It is an ancient understanding that our body knows how to heal and protect; it is a fortress that knows how to keep the enemy from entering and destroying it. We need to start seeing ourselves from a universal point of view. When we did not have a cheat sheet of the western medication, did we not heal or live long? Did we not fight infections and cure our wounds? We did this through are of awareness and meditation of mind and body! We knew how to balance energies in our energy system. The science now agrees to it, after several types of research and experiments over decades on the mind and mediation concluding how our brain rewires and activates the cells that release the right kind of hormones and juices that help build our internal fighting and mechanism making us resilient to changes outside our body.
Through this article, ModMonk Anshul, founder SoulSchool Business Psychologist, Spiritual Coach and Mystic wants to bring your attention to a crucial point: we use "meditation" very loosely in the western world; in the Vedic/Indic knowledge system and culture, we use Dhyaan, Dharna, and then Samadhi state. Meditation, as we know and understand, is an action, something we do, whereas it is a "state" we need to be in.
Yoga and meditation for holistic health
Health and wellness is a part of the Indic & Vedic thought process, as we view the body as a temple of life and know it is integral to keep it healthy, physically and mentally fit. However, achieving good health and long life can indeed be possible only if you have a robust immune system and vital forces in your energy forces flowing in your body.
Yoga, so popular now in the western world, helps boost your energy in the body, but it is not just physical exercise as we see it nowadays. Yog means “uniting” the mind and body.
In ashtanga yoga (8 limbed), meditation (dhyaan), the seventh limb is followed by the optimized and proper concentration, also called Dharna. The first four limbs of the Yoga practice is Yama, Niyama, Asana and pranayama (yogic breathing), which are incredibly crucial to our wellbeing. Fostering wellness within the spirit and the body.
When the mind is relaxed but concentrated and conscious at this state of mind, mind and body form a unique bond so that the body can stimulate healthy growth and is controlled by the mind, no wonder the sages lived for hundreds of years perfectly fit in the eastern mountain ranges.
Also Read: 5 Types Of Meditation That You Must Do Now To De-Stress From Corona Scare
How meditation can change your life and mind?
- Mind and body share a bidirectional connection. Therefore, psychoneuroimmunology is used to characterize the relations between psychological factors, the central nervous system, and the neuroendocrine system.
- The fluctuation and regulation of immune function may be seen as an adaptive mechanism regulated by stress hormones, For example, chronic stress damages immune system response and triggers inflammation and destroys the natural fighting mechanism of the body.
- However, regular meditative practices can undo many physiological reactions leading to inflammation and reduced immune function brought on by damaging emotions and stress and anxiety.
- In practice, the form of rhythmic breathing is called pranayama, followed by a period of meditation using a mantra or chant and then silencing the mind and body; it can tweak the brain and body in several beneficial ways & cause modulation of the immune system.
The link between meditation and immunity
Some ways meditation can help our immune system and health:
- It increases volume in specific brain regions, reduces anxiety and depression, and improves immunity.
- It helps balance the multiplication and count of RBCs and WBCs in our blood flow.
- Meditation promotes physical health
- It improves awareness and builds a mental connection with the body, helping it understand and acknowledge the body and issues that need to be dealt with.
- Regularised Yogic breathing techniques will help oxygen circulate in the right amount and help keep each cell healthy.
- It helps in building your willpower against addiction of all kinds.
- Improving heart functionality
- Focus and mental concentration will help enhance cognitive skills.
- A boost in natural antibodies
- Reduced pro-inflammatory gene expression
- Reduced cell ageing
- Clears allergies and rashes
Above, are just a few examples the list is huge.
Also Read: 5 Most Common Myths About Meditation That You Need Not Believe
Centuries back, ritual and spiritual practices were primary forms of health care that can not be forgotten or ignored. Unfortunately, with the birth of modern medicine, those practices have often been dismissed as part of our irrational, superstitious past. But now, they have come back to light and are under study only to validate the precision and effectiveness of these practices; it is a bit of irony in itself that scientific studies of meditation provide compelling evidence for the same.
A robust immune system is advantageous to health, healing, and longevity, and we all are equipped with the instrument to practice and achieve it with intellect and body.
Image credits- freepik