There is a saying among meditation teachers that medicine can help only on a very physical level, and even that help is never permanent. The actual root cause of a disease lies in the mind, especially in the stress, anxiety, tension, worry, and fear that the mind can whip up as a reaction to certain stimulus and thoughts.
But the spiritually inclined who spend a considerable time in meditation say that with regular meditation, the mind becomes relaxed and negative emotions like stress, worry, anxiety and fear disappear. Once these draining emotions disappear, physical symptoms like BP, heart ailments, pain, headaches and other points of tension in the body automatically vanish.
Once, at Mt Abu, at a Brahma Kumari Centre, I had occasion to meet a senior Rajyogini, BK Nirmala Didi, who was a medical doctor before she moved on to become a full-time teacher of meditation with the Brahma Kumaris. This is what she had to say about meditation:
”At a psychological level, it helps us relax and get empowered from within. If I have courage, I don’t have fear. If I have humility, I will not have ego. Psychologically, negative things happen only when we are aware of our body at a material, mundane level. But when we are soulconscious, we are positive and virtuous.”
She added that stress affects the body in many ways, aggravating ailments, even causing them. But when one is relaxed and positive mentally, and not worried, healing takes place fast. Also, when one meditates, one finds that pulse rate and breathing remain normal. Exactly, the opposite happens with stress: Blood pressure fluctuates. When we become calm with meditation, fluctuations vanish.
Another point that the medical fraternity often overlook is that the body is self-healing.
Unfortunately, people think that only when they take medicine, will they heal fast. BK Nirmala Didi mentioned that doctors are in the habit of prescribing medication as they don’t want to take chances. But the other point is that if a person relies only on meditation and nature to self-heal, it may not always work. For one, to heal ourselves mentally, we need a lot of inner strength as well as patience, something that people often lack.
For example, common fever often goes away with fever medication. But people are so impatient, that they expect the doctor to put them on antibiotics right away.
Also, meditation may not help everyone, as not everyone knows how to meditate. For instance, someone who is ill in the first place because they are totally anxious or riddled by stress and doubt, won’t have the patience to try meditation.
The other point is that meditation is a voluntary practise, and no one can force you to do it. People only take up meditation when they are ready for it and the ones who finally do, generally report many miracle cures. But ultimately, people have to work on themselves and wait for the customary six weeks of a daily meditation practise before they may begin to find changes in their body and in their thinking.
The Dalai Lama’s Mind Research Institute and studies done at AIIMS in consultation with Art of Living find that there are changes in the brain itself when meditation is done consistently and seriously. Meditation also helps us to develop brotherly feelings, love and compassion towards others.
This change finally lends you to give out love to everyone and there is a positive effect on your thinking and actions. This curbs your mind’s tendency towards vices and addictions, as your will power also increases. Ultimately, the person who meditates regularly becomes nonviolent and virtuous and helpful towards people.
Reena Singh has more than 37 years’ experience in senior editorial positions in The Times of India (TOI) and Genpact. She was Deputy Editor with TOI’s spiritual newspaper, The Speaking Tree, where she spent nine years.
Very informative article about meditation.
The body is seal healing. No doubt.
Temperature of the body is raised
(fever)to fight foreign substances
(antigens) that have entered the body.This excessive heat of the body kills them. Mean while the body is preparing antibodies against them. This process is essential because once the body recognises the antigen it will develop antibodies against it. Once the antibodies are developed the no antigen remain in the body .By taking medicines we are interfering with the process. Common flu is also a response to virus indection . The mucus so produced during such an infection is to kill the virus . Though the body becomes weak due to this extra load of producing protein (antibodies and mucus ) and fighting diseases we get immunised.We can regain our strength by eating well.
Meditation helps by soothing the body and calming our nerves . When we are not in stress and anxiety, body functions in the auto mode .We send signals to body to function differently when we are in stress and all the body processes are disturbed .
Keeping the body in tune with its nature is what meditation does. Of course it has spiritual values too.
To realise ourselves of what we really are . Consciousness reflecting in material objects . What is vital is the consciousness not the material objects …
Dear Seema, we are missing your writings on YoursPositively. Do start writing again. I agree with your views on medication. Ayurveda also believes that fever etc is the body’s way to get rid of an infection and to bring it out of the body. Unfortunately, we take medicines to suppress it.
Also, the people who are the most disturbed and who will benefit immensely from meditation are the ones who are so restless that they can’t get their mind to be still even for a few seconds. So, they may sit down for a minute or two, but that is all they can manage of the meditation process.
I was told by spiritual leaders that such people should try breathing exercises, pranayama to begin with and then gradually move on to meditation.
Regaining the lost rhythm, the original balanced breath and to be precise, to regain the basic homeostasis of our individuality comprising the balance of body, mind & intellect, this itself is the yearning of all of us even as we remain unaware.
And meditation is the only way to regain our lost natural equilibrium which as such every new born is endowed with since birth. Thanks to the Seers and our great spiritual tradition, meditation has been delicately integrated into our life & living to regain our original balance to optimise individuality and be at our best.
You have captured it perfectly, Baturamji. Indeed, we need to return to our natural rhythm. When our breathing is hundred per cent normal, there are no mental afflictions either. And after periods of prolonged disturbed breathing, we end up physically sick. It is all so interconnected.
A wonderful article, once again Reena. May I suggest that you teach the basics of how to do meditation also? That will do a lot of good to novices like me.