Читать книгу The Three Energies. The Forgotten Canons of Health and Harmony - Rami Bleckt - Страница 17

Ayurveda states that a woman’s health rests on three key principles: optimum sleep, optimum diet and healthy sex. In my opinion, these are no less important for men.

Sleep is ignorance, yet it is necessary for our body.

The more we are in ignorance, however, the more we want to sleep. When in sattva we require less time for sleeping – it has been proven that even four hours of sleep is enough for our nervous system. If our life is interesting and has a defined goal, then we just will have no need for lots of sleep. Generally people believe that it is necessary to sleep at least eight hours; but if we sleep properly, we will need much less. Sleeping is also affected by the gunas. Sleeping in sattva means to go to bed before 10 pm, or 11 pm at least. Sleep between 9 pm and 1 am is the most valuable, as it is the only time the nervous system rests and the long-term memory is not working. Everything in nature sleeps at this time; only modern tamasic-rajasic people are awake. One interesting point worth noting is that the concept of ‘night owls’ and ‘early birds’ only appeared quite recently. In the past practically everyone was an early bird. Scientists in Canada – a country with one of the highest rates of insomnia – are convinced that most problems with insomnia appeared only because people started to go to sleep later.

Preparing for Sleep

Two hours before going to sleep, it is necessary to prepare by doing the following:

1. Ayurveda does not recommend taking a shower less than two hours before sleeping – it weakens the energy field of the body and aggravates the nervous system, especially if the shower is cold. If it is necessary for us to take a shower, it has to be warm.

2. Before going to sleep we should avoid eating; the food will not be digested and will turn into toxins and fat. It is best to take slightly sweetened warm milk at this time as it calms the nervous system and strengthens the intellect. The first rule for those looking for to put on weight is – eat after 6 pm! And if the food is in ignorance-passion, like white bread or meat, then within a few weeks our friends will start to joke about our huge jelly-belly. In addition to getting fat, we will want to sleep more and more. If we are hungry, it is acceptable to take a small amount of steamed vegetables, nuts or bananas.

3. We should avoid watching or reading anything that causes excitement. It is better to read something spiritual (but not very philosophical), to meditate or say some prayers. Whatever we do or hear before sleeping enters our sub-consciousness; therefore it is extremely undesirable to count money at this time because it intensifies greed. If you lend money to someone at this time, be prepared not to get it back and that they will become your enemy.

4. The room where we sleep should be clean and well ventilated. We need to be especially careful in choosing the type of pictures and even books that are in our bedroom – whatever they represent leaves an impression on our consciousness and enters the sub-consciousness during sleep. It is desirable to have books in sattva, and it is very good to have some holy books near your head. Pictures should depict pleasant, peaceful landscapes. The TV should be in another room or even better, in another house.

Practical Recommendations for Sleeping

In Ayurveda it is stated that the duration of human life is determined by the amount of inhalations and exhalations we take – the more often the breath the shorter the life.

Ayurveda recommends leading a sattvic lifestyle as it strengthens the immune system. Rajas and tamas are the opposite; they weaken or destroy our immunity and stimulate frequent and incorrect breathing. Breathing increases when we experience negative emotions like fear, anger or mental anxiety, during intense physical activity, sex and as strangely as it sounds, during sleeping. In a state of tranquil wakefulness, the length of exhalations within a half-hour period is 10,800 centimetres (108 metres), and 27,000 centimetres (270 metres) while sleeping. In this way, an extra 30 minutes of sleep results in the loss of three-quarters of an hour of life. When we suffer from serious illness, we breathe the same way as while sleeping, and at the time of death the last exhale is the longest. By coming to sattva we not only increase our health by strengthening our immune system, but also increase our duration of life by breathing less.

There is one more important recommendation – to avoid sleeping with our head facing north or northeast. Throughout our life we are all subjected to the influence of various energies and fields. Solar energy, the magnetic field of the Earth, the gravitational field of the Moon and the magnetic storms on the Sun – they all influence us. The human body possesses magnetic characteristics similar to those of the Earth planet.

The Earth’s magnetic field runs from north to south, as the human magnetic field does – from the head to the feet. As a result of it, if we sleep with our head towards the north, our magnetic field will be overcome by the magnetic field of the Earth. It can cause problems with blood circulation, an excessive heart rate and cause general deterioration of our health. You probably remember how two magnets act when the north poles are put together, face-to-face? They spin away from each other because they cannot stay in such a position. Now imagine what would happen to our aura if we were to sleep with our head facing north – the next morning it would be ripped apart, literally. After waking up, we would not feel rested and cheerful. But if we sleep in the opposite direction, toward the south, our magnetic field will interact correctly with the Earth’s magnetic field and we will feel fresh and full of energy when we awaken.

Early to Bed and Early to Rise Makes a Man Happy, Healthy and Wise

It is important to brush our teeth and take a shower immediately after waking to get rid of the guna of ignorance. It is best to have a bowel movement before taking a shower. At night the body gets rid of toxins, and if we do not go to the toilet or take a shower before 9 am, then all the toxins are absorbed back into the body.

A. S. Pushkin said, “Blessed is one who moves his bowels every morning without any force.”

One famous Ayurvedic doctor confirmed, “One of the main rules of good health is to empty the bowels in the morning; if it does not happen then disease will come soon.”

The guna of goodness means knowing the purpose of life, having a life that is stimulating and filled with goodness. In contrast to it, ignorance is destructive from beginning to end; the more our consciousness is influenced by ignorance, the more we want to sleep, watch TV series, associate in ignorance and passion.

We may ask, “But what should we do when we get up early?” The time of sattva is approximately from four to nine in the morning; at this time of day we feel absolutely no desire to drink alcohol, swear, watch movies or engage in similar activities. This time is designed for prayer, meditation, study, planning for the future – the long-term memory works at full power during this time. It is in these hours that we should receive a positive burst of energy for the whole day. In America there is a millionaires club, where one of the conditions of membership is that you have to get up before 5 am. They realised that without rising early it is very difficult to succeed.

One famous proverb says, “Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man happy, healthy and wise.” By understanding how the gunas work we can see the truth in this statement – during the early morning hours the energy of sattva (happiness and tranquility) totally saturates the atmosphere.

Brahma-muhurta

Masters of Ayurveda consider a proper daily routine to be a powerful form of therapy for improving health and have devoted the first chapters of their classic works to it.

Dinacharya, or strictly following a standard daily routine, is one of the best ways to enable one to remain in harmony and to prevent and cure disease.

Vagbhata in “Ashtanga Hridayam” begins his description of the daily routine with the following words:

brahme muhurta uttisthet svastho raksartham ayusah

“Get up from sleeping during Brahma-muhurta to preserve your health and life itself.” (AH)

The word brahma can be translated as belonging to Brahman, saint, sacred, the divine; to sacred knowledge, prescribed by Vedas; sacred science, study of sacred texts and study of Vedas.

Muhūrta means a moment, an instant, any short interval of time, or a defined period of time such as 48 minutes.

The time of day for receiving spiritual knowledge and happiness is known as Brahma-muhurta. According to Ayurveda, a healthy person needs to get up two muhurtas before sunrise, at 4.30 am to be exact – this is a calculation for South India when day and night are of equal duration. Depending on the geographical latitude of a particular place or the season of the year, the time of sunrise changes, but the duration of a sandhya always remains the same. Therefore, Brahma-muhurta always begins one and a half hours before sunrise, regardless of the place or season.

If we wake up during the Brahma-muhurta, it allows us to begin the day with calm and cheerfulness and maintain this state throughout. This is the time when sattva predominates, which itself brings harmony to all energies. Passion starts at sunrise. With the sunset tamas takes over. Before sunrise the atmosphere is saturated with sattva; this is the only time of day when this energy is dominant. At this time there is a positive flow of energy which creates the best conditions for meditation. Thus it is the most beneficial time of a day. By getting up at this time, we can synchronise our rhythm with the rhythm of the Sun. Rising during Brahma-muhurta increases and maintains the best qualities of our unique nature – svabhava – and allows us to be established in it. This condition is called svastha. Svastha is veritable health, the achievement of which is possible only when one becomes established in virtue and goodness. Brahma-muhurta is also the best time for us to pay respect to elders and gurus, offer prayers, meditate, read spiritual scriptures and chant sacred names. The Goddess of Fortune shuns us if we do not perform these morning rituals.

Sri Chanakya-niti-sastra (15.4) states: “He who wears unclean garments, has dirty teeth, eats like a glutton, speaks unkindly and sleeps after sunrise, although he may be the greatest personality, will lose the favour of Lakshmi.” In other words, prosperity, health, beauty and vitality leave us if we get up after sunrise, no matter how important we are.

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We may wonder what time of day is more suitable to perform various activities – morning or evening. Undoubtedly the morning is more suitable; it is easy to experience how calm and blissful the atmosphere is in the morning. If we are in tamas (ignorance), we become more active at night and sleepier in the morning. Most crimes are committed at night. Darkness and gloom are characteristics of tamas, that is why night-time should be for sleeping. Almost everything in nature falls asleep when the Sun sets and awakens as the Sun rises. You will never see a bird or animal covering their face with a wing or paw from the light of the Sun as it rises.

The nervous system rests from approximately 9:30 pm to midnight; if we do not sleep at this time, our rest will never be satisfactory, regardless of how much we sleep. According to Ayurveda one of the most detrimental things for our health is staying awake at night, particularly for night work. The World Health Organization’s research department announced the inclusion of night work in its list of factors most likely to cause cancer.

Morning is the time of goodness (sattva); our most creative ideas occur to us and our intuition is heightened at this time. There is a saying, “Morning is wiser than evening”. We should never make serious decisions in the evening, but wait until the morning. If we follow this rule, we will not have to waste energy fixing unnecessary mistakes.