The signs of good health

 

What is health? Health is having all these – a disease-free body; a quiver-free breath; a stress-free mind; an inhibition-free intellect; an obsession-free memory; an ego that includes all, and a soul that is free from sorrow.

Only a healthy bud can blossom into a beautiful flower. In the same way, only a healthy being can achieve the goal they want to achieve. The Sankrit word for health is ‘swastha’, which means to be established in one's self. The ancient scriptures mention that our body has five levels of existence – the environment or the atmosphere: our physical body; life force or prana; mind, which includes our thoughts, ideas, memories and emotions; and the intuitive body, which subtler.

Illnesses manifest in the body either when you violate a natural law, or as a release of past impressions or karma. Karma is nothing but the impressions in the consciousness that can get released through some illness. Another cause of illnesses is violation of the laws of nature. For example, you know you should not eat something at certain time and yet you do. Or, you know you should not let stress collect in your system and yet you overwork.

The capacity of our senses to enjoy or experience objects is limited. When we overdo it, then sickness manifests. When there is an imbalance between the food intake, exercise, and rest, then also chances are we might get sick.

An often overlooked aspect of health is the connection between breath, life force, and wellbeing. Breath is synonymous with life. The primary aim of practices like meditation and pranayama is to enhance prana, the subtle life force energy. Our life force is subtler than emotions. By focusing on the subtlest aspects, you also take care of the gross ones. When you manage your breath and life force, your body also gains strength.

Ninety percent of the impurities in the body are released through the breath, yet we typically utilise only 30 percent of our lung capacity. The breath holds profound and transformative secrets for staying healthy. For instance, each emotion corresponds to a particular rhythm in the breath, which directly impacts specific parts of the body.

By simply observing, you can understand this connection. When we are happy, there is a sense of expansion, and when we are miserable, there is a sense of contraction. Although we experience these emotions and sensations, we often overlook this correlation. When you find it challenging to manage your mind directly, you can do so indirectly through your breath.

You receive energy primarily from four sources: food, sleep and rest, breath (which can be learned through specific exercises), techniques like sudarshan kriya that can energise every cell of the body, and a pleasant state of mind that is achievable through meditation. All these are crucial for our overall wellbeing. Presently, there is research showing how sudarshan kriya and pranayama influence the immune system, indicating that attending to the breath and mind can boost immunity.

Food is a key source of energy for the body and mind. Like breathing, we also need to look at what we are putting in our body. We have a prayer – “annadata sukhi bhava” which means, may the one growing our food; one who is bringing it to our homes and one cooking it be healthy and prosperous. If the farmer is unhappy and unhealthy, then the country cannot be happy and healthy. Jaisa ann waisa mann – we become as the food we eat. Healthy food is not just a commodity but a prescription for a healthy life. Natural farming is not just a way to grow food, but a way to respect and nurture the Earth. Our over 22 lakh farmers, trained in natural chemical-free farming, have proved that natural farming can be just as profitable; reduce the input costs for the farmers, produces healthy crops, and keep the farmer as well as consumer healthy too.

The fourth source of energy is rest. Allocate one week every year for yourself, just how you would service your car. During this time, align yourself with nature, rise with the sun, practice yoga and breathing techniques mindfully, eat moderately, chant, observe silence, and witness creation. Sit for a silence programme. This practice rejuvenates our entire system and fills us with enthusiasm and clarity. It brings a smile from within.

Understanding a bit about our mind, consciousness, and the root of distortions is helpful. Each individual is inherently good; these virtues are simply obscured by stress and misunderstanding. All we need to do is uncover these virtues – much like a room that has been dark for years can be illuminated in an instant with a lamp. (Apr 7 is World Health Day)

How to rise above negativity

 

When you have judgement or labels against people, your behaviour starts getting disturbed. You become stiff because of the seeds of negativity you are carrying against others, and your vibration becomes negative. You don’t even realise that you are carrying negativity within you.

Negativity is such that you get sucked into it without being conscious of it. When your intellect becomes sharper and more soaked in knowledge, you will immediately be able to rise above negativity. That is why we need to develop our awareness. To begin, ask yourself these four questions:

1) Are you wasting mental energy paying attention to things that don’t matter?

When the mind expands and recognises its vastness, then trivial matters don’t bother you. Otherwise, you tend to get so stuck in the small things. Every now and then you think: He said so and so to me, she said that to me, that person did not even look at me, that person spoke so harshly to me, and so on. You waste so much of your mental energy paying attention to these useless things. This happens because you have not broadened your vision.

My dear, life is so temporary and fleeting. Your life is short. Where in this short life do you have the time to bother about who said what and why? Why then get stuck in this mess? I tell you, even if God Himself comes and says a few harsh words to you, you should remain smiling and be centred. Think of that as a gift, as a Prasad (blessing or sacred offering).

You should make your mind highly centred and unshakeable within yourself, like a pillar. Do not get carried away or troubled by trivial occurrences around you. Otherwise, you get so troubled by trivial and temporary things. Not only do you get troubled, you also trouble others around you. In fact, we end up disturbing others twice or thrice as much.

Again and again, you must remind yourself to wake up. Come back to awareness and realise that “I am full and content in every way. God is with me at all times, and whatever is required for me will happen at the right time.”

2) Are you blaming or criticising the people around you? Do you harbour any hate?

You are not going to gain anything by blaming or criticising others. And to whatever extent possible, see that you do not create enmity or hatred with anyone. Think deeply and go within your own mind; ask yourself whom you have hatred for. When you realise that, then strive to drop that hatred from within. In fact, I would say that not only strive, but you should also completely do away with hatred and cleanse yourself. Otherwise, there can be no real progress in life.

See, whatever you are to receive, you will surely get it, through someone or the other. When your karma is such that you are to receive something in life, I tell you, even Lord Brahma or Ravana cannot come in the way of that. But if your karma is to receive hurt or discomfort, then whether it is your enemy or your close friends and family, it will come to you and you will have to go through it. Having aversion towards something or someone and avoiding them is a sign of an ignorant person. It is not the quality of a true seeker. A true seeker is happy at all times.

3) Do people feel a sense of peace and calm in your presence?

Once, when I was in college, a person came and stood before me and started yelling at the top of his voice. He was yelling so loudly and angrily that every vein of this throat could be seen visibly. There was so much hatred and anger in his eyes. Why so? It so happened that I became popular with the students and many of them held me in high regard. This person did not like that and became very uncomfortable with all the attention I was getting. He was around 50 or 60 years in age, and the thought of an 18- to 20-year-old boy getting so much attention and following troubled him a lot. He shouted so much and even used very harsh words at me. I did not pay attention or listen to all that. Instead, I felt concerned that something should not happen to him because of all this anger welling up in him. So, I quickly stepped inside and brought some water for him. Seeing the glass of water in front of him, he suddenly became quiet. I asked him to relax and sit down.

See, our presence should be such that no matter who comes to us, they should feel a sense of peace and calm. No matter what kind of person they may be, whatever kind of outward behaviour they may have–remember that is their problem and they would have to pay the price for that. You should pay attention to how you are behaving with others. You should ask yourself this question again and again—is my behaviour loving and cordial with everyone? When I am loving and cordial with everyone, then the entire World is with me and will support me—you should remember this.

4) Do you feel that you need to be treated properly?

You should think, “I do not need any special treatment; I do not expect anything from anyone. I am seeped in love and I will be loving and peaceful with everyone.” When you establish yourself strongly in this belief, then you will see that everyone in the world will be your friend. But if you think, “Oh! This person was so rude and disrespectful to me. Why should I be good and respectful to him?”, tell me, who is really at loss here? Then there has not been much real progress in your life. It would mean you are still stuck in the old patterns of your mind; you are still swimming in the small and dirty pool of your narrow mind. You end up thinking that this is all there is to the world.

My dear, just come out of all this. There is sweet nectar flowing all around you. Imbibe and fill your life with that sweetness instead. What great enmity can you have with someone else? Why do you keep your mind so strained and troubled with such negativity? This causes a lot of stress and damage to your brain.

Yes, one should definitely take the right action at the right time as is required. I am not saying that you do something foolish like handing over your purse to your enemy. But what you can surely do is look at everyone with a smile. You can at least cleanse your own mind and get rid of whatever garbage and negativity are present in the mind.