GenInv – Health and Wellness

It is truly remarkable how technology has changed our life in the last 30 years. We are now glued to the computer and experience mental fatigue and stress. As we have changed our working methods, we need innovative solutions to de-stress and rest our minds quickly from time to time to refresh our faculties. I began thinking about how to do it.

Within us we have a Mind which functions as the Commander in Chief of the body. It has an able deputy in the Body Manager who keeps the body al

ive and ticking. The Body Manager has automated most of the functions like heart beat, renal and bowel movement, breathing and sweating. It has set in triggers for gland functioning like secreting saliva when there is food in the mouth, releasing bile juices when there is food in the stomach and so on. The Mind cannot stop the Body Manager for these automated functions.

The Mind receives information from its five senses. In addition to inputs from five senses, the Mind is conscious of movement

of body parts particularly head, limbs and the torso. All these inputs trigger memories in the mind raising thoughts which are then co-related to formulate questions in the brain. The Mind then races to find answers to these questions. If the conclusions are difficult to reach or if they are conflicting, the brain gets trapped in endless loops. The cloudy and whirling thoughts in the Mind confuse the Body Manager who does not know what to expect. The distraction of the Body Manager disrupts nor

mal functioning of the body and ailments begin to show up.

The Mind has to learn therefore how to control these unending thoughts. It must learn how to save the files and retrieve the problems as and when it wants to devote time to it. This is achieved through meditation. Meditation is a process by which the Mind learns how to manage its thoughts.

There are a number of ways of doing meditation. One can divide these ways into 2 basic  types: (1) Flooding and (2) Emptying. In Flooding, the mind is flooded with heavy sensory inputs like chanting mantra, aerobic exercises or dancing or listening to loud music. These heavy sensory inputs have no conflict and thus do not trigger any logical processes in the mind. When the mind is flooded these new simple sensory inputs they push out the other thoughts in the mind and reduce mental stress. On the other hand for meditation to empty the mind, sensory inputs are greatly reduced by keeping the body still and the eyes closed. With shutting down the input streams, no memories are triggered, no questions arise and the mental processes slow down and the Mind puts the trapped thoughts to sleep.  Both these techniques have merit in them. But both of them need considerable time to achieve the result. Besides they cannot be done in the workplace sitting in front of the computer.

We all know as we open a new webpage, it quickly changes the subject in our mind. It has an instant way of resetting our mind. It is this ability of the computer which I thought of using for instant meditation. For this technique, the new screen image must be powerful enough to capture the attention of the viewer. And suddenly I discovered the truth underlying the huge appeal of sex sites. No doubt sex related webpages are being used for relaxation to divert the mind instantly and effectively. But I rejected the idea my instant meditationas I found it distasteful. Viewing a sex page is powerful stimulus and a cue for the Body Manager to trigger body functions not wanted at the workplace. It can never be accepted by any organization. A more benign webpage could be a YouTube video clip showing the recipe of making a delicious dish like Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato (BLT) sandwich! But the food site also has an effect on the body. A stimulated body could distract attention from work. I needed a screen image which will change the mind frame without trigging any body secretions or functions. It must restrict itself solely to change the state of the mind. Preferably it should arouse appreciation of Nature and create a feeling of well being. The closer to Alpha State that it take the mind to, the better.

The easiest way, which sages have found in meditation to empty your mind of thoughts, is by surrender. Devotees mentally surrender to their object of worship. When you surrender you give up trying to solve the problems which vex your mind. You leave it to who you have surrendered to! Love is the result of surrender. When you love someone or