It is we who can make or mar ourselves, create and keep a healthy person inside or unhealthy patient. It is up to us to remain healthy or suffer illness.
By maintaining proper diet; proper balance, correct postures, working hard, doing physical labour, taking adequate rest, keeping inside out clean and by doing good deeds we can be healthy, happy and satisfied. But if we do the opposite, we will create obstacles and suffering of different hue, quality and dimension to lead a miserable life. Our misery and our happiness depend totally on us. It is the work, word and philosophy that moulds a person and his personality and shapes his life, and to a certain extent of those that are dependent on him/her or are related to him/her.
Our habits influence our thoughts and deeds and also that of those who closely watch us. Each one is mask for someone, and all of us have a mask for ourselves. We fix our target, unannounced and often we don’t realize that we are following someone or we are trying to be like someone. That someone is our secret idol, the mask for us.
If that someone is cultured and refined then we easily become cultured and refined but if that someone is a criminal we learn criminal activities. If that someone is healthy we often cite his example that, so and so, has maintained his/her health meticulously well. But if the opposite is the case we suffer inside. Every human being has a tendency to copy someone. What is important is to copy a healthy and happy man of good health. We must imbibe good qualities and create good habits.
Sitting Habits: One must sit in a comfortable position and move left and right or bend forward and sit erect. Sitting in one position should not continue for long. The women cooking while sitting get a lot of natural movements, like that of Yoga, and hence, are healthier. Always keep you feet up if sitting on a chair.
Standing Habits: One should not remain in standing position for long. Any posture that continues for long affects the free flow of blood and hence of oxygen. The abdomen bulges out of those that stand for long for cooking at tables or higher platforms or keep a watch over customers or other movement while standing by a counter.
Walking Habits: Walking after taking supper must be slow and easy paced but morning walks must always be brisk with longer steps, and enough to start sweating even during winter season. Men going towards office, work place or bus stop or station must walk faster with longer steps but girls and women should not walk hurriedly even if it is late.
Sleeping Habits: Don’t cover your face while sleeping or don’t fold both the legs. The best way is to take such a posture which induces sleep and it varies because of different way of sleeping habits. Don’t go to bed late; don’t sleep late in the morning. The best time for sleeping is between ten at night to six in the morning. Six hours are adequate for a young and healthy person or persons between the age-group of twenty to sixty. Sleeping during the day is strictly prohibited. Children, ailing men or women and old can sleep for long and even during the day. Always sleep on the left side first, then on back and then turn to right side, say, for the first ten to fifteen minutes. After that there is no barrier.
Breathing Habits: It is intriguing how and why the change occurred, but it is a fact that most of the modern men, women and children, particularly city-dwellers have started breathing in and out of abdomen. It is imperative all should inhale or exhale through chest. If breathing is done through abdomen there will be no control over it, and the abdomen itself will bulge out. Check your breath and start breathing from the chest by exerting very little pressure on the navel to pull it in.
Eating Habits: Don’t eat between meals. Always eat less than what you can. There must be a standard six hours gap between one and another meal. It should never be less than four hours. Eat something after six hours if the next meal is delayed. Take a bit of water before taking your meal; and at least half an hour after taking the meal. If there is no emergency, then don’t take water while taking your meal. Take medium sized morsels and chew your food well to allow the saliva to get mixed well.
Working Habits: Don’t waste your precious time of early morning from 5 a.m. to 8 a.m. Family members will be busy in daily routine; children will be preparing for schools; ladies will be busy in cooking; you are usually left alone. If you have no fixed work to do then spend this time on study reading classics or scriptures or writing personal accounts; letters.
Work for eight hours, usually four hours at a stretch. Don’t work for more than ten hours at any cost. If more time is spent on work then there will be no life and energy left. Sooner or later, it will create tension and health problems will start springing up. You may not realize that it is due to hard work. Spend your evenings with neighbours or children: own children or neighbours’ or both.
Combination of Work, Rest and Entertainment: One’s life must be a balanced combination of work, rest and entertainment. Those who are wise spend their days that way. But those that are heartily participating in the common rat-race will miss a lot for money: the most precious will be life; the second best will be health; the third is peace.
The most important thing in life is life and nothing else. If one has life, is lively and has a habit of laughing then he is bound to be healthy. Health gives not only stamina but happiness also.
Two simple factors are responsible for domestic quarrels, pain, worry and suffering, and hence to mental tensions and physical illness. When there is tension in the family or at the work place, the routine is disturbed, particularly, the food-intake, the meals. People hardly realize that the secretion of different hormones and enzymes increases when the tension grows, and if there is nothing in the stomach to digest the enzymes often create havoc. One must be careful, Carelessness at any time and place is dangerous and always causes some apparent or unknown loss.
Everyone wants others to do the work and bear the expenses; and everyone wants material comforts, respect and praise. If one changes the idea and starts fulfilling the desires of others, he will be free from worries and get immense pleasure. In place of taking from the world if we start giving the world the things, concrete or abstract that we possess, things will change for better.
If mourning is sharing the grief, it is all right for the time being and in a limited way; but if mourning is for the sake of mourning then it is the wastage of inner power and positive values. Maintain balance; give due weight-age to everything. Proportion is the golden key to health and happiness. Avoid excess of everything; and everything means everything.
Krishna was against mourning and worrying. He says in the Gitā:
One should get rid of the strain in mind and conscience when the event is over; and the sooner the better. One should never carry on the spirit of mourning or the sense or cause of worrying. The negative impact of undesired events should neither be nursed nor carried forward. Forget them, get refreshed and resume the work as fast as you can.
One must realize the distinction between thinking and worrying; thinking is creative, positive and essential; worrying is destructive, negative and unnecessary. Think about your works, never worry about the problems. Remember, works and responsibilities; dearth of material possessions and burdens over head are not problems. Only major hurdles and obstacles, which can’t be removed easily, can be treated as problems.
Creative ideas and constructive thought are basic and imperative states and steps towards contemplation. When one is positive in outlook and concentrates on constructive thinking one is moving correctly ahead towards inner awareness and richness. That way one can prosper, know and feel prosperity. Then worrying will be reduced, eliminated or totally eradicated; and thinking sensibly will be strengthened. The physical power and health will remain intact. Mind is to work incessantly without rest throughout the life, hence avoid wearing it out or tearing it off by worrying. Give it rest for rejuvenation.
Have faith in the self and in others too. The best thing about faith is to believe that only the person concerned and his/ her personal God are there to take care of the person; and all other relations, relatives, friends and foes are mere illusions: they are ‘all’ selfish and they are responsible for their deeds: good deeds and misdeeds. This illusion must be cleared and one should not be in illusion. Knowingly think and behave as if all are faithful, sincere and cooperative because their mischief will not affect him/ her. So it is safest to follow the easiest rule. This will considerably reduce the burden over the body and the mind. You will grow and feel healthier.
Never attack; and if attacked never retaliate; injuries or resultant death will be boon in disguise and the attacker will be ruined; may live but like a dead one. The faithful can be sure of being saved from the jaws of certain death. Save your energy, for growing from inside and for better utilization. Enmity takes the sap out of body and later on out of life. It is wastage of birth in human form if one fails to remain healthy for doing good to the posterity because it is only the posterity that gives continuity to life on the earth. Ignore the attacks and also all negative suggestions to be fresh and alert. If you are doing everything righteously, have faith you will be healthy. You may not get a lot of ‘something’ but you will get eberything including precious health.
Have faith in the self and show faith towards others. It is a great thing about faith that it gives no pain as all the pain is drained out by the ‘Unknown’. One is relieved of each mental burden and is free to perform other deeds with ease and confidence.
