WHAT IS THIS LIFE, IF FULL OF CARE, WE HAVE NO TIME TO STOP AND STARE?
If in 1911 these lines may have been relevant, I think they seem to be even more relevant today. So simple and yet so deep.
The pandemic year 2020 and now continuing into 2021, has taken a toll on human psyche. Everywhere you turn, you find sufferings, fear and massive overload of media coverage of everything that’s going wrong in the world. Every day, we witness a struggle – of physical, verbal and mental—moving in circles, creating waves of negativity and depression all around! There are a lot of mental imbalances, each one of us is in a disturbed state, even as we face challenges every day.
But what happens when this stays with us for a long time? Living continuously in a state of stress and tension starts affecting us both mentally and physically.
Physically, our body parts start tensing and tightening up, we have BP fluctuations, there is lack of oxygen, co-ordination of our digestive system becomes irregular and overall, our brain goes into a negative loop. Our nervous system, endocrine system, circulatory & digestive systems all start getting affected.
Mentally, there is a loss of clarity, decisions get clouded by negativity, leading to further problems. Suicides, drug addiction, dependency on alcohol, are some of the aftereffects of living stressful lives.
For all this, what is the solution?
As Sri Yogendraji (Founder, Yoga Institute, Santa Cruz, Mumbai) says,
“The length of life is not so important as the quality of life.”
“According to Yoga, the moment balanced state is lost you are under stress. The moment you are away from a happy state you are under stress. This negative stress pays havoc in your personality.”
We must stop and reflect on certain aspects of our lives. We need to look at the Ahaar(Food) ,Vihaar(activity), Achaar(relationships),Vichaar( thoughts) aspects of our lives and how we can improve ourselves if we put in a little effort into these areas.
Starting our day- do we have proper and adequate intake of food (Ahaar)? Most of us rush off to school, offices etc., on an empty stomach, stating that we are getting late! Eating on time and at regular intervals, eating light and easily digested food, preferably home cooked food, helps us perform our daily tasks in a proper manner.
In our free time, to release stress, we must indulge in some creative activities (Vihaar). Watching TV is not an activity, it is passive time pass. In fact, under the present scenario, watching over hyped media reporting on depressing and morbid coverage of deaths, sufferings etc. can only add to the stress. Listening to music, learning to play any musical instrument (there are enough classes available online), gardening, painting, reading some inspiring books, carpentry, social service, even trying cooking (for those who don’t know how to cook)-these are some positive and relaxing activities, that can help to take our minds away from the daily ups and downs of our lives.
Our relationships (Achaar) should be balanced and with the right attitude. We must be humble and positive in our dealings with others, giving them due credit for their experience, and always be willing to learn from both elders and youngsters. With such an attitude, we will not think of others as a threat or a challenge.
Lastly, our thought process (Vichaar)- try to be more accepting of others with their shortcomings-nobody is perfect, we are ourselves not perfect! Compassion, empathy, let go attitude of shortcomings, towards others-whether they are our friends, children, colleagues, relatives- help us to be more relaxed and happier.
Another great way to relax is to learn to bring in more laughter into our lives. Over these two years of pandemic disaster, our sense of humor, our ready smiles and easy laughter seem to have faded away. Laughter is good for our health. When we laugh, our brain releases endorphins, reduces stress hormones such as cortisol, reduces blood pressure and increases circulation. Laughter, in general, creates a sense of wellbeing. As Charlie Chaplin, the famous English comedian, rightly said- “A day without laughter is a day wasted”.
To inculcate these changes into our daily lives will take time but it’s a constant process of evolving, we need to nurture this attitude and keep on persevering. These changes will give us long term and permanent benefits.
By Shrilekha Khanna