Scientists discover
Over the years the ever-curious scientists observed many phenomenons connected to meditation. Normally, researchers are left more puzzled than illumined. Shaolin feats, changes in the brain, the betterment of the memory and mental strength, as well as immune system boosts, are rather minor accomplishments or benefits of meditation compared to the increasing overall happiness. And happiness and health are the supremely interconnected blossoms of inner life and the outer life. But especially the health benefits of meditation are well documented. In a research study, meditating and not meditating people were given a flu virus. The people that were meditating on a regular basis „(…)were able to produce a greater number of antibodies and had increased immune function.“, according to Mitchell Moffit and Greg Brown in their popular online science show Asapscience.
A whole life of inner resources
A very well documented case was called “an absolute bomb” by a doctor in the Indian yogi Mataji Prahlad Jani who claimed to not have eaten anything for the last 65 plus years. The documentary “In the beginning there was light” shows how healthy Mataji was thoroughly examined for any kind of indication of recent digestion. Also, he was under close watch by guards and cameras for nearly two weeks. The results shocked, puzzled and intrigued the skeptics. Mataji was in perfect health, even much better than most at his age but he definitely is not consuming either food or liquids for a very long time. Frankly, traditional 1+1 medicine is limited and underdeveloped in some respects. But it is catching up with inner truths. Many hospitals start to include meditation techniques in their treatments. I do not mention Mataji as an idol. I mention him to point towards resources beyond the everyday standard beliefs. And in a way we are all familiar with this phenomenon: the placebo-effect is an unconscious way of letting your body have what it needs. Being tortured by something, then taking a sugar cube thinking it is the miraculous pill and becoming superman (more or less). If we could only always have this power, right? From nothing to everything. Wait! We do have meditation… It is a process of letting go.
Vegetarian? Why?
One study that basically says it all is that the US American Loma Linda University found out that vegetarians live up to 10 years longer than non-vegetarians! In general, a vegetarian diet helps to prevent over-weight, cancer, diabetes and strokes and reduces the risk of getting heart disease by 50%! More studies (University of Southampton) have found out that vegetarians actually have a higher average IQ than non-vegetarians. Not to mention the global effect on ecology!
And have you ever met someone who said that vegetarianism is disadvantageous athletically? Then mentally bookmark that 9-time gold medalist Carl Lewis is a vegetarian. Paul McCartney and some bodybuilders such as Nimai Delgado are, too. Albert Einstein, Plato, and da Vinci also knew what is up. Countless people give it a try and discover that this step back is actually a big step forward. If a vegetarian diet goes hand in hand with spiritual influences to someone’s life and we see that person we have to admit that he/she appears to be more refined, healthy-looking, lighter and actually happier. This is the spiritually significant aspect: vegetarianism and its pure lightness support our inner progress while meat-eating and its heavier qualities plus digestion difficulties, bind us to more physical consciousness.
Water spoke, Dr. Emoto listened. Do we?
Let’s simplify things by saying that the Japanese doctor M. Emoto mentally sent to water (from the tap, rivers, lakes) positivity and negativity in the form of thoughts, words, and music. Afterward he made microscopical photographs of each and compared them to one another. Here are a few examples:
As you can see the waters that were labeled with a positive word formed perfect crystalline artworks of beauty while the waters being labeled with a negative word lost all harmonious structure and became distorted and deformed.
The two lower pictures were taken from the water of the same Japanese dam. First the left one (before prayer). Then a Buddhist priest was asked to offer a prayer right at the dam. After the priest was praying there for one hour, new samples were taken and photographed. The pretty sensational result is that the polluted water with its smeared, distorted patterns were transformed into structures of the most fantastically beautiful crystalline artworks of nature. The same water! Just one one-hour-prayer. The experiment was repeated over and over and the result remained the same. And now let us ponder the fact that we ourselves consist of 60% water…!!
But frankly, I don’t think meditation itself cares too much about how much we can understand and prove. It works. And that is all that really matters especially for the people who feel the inner urge to include meditation as an important part of their day.
“Cheerfulness is the very flower of health.“
-Japanese proverb
The best way forward? Intuition.
The intellectual way of looking at things is to thoroughly analyze the present with all its factors and aspects. But one‘s very own intuition is our most direct communication with the all-fundamental energy discussed before which always aspires to manifest the highest harmony. If this energy is what we are of, then naturally nothing can possibly know us better or know better what we are lacking and how to overcome it. To meditate and to direct our awareness inward is to step into the matter and not to “dance around it“. And our intuition is the practical voice of the highest. Hence, the practice of deepening and trusting our intuition is the most effective, constructive and harmonious way forward and also the best prevention. That is to say unless we are meant to go through experience for a higher learning process, our intuition is a kind of radar for the inwardly and outwardly healthiest way through life.
