Vedic Approach To Stress
According to various Vedic scriptures, it has been established that a
healthy mind leads to a healthy body; conversely, an unhealthy mind can
lead to an unhealthy body. If the mind is in a state of good health, it can
move on undeterred after every troubling situation. A good mind is a
product of good thoughts. Good thoughts are that which are free of
selfishness and greed. Hope and fear are nothing but figments of human
imagination. When we fear, we affect our mind in a negative way; when we
hope, we seek for viable alternatives. As a matter of fact, an indifferent
mind, It seeks to do good things not just for oneself or one's family, but
for the whole world. Yet, it's detached from the fruits of its action. When
the fruit is good, it may be happy but when otherwise, it isn't bothered
much. This uproots all scope for stress or crisis. Since it is bereft of
stress and any positive or negative emotion, such a mind is well suited to
handle crises, not just at an individual's level, but at an institutional
level as well. It looks at the situation objectively. It assesses
objectives, but never clings on to sentiments, negative or positive, since
it hasn't one. When stuck in a crisis, people often look for readymade
solutions, or some kind of a magic wand. They look for leadership without
knowledge of leadership qualities. According to the Bhagavad Gita, "One who
is unattached to the fruits of his work and who works as he is obligate is
the true yogi, not he who lights no fire and performs no duty."
According to the philosophy of karma, all the actions that we see in
the world, all the movements in human society, all the works that we have
around us, are simply the display of thought, the manifestation of the will
of man. Also, says the philosophy of karma, everything is determined by
karma, or work. Nothing is achieved unless earned; this is an eternal law.
Our karma determines what we deserve and what we can assimilate. We are
responsible for what we are; and whatever we wish ourselves to be; we have
the power to make ourselves. Work for work's sake. They work because they
think that it is good enough. Unselfishness is more rewarding than
selfishness, only people lack patience to practice it.
*Mandukya Upanishad, Acharya Gaudapada *states:
*सर्वभिलापविपगत**: **सर्वचिन्तासमुत्थित**: *
*| **सुप्रशान्त**: **सकृज्ज्योति**: **समाधिरलोऽभय**: **|| *We are always
independent of this body and mind. When our mind realizes this truth, it
begins experiencing perpetual tranquil, everlasting effulgence, eternal
bliss, persists unassailably and becomes completely fearless. When the
thoughts are without any trace of fear, that thought is *Sattva *or *Sattvic.
*When our thoughts are engrossed in fear with partial objectivity and
focus, such thoughts are *Rajo *or *Rajasic. *When our thoughts are
entirely overwhelmed by fear and without any trace of hope, that is
undoubtedly a *Tamas *or *Tamasic *thought. The mind has four essential
functions *Observe, Understand, Think *and *Act. *In a mind afflicted by
*Chinta the *ability to *Understand* and *Think* are often absent. It is
indeed a travesty that humans, who pride in their ability to think, have
often acted more out of impulses, only to make their life miserable. Even
though the thought may not guarantee the expected outcome, without thoughts
even a predicted result may not be nearly as good enough as expected to
hope for.
How to benefit from stress: How many of you have ever been
under stress? How many of you have liked being under stress? How many of
you have benefitted from being under stress? Very good, then you know that
stress is good, stress is strengthening. Don’t be taken in by the medical
profession that is selling all kinds of drugs on the pretext that stress is
a bad thing. Drugs don’t give you strength to meet life’s difficulties.
They are weakening. You don’t want to be born and be in a cradle all of
your life and have everything go nicely and pass on into the Devaloka in a
worse condition than before you were born. That will happen to you unless
you are under stress, some kind of challenge. Stress is strengthening if
you continually rise up to meet it. Why do you go on pilgrimage in an
inconvenient, uncomfortable way? Because you want to put yourself under
stress to bring the spiritual aspect of you forth, to let the karmas
manifest in your life that you have come into this birth to face and
resolve. FACE THE STRESS. AS OSCAR WILD E SAID IT YIELD TO STRESS (HE SAID
DIFFRENTLY).
Your imagination alone enlarges the volume of the stress as you
are incapable of managing it. Resting is not a stress buster. Engaging
oneself is all the time, even in sleep. Go to REM. When you are throbbed by
someone’s bossism ( you only thought that he is bossing ,but never he said
it so) either obey if one is blank about the matter ; or explain if the
other lends his ears; or try to absorb the idea to expand in your style; or
simply determine to implement it in toto. When one thinks that the other is
a boss and I wont listen to him, makes one stressful. In other words, one
stress buster is to immediately switch over to another work; and come back
later to continue; switches, never expressed the stress, when you are
handling them 10000 times.
Stretching the nerve system: Stress is good. Don’t be taken in
by television advertising that tells you that stress is a terrible thing.
But you have to handle stress. How do you handle it? Like anything else.
You go to God on the inside; you go to God in the temple and finally you
get rid of your stress, from the inside out, and you are a better person
because of it, because you have had to expand your nerve system. You have
had to stretch your nerve system. You have had to use brain cells that you
never used before, to stretch out your mind, awaken new capacities. It is
not easy.
chanting *“AUM”* for 10 minutes has a positive effect on mood and
social cognition. Further research found the chant to provide calm and
peace to a stressed mind, helping reduce symptoms of social anxiety. “Om is
considered as the primordial sound of the universe. Another mantra
,pronounced slowly and calmly ,removing the stress is,Shanti Mantra in
Sanskrit: ॐ द्यौ: शान्तिरन्तरिक्षँ शा न्ति:, पृथ्वी शान्तिराप: शान्तिरोषधय:
शान्ति: । वनस्पतय: शान्तिर्विश्वे देवा: शान्तिर्ब्रह्म शान्ति:, सर्वँ शा
र्वँ न्ति:, शान्तिरेव शा न्ति:, सा मा शान्तिरेधि ॥ ॐ शान्ति: शान्ति: शान्ति:
॥ : Om Dyau Shanti-Rantariksha-Gwam Shantih, Prithvi Shanti-Rapah
Shanti-Roshadhayah Shantih। Vanas-Patayah Shanti-Vishwed Devah
Shanti-Brahma Shantih, Sarvag-Wam Shantih Shanti-Reva Shantih Sa Ma
ShantiRedhi॥ Om Shantih Shantih Shantih Om॥ : ॐ द्यौ: शान्तिरन्तरिक्षँ शा
न्ति:, May harmony transmit there in the entire sky just as in the
tremendous ethereal space all over the place. पृथ्वी शान्तिराप: शान्तिरोषधय:
शान्ति: । May harmony rule all over this world, in water and in all herbs,
trees and creepers. वनस्पतय: शान्तिर्विश्वे देवा: शान्तिर्ब्रह्म शान्ति:,
May harmony stream over the entire universe. May harmony be in the Supreme
Being Brahman. सर्वँ शा र्वँ न्ति:, शान्तिरेव शा न्ति:, सा मा शान्तिरेधि ॥
Also, may there consistently exist in all harmony and harmony alone. ॐ
शान्ति: शान्ति: शान्ति: ॥ Aum harmony, harmony, and harmony to us and all
creatures!. At the point when recited, the Shanti mantra can soothingly
affect the psyche and lead to profound unwinding.? Through the Shanti
Mantra, we look for assurance from ध तापा: (three scorchers) of the idea
of - अध्या त्मि-क (inconvenience caused 'inside' oneself at the body level
and psyche level) आधिभौति- inconvenience brought about by observed
substances for example people around us) आधिदैविक (inconvenience brought
about by 'inconspicuous' for example which comes to us from natural
disasters,
The following additional disciplines will also be helpful in
combating stress and tension:
1. Keeping the Five Precepts conscientiously. The feeling of guilt
increases stress. By observing the precepts, a person leads a blameless
life and thereby enjoys freedom from the nagging sense of guilt that
harasses one who violates the basic rules of morality. A guilty conscience
is a vexing companion during the day, an uncomfortable bedfellow at night.
2. Sense control. The mind is constantly attracted to pleasant sense
objects and repelled by unpleasant objects. Wandering recklessly among the
objective fields, it becomes scattered and distraught. By guarding the
sense doors, this wasteful agitation is checked. The mind becomes calm and
settled, and as a result one experiences an unblemished happiness.
3. Meditation. Meditation, or bhavana, purifies the mind. As the mind is
gradually cleansed, one can see with greater clarity the true nature of
life. One then becomes increasingly detached from worldly things and
develops an equanimity that cannot be shaken by the fluctuations of fortune.
4. Cultivating the four sublime attitudes. The four sublime attitudes
(brahmavihara) are loving kindness, compassion, altruistic joy, and
equanimity. These are enlightened emotions that reduce the stress and
strain of daily life, improve interpersonal relationships at home and in
the workplace, promote racial accord and amity, help in the development of
an even mind, and increase calm and inner peace.{Art of mindfulness}.
KR IRS 28//29/1/23
On Thu, 26 Jan 2023 at 19:26, 'N Sekar' via iyer123 <
[email protected]> wrote:
> Thanks for the informative write up. It has a wealth of information.
>
> But the problem is many of us gather lots of information but only some act
> on them.
>
> Basically in addition to good food, exercise which people follow generally
> now a days, what they don't follow is lead a stress free life, myself
> included. Stress is a major factor in aging as well as other health related
> issues.
>
> Based on my doctor's advice, I now restrict which news channels I watch
> and who I interact with and it has definitely contributed to a more
> acceptable BP level. Sometimes staying away from people, places etc. helps
> in this regard - what you don't know, you don't worry about - of course,
> within acceptable limits and not to be extended beyond a certain level.
>
> I try and follow, although to an extremely limited extent, what Swami
> Vivekananda said:
>
> " God, give me the courage to change the things that I can, Accept the
> things over which I have no control AND the Wisdom to know the difference".
>
> Easier to quote than to practice but why not share good things?
>
> N Sekar
>
>
> Sent from Yahoo Mail on Android
> <https://go.onelink.me/107872968?pid=InProduct&c=Global_Internal_YGrowth_AndroidEmailSig__AndroidUsers&af_wl=ym&af_sub1=Internal&af_sub2=Global_YGrowth&af_sub3=EmailSignature>
>
> On Thu, 26 Jan 2023 at 22:58, 'venkat giri' via iyer123
> <[email protected]> wrote:
> *Respected Sir/s,*
> * AGEING, an inevitable process, is commonly measured by
> chronological age and, as a convention, a person aged 65 years or more is
> often referred to as "ELDERLY". However, the ageing process is not uniform
> across the population due to differences in genetics, lifestyle, and
> overall health.Ageing is a natural part of life that changes the body in
> ways we sometimes might not like.*The body ages at different rates, a
> phenomenon that doctors call “biological” vs. “chronological” age.It’s
> also important to note that individuals can age in multiple different ways
> and will typically have a combination of ageotypes to varying degrees .Natural
> changes happen in the body as we age, such as skin damage from sun
> exposure, loss of muscle and physical strength, loss of some sight and
> hearing, as well as changes to our sleep patterns, energy levels and
> appetite.
> Ageing is the progressive accumulation of changes
> with time that are associated with or responsible for the ever-increasing
> susceptibility to disease and death which accompanies advancing age” and
> “the sum of the deleterious free radical reactions going on continuously
> throughout the cells and tissues constitutes the ageing process or is a
> major contributor to it”.
> However, the ageotype insight is that
> everyone is also predisposed to biologically aging in different ways.
> Someone’s ageotype defines how they will get older, with parts of their
> body aging faster or more slowly than others.
> *Some people's hearts stay strong well into their 60s, but
> their kidneys begin to fail. Others may have the kidneys of a 30-year-old
> but fall victim to constant infection. *
> * Now, scientists may be one step closer to understanding
> why the ageing process varies so drastically between people. Even within a
> single person, ageing unfolds at different rates in different tissues,
> sometimes striking the liver before the heart or kidney, for example.
> People fall into distinct categories depending on which of their biological
> systems ages fastest, and someday, doctors could use this information to
> recommend specific lifestyle changes and design personalized medical
> treatments.**Ageing causes changes to the brain size, vasculature, and
> cognition. The brain shrinks with increasing age and there are changes at
> all levels from molecules to morphology. Incidence of stroke, white matter
> lesions, and dementia also rise with age, as does level of memory
> impairment and there are changes in levels of neurotransmitters and
> hormones.Memory decline also occurs with ageing and brain activation
> becomes more bilateral for memory tasks. *
> Protective factors that reduce
> cardiovascular risk, namely regular exercise, a healthy diet, and low to
> moderate alcohol intake, seem to aid the ageing brain as does increased
> cognitive effort in the form of education or occupational attainment. A
> healthy life both physically and mentally may be the best defence against
> the changes of an ageing brain.It has been widely found that the volume
> of the brain and/or its weight declines with age at a rate of around 5% per
> decade after age 40, with the actual rate of decline possibly increasing
> with age particularly over age 70.Brain changes do not occur to the same
> extent in all brain regions.
> By 2030, 1 in 6 people in the world will be aged 60
> years or over. At this time the share of the population aged 60 years and
> over will increase from 1 billion in 2020 to 1.4 billion. By 2050, the
> world's population of people aged 60 years and older will double (2.1
> billion).
> MEDICAL RESEARCH :
> Scientists have looked for ways to slow down, stop or reverse
> the ageing process. While research and medical advances have helped to
> increase life expectancy..... ageing continues.*For many years, most
> researchers have believed changes to a body’s DNA — called mutations are a
> leading cause of ageing. *Now a team led by researchers from Harvard
> Medical School finds support for an alternative hypothesis: it is the
> changes that affect the expression of the DNA — called epigenetics— that
> affect ageing. Scientists demonstrated this via a mouse model where changes
> in epigenetic information caused mice to first age and then reverse aging.
> Gene activity, the “switch on” and “switch off” of
> genes, is associated with epigenetic changes, chemical changes in the DNA
> that do not alter the DNA sequence. Epigenetics studies show the
> environment can modify how genes work without actually changing the genes
> themselves.
> Factors that may lead to epigenetic changes are :
> Diet,Ageing,physical activity, OBESITY,Tobacco and Alcohol use,environmental
> pollutants,stress,infections and diseases like cancer.
> Dr. David Sinclair, a professor in the Department of Genetics
> and co-director of the Paul F. Glenn Center for Biology of Aging Research
> at Harvard Medical School, is the senior author of this study.Dr.
> Sinclair said the research team decided to study epigenetics as a potential
> driver for the ageing process.
> During this study, researchers created temporary, fast-healing “cuts” in
> the DNA of mice. These cuts imitated the effect of certain lifestyle and
> environmental effects on the DNA’s epigenetic pattern.Researchers found the
> cuts caused the mice’s epigenetic pattern to change and eventually
> malfunction, causing the mice to begin looking and acting older. These mice
> also had increased biomarkers indicating ageing.Scientists then gave these
> mice gene therapy to reverse the epigenetic changes, which they said
> “reset” the mice’s epigenetic program and ultimately reversed the ageing
> the mice had experienced.
> “We hope these results are seen as a turning point in our ability to
> control ageing,” Sinclair says. “This is the first study showing that we
> can have precise control of the biological age of a complex animal; that we
> can drive it forwards and backward at will.” Dr. Santosh Kesari, a
> neurologist at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, CA,
> and Regional Medical Director for the Research Clinical Institute of
> Providence Southern California, says this was a “very exciting study,”
> opening up the understanding of how ageing occurs and how we can measure it
> at the DNA level.“And it turns out it’s not just that we accumulate
> mutations in the DNA, which is we think is one of the main factors that
> cause age-related disorders, … but more of how the DNA is read that is
> really contributing to ageing,”. Dr. Kesari explained. “And as we age, the
> reading of the DNA is affected in a big way. Thisreally opens up a new way
> of thinking about aging, but also a new way to think about targeting ageing
> by developing drugs that affect how the cell reads the DNA.”
> As this study was conducted in an animal model, Dr.
> Kesari said ; the next question and challenge would be to understand how
> individual humans age in the real world — what tests are required, and how
> scientists can monitor for bad agieng.
> “And then doing really smart studies to look at
> biomarkers that gives a signal that actually affects ageing in a positive
> way,” he continued.... Testing drugs, and then having short-term
> biomarkers that tell us whether a drug is working or not and affecting
> age-related disorders,” Dr. Kesari concluded.
> ......
> Regards
> V.Sridharan
> Trichy
>
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "iyer123" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to [email protected].
> To view this discussion on the web visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/iyer123/1764759439.379.1674759472020%40mail.yahoo.com
> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/iyer123/1764759439.379.1674759472020%40mail.yahoo.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer>
> .
>
> --
> You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
> "iyer123" group.
> To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an
> email to [email protected].
> To view this discussion on the web visit
> https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/iyer123/732906170.170029.1674789954922%40mail.yahoo.com
> <https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/iyer123/732906170.170029.1674789954922%40mail.yahoo.com?utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer>
> .
>
--
You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups
"Thatha_Patty" group.
To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email
to [email protected].
To view this discussion on the web visit
https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/thatha_patty/CAL5XZoqeWmK46vAGL%3Dqt63uoHQfOS-F7BjYt1PXWpTdf%3DFnMGA%40mail.gmail.com.
