YOGA & MEDITATION – A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO HOMEOSTASIS AND HEALTH
PREFACE
Achieving and maintaining homeostasis is the prime objective of every living being. The holistic approach through Yoga and Meditation appears to be the one method which conditions the system, leading to more enduring results, for recovering, maintaining and enhancing this most vital state of homeostasis.
Devised some four decades ago, this yoga and meditation course with its holistic approach has been taught to thousands with excellent results. It has served its purpose and it still continues to attract new adepts. Whatever be the need or creed, there is something to suit one and all.
The course was initially offered as a series of lessons in hatha yoga and Siddha kundalini mahayoga meditation. It was meant for those interested in the metaphysical and spiritual form of yoga. The aim was to bring within reach of a maximum of seekers, this ancient path of holistic living.
Gradually, it turned out that many of those attending the courses had personal problems, either health, family or professional. They were more in search of some relief than wanting to become adepts in yoga and meditation. Hundreds among came for stress related conditions, the curse of modern living. We had to adapt to this reality.
The remarkable results obtained through yoga and meditation are quite impressive, simply astounding. The majority has been cured or got significant relief. Among are cases where traditional medicine had failed. Some extracts from personal testimonies are mentioned.
Repeated requests to have the course published have given shape to this present work. The aim is to allow greater access to this age-old wisdom.
May it serve its holistic purpose!
INTRODUCTION
Since the dawn of time Yoga has occupied a unique and exalted position in India. It suffuses the physical, mental, moral and spiritual culture of the country. It is India’s most precious gift and unparalleled legacy to humanity. With the advent of modern sages like Swami Vivekananda and Swami Yogananda, yoga has crossed the shores of India and spread worldwide. Yoga has now become a household word for several millions of people.
Today we live in an age where stress and distress are unavoidable evils. The fast moving modern world has turned life into frenzy, giving it a very artificial frame. The gigantic strides in science and technology, while bringing humanity many advantages and tremendous facility, ease and physical comfort has brought in its wake as many ills. Pollution and its consequences, fast foods with malnutrition and obesity are some of the plagues of modern life.
Modern man has escaped the scourge of infectious diseases to fall into the inferno of non communicable disorders. The plague and cholera epidemics have given way to non contagious, non communicable diseases. Stress related disorders, insomnia, anxiety, fear leading to split personalities, HIV AIDS have taken over the field. Human longevity has been remarkably increased, so have conditions like Alzheimer, dementia, senility and schizophrenia. One person in six is a potential schizophrenic. An indeed bleak picture, considering its demoralising and stigmatising corollaries!
Medical technological progress has allowed the discovery of the causes of disease. Billions are being used by the pharmaceutical industry to discover remedies for ill health. An increasing array of diagnostic techniques is available. Yet, modern science is no closer to giving everybody the chance of enjoying perfect health than it was a century ago.
Man has become a slave of gizmos and gadgets in his eternal quest for peace, happiness, comfort and power. Some believe high style living will bring joy, others feel intense physical activity will bring satisfaction. Many dream of wealth and power to turn their life into heaven. Failing to fulfil his growing desires, man ends up with an eternal dissatisfaction. He loses his peace of mind. As human beings, happiness or unhappiness, health or ill health, depend to a great extent upon the state of mind. That is why the mind is considered as man’s best friend or his greatest enemy.
The philosophy of always doing more, faster, heavier etc leads to exhaustion and imbalance. The repeated strain on the system disturbs the homeostatic balance for which one has to pay a heavy price throughout life. Unknown to him, his constant worry and stress are leading man into a state of recurrent homeostatic imbalance. He has forgotten that he has to take care of his health and his being. To make his situation worse, modern man has forgotten how to breathe properly. Being carried away by the flux of modernism he is hardly aware he is breathing. Leave alone that he has to breathe correctly. Yet health and stamina depend primarily on proper breathing.
The greatest flaw of medicine lies in the principle that health of the body is considered apart from the state of the mind or the spirit. Mental tension and increase of mental disease shows failure of these concepts. The cure of disease or repair of injury have become the norms of medicine. Modern medicine has forgotten that prevention of disease or improvement of the individual’s life and wellbeing should be part of the equation.
Man is not a mere social animal. He has yet to discover his true nature and the purpose of life. Man is neither body alone, nor is he body and mind. He is body, mind and spirit. To deny this truth will deprive him the privilege of a perfect holistic life. Man will only achieve an exemplary life when his physical, intellectual and spiritual needs are simultaneously fulfilled. As food and sleep are vital physiological needs, yoga & meditation is a vital spiritual necessity for man’s mental wellbeing and spiritual unfoldment.
Neither science nor technology has been able to restore the balance. Giant strides in both have only led to greater imbalance, be it in the distribution of wealth, health, security or anywise. The world still suffers from war and starvation. Total annihilation looms over humanity. No harmony in individual life, no harmony in society.
All over the world in every medical school, the concept of homeostasis has been taught for more than a century as one of the basics of health. It is also taught that health is achieved through balance and regulation of our internal systems and that an inability to maintain homeostasis may lead to disease or even death. Yet, achieving homeostasis still appears a far off dream.
The holistic approach in medicine has gone some way to address these problems. Advocates of holistic health believe that health can be achieved through a combination of physical, mental and social well-being only. There is the tendency to forget that we are not just body, nor body and mind but we are body, mind and Spirit. Unless we allow outlet for all three together there will be a dangerous disequilibrium with resulting homeostatic imbalance. A sound body, a sound mind and an eternal Spirit, each relies on the other for perfect coordination and balance. Unless there is perfect equilibrium among all three, man will be faced with ill health, unhappiness and ultimate disaster.
The ideal remedy lies in the holistic approach that yoga and meditation offer. They approach healing and wellness by focusing not just on the body, but on the individual as a whole, his physical, mental, emotional and spiritual needs. One of the reasons that more and more people are turning to yoga and meditation for relief.
The practice of yoga includes proper breathing and control of ‘prana’, life force or vital energy. Man depends as much on air and prana as essential means of nourishment as food and drink. Air and prana are the basis of life. Impure air and irregular flow of prana in the body will result into sickness and disease.
Life depends entirely on a proper supply of air. We all know that as long as there is air around us we will stay alive. In the absence of air death will follow. Any anomaly in the supply of air would lead to sickness and disease. The ancient yogis having understood its importance have made deep yogic breathing and control of prana the backbone of all yoga practices. Yogic breathing and ‘pranayama’, control of prana, both aim at normalizing and regulating the proper distribution of oxygen and prana respectively throughout the body.
The control of prana can cure most diseases or mitigate them. Through the practice of pranayama, the supply of prana to a diseased part is intensified, leading to cure of the affected part. Pranayama keeps the flow of prana in a perfect working condition and ensures an adequate supply to different parts of the body. Pranayama restores the homeostatic balance of the body, allowing it to work at optimum capacity.
Unlike the modern physical exercises where quick movements or considerable strain is involved, yoga combines slow, steady, graceful and easy movements. Postures are performed slowly, within the individual’s capability, never over-exerting, without the least strain or feeling of fatigue. One is left with a sensation of lightness, peace, relaxation and general wellbeing.
Yoga and meditation are ideal for one and all, young or old, strong or weak, sick or healthy, be it from east or west, north or south. For the healthy, yoga and meditation are preventive. They will help maintain good health. For the sick or ailing, they can restore good health. People with a nervous disposition will find regular practice of postures with its deep, yogic breathing, soothing to their highly strung nerves. Yoga and meditation bring sound sleep without pills.
Ageing is retarded, one gets greater power of concentration and endurance, increased self confidence, tolerance and compassion. The body becomes firm, energetic and active, being rid of muscular, physical and mental tensions. There is ease of movement, enhanced mobility. There is self discipline, greater incentive to rid oneself of bad habits. With growing self confidence, there is greater ability to eliminate nervous tension and improve mental poise. The mind always functions better in a state of calmness.
The aim of meditation and yoga is to keep the human being in a state of optimal homeostasis. Meditation and yoga give us right discipline, the holistic way to restore or maintain our homeostatic balance. We are no more guided by our likes and dislikes but rather according to what is within the norms of proper living, through the practice of proper ethics, proper discrimination, proper conduct and proper nutrition. Yoga and meditation will give us a well balanced, well integrated personality and a strong character.
Homeostasis will not be optimally achieved until we are able to holistically muster all our physical, mental, and spiritual resources to improve our chances of survival, to live happy and fulfilling lives, and to be able to create a utopic society: Yoga and Meditation may well be the answer!