Vipassana: The Golden Silence

Vipassana meditation is an ancient technique, which the Buddha practiced on his journey to enlightenment. The objects of Vipassana meditation are thoughts, emotions and sensations throughout the body. When practiced with persistence, it can impact your life in a number of positive ways.

The key benefits of Vipassana meditation are as follows:

Development of Wisdom

A unique effect of Vipassana is it enables you to understand and experience the Law of Impermanence in action. This law states that everything is changing. Nothing lasts. This is true in our outer world. For instance, you buy a piece of clothing. Your wear it and wash it over again. All the time it is disintegrating.

The Law of Impermanence also applies to our inner world and our thoughts, feelings and sensations, which emerge, stay for a while and then pass away. By meditating on the arising and passing away of mind-body phenomena, one develops true wisdom of what is going on inside them.

Witness How Suffering is Caused

Related to the point above developing wisdom, by practicing Vipassana meditation, you also experience how you are responsible for your own suffering. When you become attached to your thoughts, emotions and feelings, you suffer. For instance if you have an unpleasant thought, you will resist it and become uncomfortable.

On the other hand, if you have a pleasant thought, you will enjoy it. However, it won’t last for long. As soon as it passes, there is potential for you to suffer again as you may become frustrated.

Non-Attachment

Through practice of Vipassana, you learnt to develop non-attachment to your thoughts, emotions and sensations. You know that whatever arises in you will pass away, anyway. By understand and experiencing this, you will become less and less attached to your mind-body phenomena.

You will learn how to stop creating a false Self, which happens through attachment. By meditating on non-attachment, over time you will experience reduced stress and become less agitated.

More Present Moment Living

By observing your thoughts, emotions and sensations objectively, you are living in the present moment, as you are not getting caught up in the contents of your mind-body phenomena. You’re just a detached observer. This is true living in the moment.

How to do Vipassana Meditation

When first starting out with Vipassana, aim to meditate for 20-30 minutes a day in one sitting. A basic outline for Vipassana meditation in the S.N. Goenka style is as follows.

1. Sit in a quiet place, cross-legged on a meditation cushion or a pillow. If it’s too uncomfortable to sit like this, you can also sit upright on a chair. Close your eyes.

2. Starting at the top of your head in the centre of it, observe sensations arising and passing away, objectively, without getting attached to them. These sensations could be prickling, tickling, heat or cold spots. If it’s a pleasant sensation, just observe it without labelling it as being pleasant. If it’s an unpleasant one, do the same.

Don’t react to it. Just observe it. Continue observing such sensations working your way down all over your body, your arms, chest, abdomen and your legs, until you reach the tips of your toes. Once you reach your toes, go back the other way from your toes to your head, observing sensations, arising and passing away.

3. As you’re observing sensations, if a thought or emotion arises in you, just observe it objectively, without becoming attached to it. For instance, if a pleasant emotion arises, don’t become attached it. On the other hand, if it is an unpleasant emotion arises, just observe it objectively. Maintain complete balance of your mind.

Source: hitenvyas.com

Five Health Benefits of Practicing Yoga

Yoga is a holistic exercise that some participants embrace both for its mental and physical benefits. Those hooked to the ancient practice of yoga enjoy a number of positive health effects, and, for some, those benefits lend to a healthier state of mind, too. B.K.S. Iyengar, the pioneer of what’s now known as the Iyengar style of yoga, once said, “Healthy plants and trees yield abundant flowers and fruits. Similarly, from a healthy person, smiles and happiness shine forth like the rays of the sun.”

Studies have shown that practicing yoga can promote good health in a number of ways. According to the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health, yoga can help ease chronic lower back pain and improve range of motion in that area. What’s more, practicing yoga may help reduce blood pressure and lower heart rates, which can help with anxiety and depression.

“Other studies also suggest that practicing yoga (as well as other forms of regular exercise) might improve quality of life … and improve overall physical fitness, strength and flexibility,” the NCCIH reported. “But some research suggests yoga may not improve asthma, and studies looking at yoga and arthritis have had mixed results.”

And according to the American Osteopathic Association, there are more than 100 different schools of yoga to choose from, depending on if the end goal is a physical one or something more meditative.

1. Increased flexibility: Good flexibility is important in that it’s thought to increase physical performance and decrease the risk of exercise-related injuries, according to Mayo Clinic. Yoga Journal has you covered with a list of poses that can help increase flexibility.

2. Weight loss: Pointing to one study conducted at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle, WebMD reported that yoga can help with weight loss — or at least help those who practice yoga not gain pounds — though it can take time for results to show.

According to the survey, which defined normal yoga practice as 30 minutes once a week for four plus years, weight loss over time is a real benefit for yogis. “Those practicing yoga who were overweight to start with lost about 5 pounds during the same time period those not practicing yoga gained 14 pounds,” Alan Kristal, a medical researcher who worked on the study, told WebMD.

3. Improved circulation: Certain yoga poses, particularly inversions or modified inversions — like legs up the wall pose — can help increase circulation in the body, which helps bring oxygen to vital organs throughout the body.

4. Stress reduction: According to Yoga Journal, there’s some serious biological processes at play to explain why practicing yoga can leave us feeling zen. The publication reports that yoga can help increase the activation of a body’s parasympathetic nervous system, which is the part of the autonomic nervous system that’s in charge of slowing a person’s heart rate and lowering blood pressure.

“Many yoga practices, including quiet asana, slow breathing, meditation and guided imagery, increase activation of the PNS and lead to mental relaxation,” Yoga Journal reported. “One of yoga’s secrets, documented in research from the Swami Vivekananda Yoga Research Foundation near Bangalore, is that more active practices followed by relaxing ones lead to deeper relaxation than relaxing practices alone.”

5. Muscle definition: Think of yoga as one long lifting session, if you were to replace the weights with the weight of your own body. Poses like plank position and chaturanga help to strengthen muscles in the arms and back, while chair pose helps tone leg muscles. Other poses, like triangle pose or tree pose, help build muscle by challenging the body’s balance.

“While this may seem like significantly less effort than hitting the gym and lifting barbells,” Livestrong stated, “a 2005 study by the American Council on Exercise found that participants could do significantly more pushups and situps — a sign of increased muscle mass — after eight weeks of Hatha yoga than those who did no exercise. This muscle strength translates visually over time into firm, sculpted bodies.”

Source: Yahoo News

Benefits of Bitter Gourd (Karela) Juice

Benefits of Bitter Gourd (Karela)Juice

Did you know that bitter gourd or karela is not really a vegetable but a fruit? The part of the plant that is used for consumption and for various medicinal purposes is the fruit of the bitter squash. While we’ve been so busy condemning its bitter taste, we’ve not only overlooked this fact but also the wide range of benefits that drinking bitter gourd juice offers.

Bitter gourd juice contains a train of important nutrients ranging from iron, magnesium and vitamin to potassium and vitamin C. An excellent source of dietary fiber, it also contains twice the calcium of spinach, beta-carotene of broccoli, and the potassium of a banana. Here are some crucial benefits of drinking bitter gourd juice. A quick tip to reduce the bitterness of the drink is to add some honey or jaggery to it or pair it with sweet fruits like apple or pears. You can even add lemon juice to lessen the harsh taste of bitter melon juice. A pinch of black pepper and ginger can also decrease the tartness. The taste however, needs to be developed because contrary to its name bitter gourd is in fact sweet for your health.

1. Helps in Maintaining Blood Sugar Levels

The World Health Organisation has estimated that over 382 million people worldwide suffer from diabetes. Bitter gourd contains an insulin-like compound called Polypeptide-p or p-insulin which has been shown to control diabetes naturally. According to a 2011 study, published in the Journal of Ethnopharmacolgy, a four-week clinical trial showed that 2,000 mg of bitter melon when taken on regular basis reduced the blood glucose level significantly in the patients suffering from type-2 diabetes. Studies have shown that this plant-based insulin in bitter gourd helps patients with type-1 diabetes as well. Another report issued in the Journal of Chemistry & Biology, gave evidence regarding the fact that bitter melon increases the uptake of glucose and improves glycemic control. People suffering from diabetes taking hypo-glycaemic drugs may even be required to alter the dosage of their drugs if they consume bitter melon juice daily and consult a doctor before doing so.

2.    Lowers Bad Cholesterol Levels

Bangalore-based Nutritionist, Dr. Anju Sood, says, “Bitter gourd juice is anti-inflammatory and also helps in lowering the bad cholesterol levels in the body. Thereby, it significantly reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke.” It also maintains the blood pressure of the body as it is rich in potassium, which absorbs excessive sodium in the body. It is rich in iron and folic acid which are known to decrease the risk of stroke and keep your heart healthy.

3.    Good for Glowing Skin and Lustrous Hair

Longing for that flawless skin? Dr. Simran Saini from Fortis Hospital in New Delhi suggests that bitter gourd juice has powerful anti-oxidants along with vitamin A and C which prevent premature skin ageing and diminishes wrinkles. Furthermore, it reduces acne, aids in treating eczema and psoriasis, as well as protects the skin from the harmful UV rays. The nutrients vitamin A, vitamin C, Biotin and Zinc impart shine and lustre to your locks. Applying bitter gourd juice regularly to your scalp can decrease hair loss and greying of hair, treat split-ends and rough hair, shrug off dandruff, and combat itchiness. You can apply bitter gourd juice directly to stop hair fall or mix it with some curd and massage on your scalp and hair for conditioning. To treat dandruff, you can make a hair mask with bitter gourd juice, cumin seed paste and a tablespoon of lime juice. Leave for 30 minutes and rinse. Dr. Saini adds that the juice also acts as a blood purifier.

4.    Cures Hangovers and Cleanses the Liver

Bitter gourd juice swiftly wipes out alcoholic intoxication settled in your liver. The juice cleanses your bowel as well as heals many liver problems. Published in the International Journal of Vitamin and Nutrition, a study concluded that a compound called Momordica Charantia provides protection against liver failure by strengthening anti-oxidant activity of the enzymes in the liver. It also boosts the functioning of your bladder.

5.    Helps in Weight Loss

Bitter gourd is low in calories, fat and carbohydrates. It keeps you full for longer and hence, it can easily fit in your weight loss plan. In a 2010 issue of a report published in the Journal BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine, it was disclosed that extracts of bitter gourd helped in the dislocation of human fat cells and also hindered the formation and growth of new fat cells. It was further concluded that bitter gourd can be viewed as a natural agent for treating obesity.

6.    Boosts Immune System

Bitter gourd fights viruses and bacteria and strengthens your immunity. It prevents allergies and indigestion. The antioxidants work as powerful defense mechanisms against illness and also help fight free-radical damage that can cause various types of cancer. In 2010, a study was published in the Pharmaceutical Research Journal which stated that bitter-melon has anti-carcinogen and anti-tumour properties. It reduced the risk of prostate, breast and cervical cancer.

 7.   .Great for Eyes

Dr. Anshul Jai Bharat says that it helps in preventing vision-related problems such as cataract since it has compounds like beta-carotene and vitamin A which are healthy for your eyes and strengthens eyesight. She adds, “It is also a good home remedy to treat dark circles.

Source: ndtv.com

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