• Providing Emotional Support To Your Loved Ones

    What do we do when friends and loved ones come to us for, and expect emotional support from us? Spirituality teaches us the right technique of providing emotional support – the technique of detached involvement, which is the technique of not being overawed, of not being affected ourselves by the emotions of others. If a friend, colleague or any loved one is upset and we also get upset (because we love them – that’s what we normally say), we cannot provide them the necessary support or the assistance to see why they are reacting emotionally and how they might change the nature of their emotions by themselves. True love for someone would mean that I am able to provide them that. While being concerned is fine, but by becoming upset, seeing them upset simply aggravates the situation and adds fuel to their fire.

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  • The Power To Transform Emotions

    As with feelings, when emotions are aroused, there are physical changes inside the body in the form of chemical and electrical activity. In fact, strong emotions don’t just affect the body; they also have an impact on the soul. When the soul suffers emotional trauma, from which there is lasting impact, the emotional trauma brings about an immense strain on the brain and body. Brain chemical production is likely to be affected, and there may also be feelings of depression and tiredness. But the real trauma at the root of these physical effects is at a deeper level within the soul itself, and the resulting emotional sensitivity will also arise from the soul.

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  • Meditating With Open Eyes

    It is advised to practice meditation with eyes open. When we sit to meditate, if we close our eyes, what we do is that we send a signal to our mind, intellect and our physical body that sleep is close and that signal, in turn, induces sleep. That is the last thing we want to induce inside ourselves, while meditating. Meditation is a way to wake up and stay awake, not only physically, but in terms of being conscious and alert about what is happening internally and externally. It is therefore good to practice with eyes open, so that during your meditation, you can become used to going beyond the physical inputs of what you see, hear, feel and smell and at the same time, remain exposed to these inputs.

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  • Effects Of Anger On The Human Body

    In numerous studies, anger has been found to have a completely negative effect on our physical well-being. In one such study, reported at a recent conference on forgiveness and peace in the US, it was demonstrated that letting go of negative feelings that we have for someone due to his/her negative actions relieved and reduced chronic back pain.

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Effect Of Food On The Mind

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In harmony with our great spiritual, religious and wisdom traditions, We places great importance on food. Whilst modern science tends to take a technician's approach and sees the molecules, chemical compounds and nutrients that feed the body; we look at a more spiritual, holistic perspective which places a sacred significance on what we eat, seeing how the food's energy can touch, heal and nourish the soul as well. The body needs sustenance but so does the soul: we must absorb, assimilate and integrate spiritual energy as well as physical energy from our food. Practitioners of the Raja Yoga meditation, which the institutions teaches, are typically lacto-vegetarians (diet is a vegetarian diet which includes dairy products). They believe that non-violence is an essential characteristic of the spiritually awakened individual and that the essence of the human soul is peace, tranquility and love. If the internal workings of the soul are disturbed, by eating the wrong type of food then the individual is not able to enjoy meditative serenity (peacefulness). The meditator sees that whatever food is eaten has an effect on the mind, in a subtle form, in a similar way in which alcohol or intoxicating drugs can dramatically change our mood and power of judgment.

Food may be placed in one of three categories. Pure (or 'sattwic') food constitutes the staple diet of a yogi (meditator). It includes fruits, grains, seeds, sprouts, most vegetables, dairy products and a moderate amount of spices and herbs.  Then there is stimulating (or 'rajsik') food which may be consumed in moderation, and includes coffee, tea, colas, vinegar, radishes, spices and watermelon. Finally there are impure (or 'tamsic') items, such as tobacco, alcohol, nonprescription drugs, all meat, fish, fowl, eggs, stale food and also garlic, onions and chives.

These should all be completely avoided. Ordinarily onions and garlics are recommended to non-vegetarians as blood purifiers and to help counteract the buildup of harmful animal fat and cholesterol. However, the healthy vegetarian is not in need of such protection and a spiritually sensitive meditator will be aware that they (onions and garlics) tend to arouse anxiety and irritation - passions which reduce serenity and peace of mind. The purer ones diet, the more the emotions remain in a state of equilibrium, bringing tranquility to the consciousness and greater clarity to the mind and intellect.

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