Monk in
Ananda Marga, Neo-Humanist Foundation, Singapore
He was born in one small
village of Bihar. Which is very near to Lumbini, where Buddha was born. By the
grace of Master I experienced the need of spiritual practices and that gave me
a grate speed to move towards meaningful life. After following the practice of
Ananda Marga way of life. I decided to be a monk and to give all my live to serve
the society. 27 years of Yoga way of live gave me tremendous experience in my
live and if made me confident enough to achieve the highest goal of my life. I
am very determined on my goal and achieving successfully in this lifetime itself.
YOGIC TREATMENT AND NATURAL REMEDIES - Sunday, 10th and Thursday 7th Janurary,
1999
The subject (Yogic treatment and natural remedies) which, I am writing
about that all based on my Master's idea. He is known by the name of Shrii Shrii
Ananda Murti. If any one like to know more about Yoga way of please you can fine
out about Anada Marga on inter net and contact our offices all over the world.
Yogic treatment includes ayurvedic method of treatment to treat body without any
side effects. This will includes the subject of food as medicine.
We are
what we eat. Those delicious morsels of food we pop into our mouths eventually
develop every cell of our bodies and affect not only our physical health, but
the way we think as well. Recent experiments have shown that certain food directly
influence the workings of the brain by affecting the brain's chemical neurotransmitters
which are involved in different mental and physical functions: in memory, sleep,
motor coordination, pain, depression, learning ability, and even our perception
of reality. Eating foods rich in lecithin, for instance (which is contained in
soybeans) can increase our memory power; whereas eating a meal rich in carbohydrates
and poor in proteins is the surest way to make the brain drowsy for hours afterwards.
Research has indicated that even the symptoms of schizophrenia, hyperactivity,
and certain other mental disorders can be alleviated by corrective diet therapy.
Thousands of years ago, yoga sages realized the tremendous importance of
the food we eat on the state of our bodies and minds. Through their deep, introspective
investigations into the nature of the universe, those ancient yogis realized what
modern scientists since Einstein are just beginning to discovery that the entire
manifested universe is composed of vibration of energy and ,ultimately , vibrations
of consciousness. In this universe of multifarious waves, what we call matter
( solids , liquids and gases ), sound , light and thought , are all simply waves
vibrating at different frequencies , from gross to " subtle ". All foods
are also permeated with their own subtle vibrations, at different frequencies,
and these vibrations in turn affect the body and mind of the person eating them.
After long experimentation with different foods on their own bodies and minds
(for the yogis were practical, empirical scientists, not merely theoreticians),
those ancient seers characterized foods into three categories, corresponding to
the three forces which are operating simultaneously everywhere in the universe,
in all entities. When any one of these vibrational flows, or energy forces, predominates
in any object or creature, it takes on the qualities of the force.
The first
of these universal forces is the sentient force of self-awareness, love, peace,
purity and joy. When the sentient force is predominant in our minds, we feel peaceful,
relaxed and calm, and our minds flow easily to higher levels of consciousness.
"Sentient foods" are those in which the sentient force is dominant,
which make our minds clear and calm. These foods are the basis of the yogic diet,
for they are the most conductive to physical health and mental peace; they are
the best diet for those who seek to elevate their minds to higher states of consciousness
and attain self-realization.
This group of foods includes fruits, most vegetables,
bean and nuts, grains mile and milk products, and moderate amounts of most herbs
and spices. The sentient diet (sometimes called "lacto-vegetarian" because
it includes milk and milk products) provides a wide variety of nutrients supplying
proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and all the essential vitamins and minerals
THE MUTATIVE FORCE & MUTATIVE FOODS
The second of these universal flows
is the mutative force, the force of restless movement, activity or change. When
this force is predominant in our minds, we become agitated, nervous and restless,
unable to calm down and relax, Mutative foods are those which stimulate the body
and mind, and should be taken only in moderation in order to maintain our mental
balance. Indeed, eating too much of these stimulating foods, disturbs the mind
makes it impossible to still the mind for subtle mental pursuits such as meditation.
Included in this category; caffeinated beverages such as coffee and tea,
carbonated drinks, chocolate, hot spices such as red peppers, fermented foods,
and some medicinal drugs.
THE STATIC FORCE AND STATIC FOODS
The third
force is the static force, the force of dullness, inertia, decay and death. Death
occurs when the other two forces in any living entity have completely waned and
the static force alone predominates. When this force is operating in our minds,
we feel sleepy, dull and listless, lacking energy and initiative.
The static
foods include meats, fish, onion, garlic, eggs, mushrooms, alcohol, cigarettes,
drugs, and food that is fermented, stale or spoiled. These foods should be avoided
by those who seek to attain health of body and elevation of mind. However, in
certain situations, according to the climate or activity of an individual, they
may be eaten - for instance, in extremely cold climates where meat or small quantities
of alcoholic beverages may be necessary to maintain body heat.
The Natural
Cure: Fasting
When the entire digestive system is permeated with the chronic
abuse of modern eating, with wate products form the continued inflow of unassimilable
food, and may even be laboring to throw off these morbid wastes through germs,
fever or skin eruptions - to bring about the transmutation of the entire being,
the radical cleaning of the whole body must be begun. All the putrefying refuse
which is clogging the system must be eliminated through the ABSOLUTE EMPTINESS
OF FASTING. Only when the digestive system is empty and fasting can it devour
the wastes, burn then up, and eliminate them through the bloodstream.
INTERNAL
HOUSECLEANING
The body is your house; it is also your machine, the vehicle
which carries you about and does all your work. Your regularly clean out your
house and discard waste and accumulated junk; you regularly clean your car or
motorcycle of dirt, or it becomes clogged and ceases to run. But did you ever
stop to think about cleaning your own insides? The best way to cleanse the body
internally is by fasting. No one would attempt to clean the water pipe system
of a city, and wash all the clogged filters, until they had first turned the water
supply off. Fasting is just this: turning off the constant stream of food into
the body and giving the body a chance to cleanse itself automatically. When you
fast, you force your body to work on and digest the excess accumulation of waste
in the body and then excrete it, thus purifying the whole system.
Many people
fear fasting; they think fasting means starving themselves. This is not at all
true. Dr. Patrik answers, "Proper fasting is never harmful; indeed, it is
often the only procedure that will conserve nerve energy and permit nature to
rally her forces for the fight against disease. Actually the body has plenty of
resources to nourish itself for a longtime; an experienced faster can fast safely
for a month or longer! As one doctor explained, "People don't realize that
the chief obstacle to fasting is overcoming the ingrained cultural, social and
psychological fears of going without food."
Take the example of a cold.
The first organ to be affected by poisons in the body is the mucus membrane. It
starts to produce excess mucus in an effort to throw off all the poisons - and
you "catch cold". Everyone knows how much mucus comes out of the body
during a clod, from blowing the nose and coughing; this is the body's natural
effort at self cleansing. In previous days, when people lived closer to nature
and followed its natural laws, a "cold" or "flu" was easy
to cure; the patients instinctively obeyed their loss of appetite, drank mostly
fruit juices, and rapidly recovered. They felt much better afterwards than before,
because so many poisons of the body were eliminated with the mucus. Today, people
are wrongly taught that a germ or virus is responsible, and into their own living
habits. To cure their colds they eat more highly concentrated foods instead of
fasting, thus adding move indigestible, poisonous waste to their bodies. Or they
take drugs which add still moreover poisons into their system. As a result, colds
and flu often become "complicated" by more serious diseases.
Dr.
Robert G.Jackson eating only fruits or fruit juices for at least 2 days as soon
as the first signs of a cold appear. He says, "It is a well-known fact that,
although the body which is improperly fed is apt to "catch cold" and
suffer from various catchall and inflammatory diseases of the mucus membrane of
the respiratory tract, a person who fasts never catches cold. And colds and catchall
and inflammatory diseases rapidly clear up during a fruit fast. Colds are a reaction
by which the body seeks to rid its debris-burdened cells of their encumbering
substances via the mucus membranes. This debris is always deposited in the tissues,
because it is so in excess in the bloodstream that it cannot and continue to eat
regular foods, the blood will not reabsorb any of the substances formerly deposited
in the tissues and cells."
THE UNIVERSAL REMEDY FOR DISEASE
The
ancients well knew the efficacy of fasting to prevent and cure all types of diseases.
The Greek Hippocrates, the "Father of Medicine", who lived to the age
of 90, wrote, "Everyone has a doctor in him; we just have to help him in
his work. To eat when you are sick is to feed your sickness." And the great
Greek philosopher Paracelsus, wrote, "Those who fast are in the hands of
the inner physician." Lately many modern doctors as well have notices the
"general well-being of a person on a fast," and recommending fasting
to mobilize the body's natural defenses against disease. Some of the benefits
of fasting noted by physicians.
· Fasting gives your entire system
(heart, stomach, intestines, kidneys, lung, pancreas, liver, etc.) a chance to
rest and regain strength, so it can work with greatly increased efficiency after
the fast. The heart and blood vessels, especially, which no longer have to pump
so much blood to the digestive system for the assimilation of food, receive a
much-needed "vacation".
· Fasting causes the breakdown and
excretion of poisonous wastes clinging to all the organs and tissues of the body,
and thus cleanse the entire body, enabling it to work at top efficiency.
· Fasting rejuvenates the entire system and restores youth to all the cells,
tissues, and blood vessels. It slows down the aging process and increases longevity.
· Fasting helps to re-establish normal, balanced secretions of the
glands and organs.
· Fasting conserves energy and allows it to be
rechanneled for higher mental and spiritual pursuits, such as deep meditation.
· Fasting clears the mind, sharpens the sense, and improves the memory.
The empty stomach no longer draws blood away from the brain for digestion, and
so the brain receives extra blood and energy. As the poisonous waste clogging
the brain is cleaned and removed, concentration and clear thinking are greatly
enhanced. Many famous personalities who have to make frequent public speeches
have a rule; "Fast before an important speech and eat later."
·
Fasting makes the skin look younger and more radiant, as the skin pore clean themselves
of the products of toxins from eating too much fats and sweets. Pimples, acne,
skin infections, etc. can all be relieved, and the skin becomes clear and rosy.
They eyes become clear and sparkling, and pure beauty shines from within.
CONTROLLING THE MIND: FASTING WITHOUT WATER
To control this very powerful
and disturbing effect of the moon on our temperaments we must reduce the amount
of excess fluid in the brain. Doctors know that if any part of the body is "edematous"
or swollen with excess fluid, the best way to decrease the fluid in this part
is to decrease the amount of fluid in the whole body, and then the excess fluid
in the particular part will be automatically drawn out of that area by osmotic
pressure, to supply the deficiency in other parts. So if their is edema or too
much fluid in the brain as a result of stroke or accident, doctors inject a certain
chemical into the body which quickly dehydrates it. Soon the excess fluid in the
brain flows down into the body to provide the rest of the cells the liquid they
need.
Instead of powerful chemicals, the natural way to balance the fluid
in the body is to fast without water. This decreases the fluid in the whole body
and thus the liquid form the brain is drawn down into the body's cells, and the
disturbing effect of too much fluid in the brain is removed. (Also, as we have
seen, fasting without water is the quickest and most effective way to cleanse
the body of it poisons.)
But why fast on the third day before the new and
full moons - why not fast on the new and full moon days themselves? Because, as
we have seen, scientists have found that the emotional disturbance starts three
days before, so we must counteract this effect from the very beginning, before
it has a chance to greatly upset our bodies and minds. Recent discoveries by British
scientists have shown that there are two days during the month when the electron-magnetic
vibration of the body radically changes - three days before the new and full moons.
On these two days during the month there is a marked difference in the electrical
potential between the body's electromagnetic vibration at the navel and in the
brain. Scientists are puzzled as to why these two particular days should manifest
such changes - but yoga masters have long understood the significance of these
day* and regularly fasted at these times.
Even though many people during
these periods may become irritable, restless and upset, those who fast without
water will find that their minds remain balanced and calm.
FASTING TO CONTROL
OUR DESIRES
According to yoga, the most vital fluid of the body is the lymph,
which purifies the blood, helps in the secretion of hormones, and feeds and strengthens
the brain. After supplying the brain, the remaining lymph is used to form spermatozoa
and egg cells. For the proper development of body and mind, adequate lymph is
necessary, and a deficiency of lymph causes disease or mental dullness. But excess
lymph is also harmful to the body ; in all aspects of life, moderation is the
rule of nature. If there is too much lymph in the body, then the sexual organs
and glands are over -stimulated; this results n an excess of sexual desire which
disturbs both body and mind. So for the purity and control of the mind, it is
necessary to prevent the formation of excess lymph in the body by fasting 2 days
a month. By eating 28 days a month the body obtains enough food to produce just
the right amount of lymph, not too much, and in this way the purity of the body
and the balance and peace of the mind can be maintained.
Mastery Over Self
Dr.Jonas Salk, the Nobel prize-winning discoverer of polio vaccine, once
described the critical period through which humanity is now passing as a transition
from "Epoch B" from an age of competition to glorious new age of cooperation,
from an age of "either/or" - "either you or I will survive"
to an age of "both/and" - "both you and I will make our lives successful".
In this entirely new epoch which humankind is now entering, "holistic medicine"
will be the dominant model for healing, as healers and patients alike realize
that medical treatment is not the repair of ailing part of the body, but the restoration
of the proper functioning of the whole being - not only of body, but of mind and
spirit as well35,
In the past, physicians usually restricted themselves solely
to the physical body and neglected or ignored or ignored the psychological aspects
of illness. But this mechanistic concept of medicine is now considered simplistic,
and out-of -date; doctors are becoming increasingly aware that virtually all disorders
are psychosomatic in the sense that they involve a continual interplay of mind
and body in their origin , development and cure. As chronic degenerative diseases
proliferate all over the world -cancer , heart disease , strokes , aids , respiratory
diseases , gastro - intestinal ailments , migraine headaches , backaches , arthritis-the
stress-related " affliction Of civilization " -more and more people
are coming to understand that to cure themselves they have not only to take medicine
, but to change the way they live.
Centuries ago , yogis realized that we
are not simply this body , but subtle patterns of life energy in constant flow
and fluctuation , and diseases the manifestation of disharmony and imbalance in
the body and mind. They recognized the important role of the cakras (the controlling
points of the flow of vital energy throughout the body) as the link between body
and mind, and the function of the endocrine glands to mediate between the cakras
and the physical organs. Through long experimentation they developed subtle and
powerful techniques of healing and health to influence the entire organism at
a more fundamental level of being than simply the physical-techniques of exercise,
breathing, relaxation and concentration, that are being practiced by increasing
numbers of people in the world today and will be the cornerstone of the future
holistic system of health on this planet. By this unified approach to the whole
mind-body system, -this "psychosomatic health care,"-those who practice
yoga learn to control their negative and disturbing emotions and to withstand
and reduce stress. Those who regularly practice meditation as well as asanas develop
voluntary control over their internal states and their high blood pressure, heart
trouble, skin eruptions, chronic headaches and pains, insomnia, asthma, and even
paralysis completely disappear.
Thus, instead of becoming helplessly dependent
on our physicians, addicted to painkillers, or suffering the serious side-effects
of allopathic drugs, we must take more take more personal responsibility for our
health and learn to contact, as Dr.Albert Schweitzer said, "the doctor within."
By following a wholistic system of preventive health care that includes not only
exercise, relaxation and meditation, but bathing and proper diet as well, we will
maintain our entire being in perfect balance and harmony.
By the regular
practice of yoga, well will become the masters of ourselves-free from disease,
youthful and relaxed, full of joyful energy, flowing in harmony with the cosmos.
With perfectly functioning and controlled bodies, and minds free from all emotional
disturbances, calm and poised in all situations, we will be prepared and energized
to perform tireless and fulfilling service in the world, dynamic activity for
the welfare of all humanity.