thank you.

The mind and the body are two seperate things. They work together. One does not rule over the other. The mind creates our thoughts and the body works with these thoughts to produce results.

Both, neither. They're not separable.

don't presume the platonist takes the first option friends! i sort of follow pythagoras - a harmony. ... as for h (dearest) indeed! but must we first determine the difference between mind and brain ... (watch out, the soul is lurking in the corner of this question ;)

I don't think you can have mind without body; the mind is just a part of the body. Dolemite, how about this: One reason the body can be viewed as "controlling" the brain (though that's not the word I would have chosen) is because it is responsible for collecting all sensory input -- which is the raw material the brain relies on.

the mind and body are so interconnected there is a feedback kind of thing going. neither has controll, but both have significant influence

Explain how the body could control the brain. However, the brain's control over action or reality is just an illusion.

The mind and the body are one. It seems to me that while the conscious 'I' seems to be formed primarily in the brain, the system of nerves and chemicals through-out the body all contribute to the 'thinking,' and 'feeling' mind. It seems meaningless to me to try to separate them too much in a bio-chemical-electrical system.

the mind mostly rules the body, but apparantly, the body has the ability to take over every now and then

Both interconnectedly. Certainly in some instances, 'mind over body', but perception is limited by the flesh, mostly...

Let's ask Stephen Hawking.

The mind rules the body, or at least it should. It is one of the hallmarks of a thinking being.
Hmmm...interesting responses. My favorite analogy (since I'm a computer geek) is hardware and software. You can't run the software with having hardware upon which to run it, but the hardware is pointless without software.

probably 65/35 with the mind on top. without the mind, the body couldn't function etc. but the body makes its demands known and the mind needs to respond to certain stimuli.

They each have some control over the other.