Monk in Ananda Marga, Neo-Humanist Foundation, Singapore
He was born in one small village of Bihar. Which is very near to Lumbini, where Buddha was born. By the grace of Master I experienced the need of spiritual practices and that gave me a grate speed to move towards meaningful life. After following the practice of Ananda Marga way of life. I decided to be a monk and to give all my live to serve the society. 27 years of Yoga way of live gave me tremendous experience in my live and if made me confident enough to achieve the highest goal of my life. I am very determined on my goal and achieving successfully in this lifetime itself.
YOGIC TREATMENT AND NATURAL REMEDIES - Sunday, 10th and Thursday 7th Janurary, 1999
The subject (Yogic treatment and natural remedies) which, I am writing about that all based on my Master's idea. He is known by the name of Shrii Shrii Ananda Murti. If any one like to know more about Yoga way of please you can fine out about Anada Marga on inter net and contact our offices all over the world. Yogic treatment includes ayurvedic method of treatment to treat body without any side effects. This will includes the subject of food as medicine.
We are what we eat. Those delicious morsels of food we pop into our mouths eventually develop every cell of our bodies and affect not only our physical health, but the way we think as well. Recent experiments have shown that certain food directly influence the workings of the brain by affecting the brain's chemical neurotransmitters which are involved in different mental and physical functions: in memory, sleep, motor coordination, pain, depression, learning ability, and even our perception of reality. Eating foods rich in lecithin, for instance (which is contained in soybeans) can increase our memory power; whereas eating a meal rich in carbohydrates and poor in proteins is the surest way to make the brain drowsy for hours afterwards. Research has indicated that even the symptoms of schizophrenia, hyperactivity, and certain other mental disorders can be alleviated by corrective diet therapy.
Thousands of years ago, yoga sages realized the tremendous importance of the food we eat on the state of our bodies and minds. Through their deep, introspective investigations into the nature of the universe, those ancient yogis realized what modern scientists since Einstein are just beginning to discovery that the entire manifested universe is composed of vibration of energy and ,ultimately , vibrations of consciousness. In this universe of multifarious waves, what we call matter ( solids , liquids and gases ), sound , light and thought , are all simply waves vibrating at different frequencies , from gross to " subtle ". All foods are also permeated with their own subtle vibrations, at different frequencies, and these vibrations in turn affect the body and mind of the person eating them. After long experimentation with different foods on their own bodies and minds (for the yogis were practical, empirical scientists, not merely theoreticians), those ancient seers characterized foods into three categories, corresponding to the three forces which are operating simultaneously everywhere in the universe, in all entities. When any one of these vibrational flows, or energy forces, predominates in any object or creature, it takes on the qualities of the force.
The first of these universal forces is the sentient force of self-awareness, love, peace, purity and joy. When the sentient force is predominant in our minds, we feel peaceful, relaxed and calm, and our minds flow easily to higher levels of consciousness. "Sentient foods" are those in which the sentient force is dominant, which make our minds clear and calm. These foods are the basis of the yogic diet, for they are the most conductive to physical health and mental peace; they are the best diet for those who seek to elevate their minds to higher states of consciousness and attain self-realization.
This group of foods includes fruits, most vegetables, bean and nuts, grains mile and milk products, and moderate amounts of most herbs and spices. The sentient diet (sometimes called "lacto-vegetarian" because it includes milk and milk products) provides a wide variety of nutrients supplying proteins, carbohydrates, fats, and all the essential vitamins and minerals
THE MUTATIVE FORCE & MUTATIVE FOODS
The second of these universal flows is the mutative force, the force of restless movement, activity or change. When this force is predominant in our minds, we become agitated, nervous and restless, unable to calm down and relax, Mutative foods are those which stimulate the body and mind, and should be taken only in moderation in order to maintain our mental balance. Indeed, eating too much of these stimulating foods, disturbs the mind makes it impossible to still the mind for subtle mental pursuits such as meditation.
Included in this category; caffeinated beverages such as coffee and tea, carbonated drinks, chocolate, hot spices such as red peppers, fermented foods, and some medicinal drugs.
THE STATIC FORCE AND STATIC FOODS
The third force is the static force, the force of dullness, inertia, decay and death. Death occurs when the other two forces in any living entity have completely waned and the static force alone predominates. When this force is operating in our minds, we feel sleepy, dull and listless, lacking energy and initiative.
The static foods include meats, fish, onion, garlic, eggs, mushrooms, alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, and food that is fermented, stale or spoiled. These foods should be avoided by those who seek to attain health of body and elevation of mind. However, in certain situations, according to the climate or activity of an individual, they may be eaten - for instance, in extremely cold climates where meat or small quantities of alcoholic beverages may be necessary to maintain body heat.
The Natural Cure: Fasting
When the entire digestive system is permeated with the chronic abuse of modern eating, with wate products form the continued inflow of unassimilable food, and may even be laboring to throw off these morbid wastes through germs, fever or skin eruptions - to bring about the transmutation of the entire being, the radical cleaning of the whole body must be begun. All the putrefying refuse which is clogging the system must be eliminated through the ABSOLUTE EMPTINESS OF FASTING. Only when the digestive system is empty and fasting can it devour the wastes, burn then up, and eliminate them through the bloodstream.
INTERNAL HOUSECLEANING
The body is your house; it is also your machine, the vehicle which carries you about and does all your work. Your regularly clean out your house and discard waste and accumulated junk; you regularly clean your car or motorcycle of dirt, or it becomes clogged and ceases to run. But did you ever stop to think about cleaning your own insides? The best way to cleanse the body internally is by fasting. No one would attempt to clean the water pipe system of a city, and wash all the clogged filters, until they had first turned the water supply off. Fasting is just this: turning off the constant stream of food into the body and giving the body a chance to cleanse itself automatically. When you fast, you force your body to work on and digest the excess accumulation of waste in the body and then excrete it, thus purifying the whole system.
Many people fear fasting; they think fasting means starving themselves. This is not at all true. Dr. Patrik answers, "Proper fasting is never harmful; indeed, it is often the only procedure that will conserve nerve energy and permit nature to rally her forces for the fight against disease. Actually the body has plenty of resources to nourish itself for a longtime; an experienced faster can fast safely for a month or longer! As one doctor explained, "People don't realize that the chief obstacle to fasting is overcoming the ingrained cultural, social and psychological fears of going without food."
Take the example of a cold. The first organ to be affected by poisons in the body is the mucus membrane. It starts to produce excess mucus in an effort to throw off all the poisons - and you "catch cold". Everyone knows how much mucus comes out of the body during a clod, from blowing the nose and coughing; this is the body's natural effort at self cleansing. In previous days, when people lived closer to nature and followed its natural laws, a "cold" or "flu" was easy to cure; the patients instinctively obeyed their loss of appetite, drank mostly fruit juices, and rapidly recovered. They felt much better afterwards than before, because so many poisons of the body were eliminated with the mucus. Today, people are wrongly taught that a germ or virus is responsible, and into their own living habits. To cure their colds they eat more highly concentrated foods instead of fasting, thus adding move indigestible, poisonous waste to their bodies. Or they take drugs which add still moreover poisons into their system. As a result, colds and flu often become "complicated" by more serious diseases.
Dr. Robert G.Jackson eating only fruits or fruit juices for at least 2 days as soon as the first signs of a cold appear. He says, "It is a well-known fact that, although the body which is improperly fed is apt to "catch cold" and suffer from various catchall and inflammatory diseases of the mucus membrane of the respiratory tract, a person who fasts never catches cold. And colds and catchall and inflammatory diseases rapidly clear up during a fruit fast. Colds are a reaction by which the body seeks to rid its debris-burdened cells of their encumbering substances via the mucus membranes. This debris is always deposited in the tissues, because it is so in excess in the bloodstream that it cannot and continue to eat regular foods, the blood will not reabsorb any of the substances formerly deposited in the tissues and cells."
THE UNIVERSAL REMEDY FOR DISEASE
The ancients well knew the efficacy of fasting to prevent and cure all types of diseases. The Greek Hippocrates, the "Father of Medicine", who lived to the age of 90, wrote, "Everyone has a doctor in him; we just have to help him in his work. To eat when you are sick is to feed your sickness." And the great Greek philosopher Paracelsus, wrote, "Those who fast are in the hands of the inner physician." Lately many modern doctors as well have notices the "general well-being of a person on a fast," and recommending fasting to mobilize the body's natural defenses against disease. Some of the benefits of fasting noted by physicians.
· Fasting gives your entire system (heart, stomach, intestines, kidneys, lung, pancreas, liver, etc.) a chance to rest and regain strength, so it can work with greatly increased efficiency after the fast. The heart and blood vessels, especially, which no longer have to pump so much blood to the digestive system for the assimilation of food, receive a much-needed "vacation".
· Fasting causes the breakdown and excretion of poisonous wastes clinging to all the organs and tissues of the body, and thus cleanse the entire body, enabling it to work at top efficiency.
· Fasting rejuvenates the entire system and restores youth to all the cells, tissues, and blood vessels. It slows down the aging process and increases longevity.
· Fasting helps to re-establish normal, balanced secretions of the glands and organs.
· Fasting conserves energy and allows it to be rechanneled for higher mental and spiritual pursuits, such as deep meditation.
· Fasting clears the mind, sharpens the sense, and improves the memory. The empty stomach no longer draws blood away from the brain for digestion, and so the brain receives extra blood and energy. As the poisonous waste clogging the brain is cleaned and removed, concentration and clear thinking are greatly enhanced. Many famous personalities who have to make frequent public speeches have a rule; "Fast before an important speech and eat later."
· Fasting makes the skin look younger and more radiant, as the skin pore clean themselves of the products of toxins from eating too much fats and sweets. Pimples, acne, skin infections, etc. can all be relieved, and the skin becomes clear and rosy. They eyes become clear and sparkling, and pure beauty shines from within.
CONTROLLING THE MIND: FASTING WITHOUT WATER
To control this very powerful and disturbing effect of the moon on our temperaments we must reduce the amount of excess fluid in the brain. Doctors know that if any part of the body is "edematous" or swollen with excess fluid, the best way to decrease the fluid in this part is to decrease the amount of fluid in the whole body, and then the excess fluid in the particular part will be automatically drawn out of that area by osmotic pressure, to supply the deficiency in other parts. So if their is edema or too much fluid in the brain as a result of stroke or accident, doctors inject a certain chemical into the body which quickly dehydrates it. Soon the excess fluid in the brain flows down into the body to provide the rest of the cells the liquid they need.
Instead of powerful chemicals, the natural way to balance the fluid in the body is to fast without water. This decreases the fluid in the whole body and thus the liquid form the brain is drawn down into the body's cells, and the disturbing effect of too much fluid in the brain is removed. (Also, as we have seen, fasting without water is the quickest and most effective way to cleanse the body of it poisons.)
But why fast on the third day before the new and full moons - why not fast on the new and full moon days themselves? Because, as we have seen, scientists have found that the emotional disturbance starts three days before, so we must counteract this effect from the very beginning, before it has a chance to greatly upset our bodies and minds. Recent discoveries by British scientists have shown that there are two days during the month when the electron-magnetic vibration of the body radically changes - three days before the new and full moons. On these two days during the month there is a marked difference in the electrical potential between the body's electromagnetic vibration at the navel and in the brain. Scientists are puzzled as to why these two particular days should manifest such changes - but yoga masters have long understood the significance of these day* and regularly fasted at these times.
Even though many people during these periods may become irritable, restless and upset, those who fast without water will find that their minds remain balanced and calm.
FASTING TO CONTROL OUR DESIRES
According to yoga, the most vital fluid of the body is the lymph, which purifies the blood, helps in the secretion of hormones, and feeds and strengthens the brain. After supplying the brain, the remaining lymph is used to form spermatozoa and egg cells. For the proper development of body and mind, adequate lymph is necessary, and a deficiency of lymph causes disease or mental dullness. But excess lymph is also harmful to the body ; in all aspects of life, moderation is the rule of nature. If there is too much lymph in the body, then the sexual organs and glands are over -stimulated; this results n an excess of sexual desire which disturbs both body and mind. So for the purity and control of the mind, it is necessary to prevent the formation of excess lymph in the body by fasting 2 days a month. By eating 28 days a month the body obtains enough food to produce just the right amount of lymph, not too much, and in this way the purity of the body and the balance and peace of the mind can be maintained.
Mastery Over Self
Dr.Jonas Salk, the Nobel prize-winning discoverer of polio vaccine, once described the critical period through which humanity is now passing as a transition from "Epoch B" from an age of competition to glorious new age of cooperation, from an age of "either/or" - "either you or I will survive" to an age of "both/and" - "both you and I will make our lives successful". In this entirely new epoch which humankind is now entering, "holistic medicine" will be the dominant model for healing, as healers and patients alike realize that medical treatment is not the repair of ailing part of the body, but the restoration of the proper functioning of the whole being - not only of body, but of mind and spirit as well35,
In the past, physicians usually restricted themselves solely to the physical body and neglected or ignored or ignored the psychological aspects of illness. But this mechanistic concept of medicine is now considered simplistic, and out-of -date; doctors are becoming increasingly aware that virtually all disorders are psychosomatic in the sense that they involve a continual interplay of mind and body in their origin , development and cure. As chronic degenerative diseases proliferate all over the world -cancer , heart disease , strokes , aids , respiratory diseases , gastro - intestinal ailments , migraine headaches , backaches , arthritis-the stress-related " affliction Of civilization " -more and more people are coming to understand that to cure themselves they have not only to take medicine , but to change the way they live.
Centuries ago , yogis realized that we are not simply this body , but subtle patterns of life energy in constant flow and fluctuation , and diseases the manifestation of disharmony and imbalance in the body and mind. They recognized the important role of the cakras (the controlling points of the flow of vital energy throughout the body) as the link between body and mind, and the function of the endocrine glands to mediate between the cakras and the physical organs. Through long experimentation they developed subtle and powerful techniques of healing and health to influence the entire organism at a more fundamental level of being than simply the physical-techniques of exercise, breathing, relaxation and concentration, that are being practiced by increasing numbers of people in the world today and will be the cornerstone of the future holistic system of health on this planet. By this unified approach to the whole mind-body system, -this "psychosomatic health care,"-those who practice yoga learn to control their negative and disturbing emotions and to withstand and reduce stress. Those who regularly practice meditation as well as asanas develop voluntary control over their internal states and their high blood pressure, heart trouble, skin eruptions, chronic headaches and pains, insomnia, asthma, and even paralysis completely disappear.
Thus, instead of becoming helplessly dependent on our physicians, addicted to painkillers, or suffering the serious side-effects of allopathic drugs, we must take more take more personal responsibility for our health and learn to contact, as Dr.Albert Schweitzer said, "the doctor within." By following a wholistic system of preventive health care that includes not only exercise, relaxation and meditation, but bathing and proper diet as well, we will maintain our entire being in perfect balance and harmony.
By the regular practice of yoga, well will become the masters of ourselves-free from disease, youthful and relaxed, full of joyful energy, flowing in harmony with the cosmos. With perfectly functioning and controlled bodies, and minds free from all emotional disturbances, calm and poised in all situations, we will be prepared and energized to perform tireless and fulfilling service in the world, dynamic activity for the welfare of all humanity.

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