Underlying Concepts of Holistic Health.

Health is not rocket science. Things become complicated when you think of health in terms of cells, organs, muscles, chemistry and mechanics and feel that bacteria and viruses are a threat to that system. You should instead think in terms of mind, energy and vitality.

When you truly understand you will also think in terms of spirit and intelligence. We are an energy blob that is always reacting to the environment. We are beyond our physical body and have an aura. We have energy vortexes within us along the physical spine region. They begin in the muladhara or base of the spine and end in the shahasrara or the top of the head.

As we progress in our thinking and habits our consciousness slowly progresses from existential and procreational thoughts to creativity, compassion, altruism, spirituality and then we are released from the cycle of creation as we realise that the energy blob that we are is merely a reflection of the all pervading intelligent energy that we love to think of as God. Thus we progress from the muladhara to the shahasrara through the sadhana that is life and its experiences.

There are many nuances in this journey and each travels a different path. Life is a journey from matter to energy and spirit.

Coming back to health we should always proceed towards a high energy, high vitality stage to be healthy, grow and pass on the health status to the future generations.

Generating and conserving energy, both are important. The sexual energy is a vital energy which when dissipated without need and caution leads to an overall weakening of the system and causes disease. Good thoughts and deeds increase and conserve energy and vitality, negative thoughts and passions dissipates and leads us away from health.

As individuals our physical and mental makeup are different. We can be classified into the doshas vata, pitta, kapha and its combinations as per ayurveda. Our mentality can be tamasic, rajasic, sattwik and its combinations. A balance of doshas and staying on the rajasic and sattwik mental levels without negativity confers good health.

Health depends upon our personal efforts; controlling thoughts, passions, negativity, diet and lifestyle.

Prayer and spiritual efforts add to our health at the spiritual level and is extremely important as cutting ourselves away from the spiritual reality is worse than death. This leads to immense misery in society and collapse of civilizations.

Always move from bad to good, from negativity to positivity, from selfishness to selflessness, from manliness to Godliness.

Food, both mental and physical, is very important. Food gives life. Eating fresh and real food provides us energy that plants convert from sunlight for us to consume.

From the spiritual point of view non vegetarian food is not good as a lot of negative karma goes into it. Milk and dairy products can be taken only if the cow is well cared for and the calf is well fed and satisfied. The welfare of vegetation and animal world is essential for health and well being.

Prayers before consuming food, mentally offering it to God and mindful eating has tremendous benefits.

Food is everything. It helps maintain the body and is the best medicine that the body is constantly using to keep us healthy. Quality food is essential for health just like quality thoughts. What the body cannot consume and process naturally becomes poison and therefore cannot be called health giving.

We are essentially spiritual beings and the spirit is always whole. By neglecting and rejecting the spirit we bring on all forms of misery and disease.

Man is an essential part of the world and nature. He is composed of earth, water, air, space and spirit just as all others in the phenomenal world. The microbial world ie bacteria and viruses, and thoughts are what link man to the universe. We are in constant exchange with our environment at several levels.

A happy environment leads to a happy civilization. Torturing others for the sake of utility is disastrous for overall well being. Respect of life is what we have to learn. If we give pain, it will be multiplied and returned to us. We must rethink our industrial diary and meat production and also the way we do abortions today at the cost of tremendous pain to the foetus. The use of animals for medical research and the intense agony we have caused in the process is shameful.

All holistic health sciences are built on the above concept. Anything that tells us otherwise and intervenes without knowledge of the whole will lead to disease at several levels, disruption in society and will be a curse to human civilization.