Recently the world celebrated the “World Health Day” on 8th of April. In present times of rising levels of health failures in the general public, such celebrations become all the more significant.
It is an irony that where we have made tremendous advancements in medicine, food and nutrition and biotechnology, but our general and overall well-being is getting thwarted. Health has a three dimensional existence, even if one is out of sync, we cannot experience the beauty of living life in totality. The major ailments challenging us today are lifestyle and self induced, which can be easily averted if we become slightly more responsible and careful towards ourselves. And the biggest pity of our times is that we fail to understand this. Visiting spas and cosmetic surgeons does not give healthy life alone. We are living in an age of contradictions. Our knowledge is either not piercing through our ignorance or rather indifference or we have a complete disregard for our goodness. Health is a very vivacious aspect of life and we cannot treat ourselves animatedly over it.
Though body is the visible form of our healthy or unhealthy living, its reasons could lie in the invisible folds of our mental and spiritual throes. It leaves much to debate whether our lives have undergone the urbanized transformation for better or worse. The average life expectancy has considerably gone up even in the developing counties with access to medication and immunization. But the quality of life is deteriorating all over particularly developed counties. Cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular ailments, obesity, hair problems, skin disorders, etc are pervasive at young age. Medication is enabling the body to keep going but the basic immune system has turned very weak. The world is grappling with obesity so much so that according to a report by WHO, as of 2000, there were 300 million obese adults worldwide. And this overwhelming phenomenon is not confined to developed countries alone. In developing countries where on one hand people are battling with mal-nutrition, there are 115 million people suffering from obesity related problems. The offshoots of obesity are life threatening diseases like diabetes mellitus, hyper-tension, cardiovascular ailments and strokes.
The single most culpable reason for obesity is improper diet and sedentary lifestyle. We may have made unprecedented research in studies of allopathic medicine, anatomy or other related subjects but there is no medical study except Ayurveda of India that talks about the very food for our body. Our body is nothing but an automated machine that works on fuel. Like any normal machine, the efficiency is directly dependent on its fuel. The fuel for our body is our daily intake of food. Dr. K.S. Maheshwari, a renowned orthopedic surgeon of India and president of a foundation dedicated to promote the benign effects of accepting ayurveda simultaneously says that though he is an allopathic practitioner, he believes there is a need to blend in the benefits of Ayurveda, the ancient medicinal system of India, to achieve high fuel efficiency of the body. If the petrol is impure, the engine is bound to break down soon. And so is the case with our body. The increased consumption of junk food, carbonated and flavored drinks, irregular eating times and no real physical workout will in all probabilities lead to dysfunctional body. Ayurveda is the only branch of medicine that talks about the right food combinations and the real importance of proper diet in our life. Introducing yourself to right fuel at an early age has lasting sanguine consequences.
But body and its care is only one dimension of a healthy living. The mind has more influence on our well being than we wish to believe. There may not be researched proofs to corroborate this, but if we conduct a personal experience with happy thoughts the results will be pleasant and surprisingly evident. Mind thinks what we want it to think. The thoughts are provided by us consciously or subconsciously. The subconscious thoughts are an accumulation of what we see, hear and do over a period of time and this may not be entirely our discretion. But the conscious thoughts are our own progeny. Positive and peaceful thoughts have a prophylactic effect on the body. Our food and thoughts are the input in our body and mind and both have a strong bearing on the quality of life we live. When the body and mind are in harmony, the third element of spirit comes alive with a melody. When a strange tranquility transcends over the self and you experience joy in every chore and part of your life and an unwavering ecstasy, it is a sign of reaching the soul or rather the culmination of the divine trinity of body, mind and soul. Health is not just about fitting into narrow trousers, looking young and dancing to loud tunes. It is more about being fit, feeling young and dancing to the joys of inner peace.
A little importance to our personal well being will help us to concentrate better on the more important issues of life. It is an investment with sure shot profits and long term dividends. Lord Buddha said,
“Better a single day of life
seeing the reality of arising and passing away
than a hundred years of existence
remaining blind to it.”
The reality of life will be visible and enjoyable only with a vigorous and vivacious body, a positive frame of mind and relishing in the simple pleasures of life.
