Mental Health ...

is crucial to wellbeing
Today the issue of mental depression is gathering a lot of attention around the world. The
World Health Organization says that by 2020, the second leading cause of disease in the world will be
depression. Nearly one in every five people in the USA has some kind of mental illness and each year,
25 per cent of the population in Europe suffers from depression.

Unfortunately, people don’t even acknowledge when they are depressed, and two-thirds don’t go for
any kind of treatment. Neither at school nor at home are we taught how to handle negative emotions.
We teach dental hygiene, but forget to teach mental hygiene. Stress does not go away just by talking or
advising. We need to learn some techniques, tools or mechanisms to get rid of stress and calm the mind.

What causes depression? Among other factors, depression happens because one hangs on to the past or
is over-ambitious. But change is a constant. If you do not let go, you are stuck and frustration and
depression follow. You need to be aware that you are connected with the whole universe. We forget to
look into the core of life. What is life? Who am I? What do I want? It is emotion that sinks you into
depression and it is wisdom which takes you out of depression.

This is where meditation and breathing techniques can help. They are tools that could help you calm
your mind, and make you feel happy from within. A lot of the illnesses can be handled through
breathing exercises and meditation. First, meditation creates positive and harmonious energy around us.
The second benefit is that it improves health, and can help in preventing many mental and physical
illnesses. There is a lot of research on how meditation helps overcome hypertension, diabetes, heart
problems, skin problems, nervous system problems, and many others.

Apart from health benefits, meditation improves concentration and helps one to be in the present
moment. The mind vacillates between the past and future. We are either angry about the past or anxious
about the future. Meditation helps keep the mind in the present. When the mind is calm, it is able to
perceive things better. When the mind is disturbed, our perception is also totally disturbed. In your day-
to-day life, you come across all kinds of situations that can be challenging and which demand a degree
of alertness so we can make good choices.

These situations give rise to different states of mind and neither life nor the states of mind occur with
our permission. In fact, they often occur in direct defiance of our wishes. Meditation can bring about a
balance between different states of the mind. You can learn to switch from the tough aspect to the
delicate aspect within you. You can stand up when needed and let go when needed. This ability is
present within everyone, and meditation enables you to switch between these states effortlessly. With a
few minutes of meditation and pranayama, our thoughts become powerful and our tasks are
accomplished with just a little effort. I would say that meditation is food for the soul. And emotional
cleansing and mental hygiene can bring about a big transformation in society. (April 7 is World Health
Day).

The Three Mental Temperaments

The mental temperaments of human beings, known as gunas in Sanskrit, are of three types. Each
has a distinct character of its own. They are known as: tamas or inactive, rajas or active and sattva
or trans-active.
Tamas is the state of thoughts in inertia; a mood of lethargy, indolence, indifference. Indisposed to
activity, in a condition of sloth and sleep and with no intellectual conviction to pursue, nor
emotional feeling to manifest, a person steeped in tamas lives a dull, inactive life, with hardly any
response to the world.
Rajas is the state of passionate, desirous and agitated thoughts when a person bristles with frenzied
actions leading to his involvement in the affairs of the world.
Sattva is the state of thoughts in equanimity, serenity, objectivity when a person is poised, mature,
contemplative, detached from worldly involvement and excitement. Hence he is described as being
trans-active.
Sattva, rajas and tamas composed in different proportions account for the heterogeneous variety of
human beings. Every individual possesses all three gunas.
The law of nature is such that the sattva guna in an individual surfaces in the early hours of the
morning, between 4 am and 6 am. His rajas and tamas lie dormant during that period.
Similarly, rajas predominantly manifests during daytime between 6 am and 6 pm.Tamas show up
at night from 6 pm to 4 am.The law holds good for everyone, from the highest sattvik to the lowest
tamasik person.
The sattvik temperament is highest in a sattvik person, less in a rajasik person and least in a tamasik
person. Regardless of the quantum, the sattva in a person manifests in the early hours.
That explains why a sattvik person wakes up early. The pressure being low in a rajasik person, he
wakes up late. The tamasik has to be virtually pulled out of bed.
Besides waking a person up early, the other sattvik qualities clearly manifest at that time. Like
being calm and composed, serene and contemplative. Being averse to plunging into gross physical
activity. Or indulging in sensual pleasure. Hence, early morning is said to be well suited for
contemplation. And the sattvik time most conducive for spiritual practice.
Thus, utilising the early hours and retiring early, you can increase your sattva, control your rajas
and reduce your tamas.
Just as sattva manifests early in the morning, rajas finds expression during the course of the day.
Hence people are found bristling with activity during daytime.
Tamas emerges after 6 pm. Indulgence in intoxicants, sex and gambling is conspicuous during
nighttime. Most pronounced in tamasik persons and less in rajasik, it is virtually absent in sattvik
persons.
These gunas or temperaments combined in different proportions account for the variety of
individuals in the world. The role of a human in his lifetime is to gradually rise from tamas to rajas
to sattva and reach trans-sattva. Wherein lies the supreme Self.
To develop the personality and attain the transcendental experience you need to study and analyse
these gunas thoroughly.
In chapter 18, the Bhagwad Gita has classified different facets of human life action, actor,
knowledge, intellect, steadfastness, renunciation and happiness under the three gunas. The analysis
enables you to define the exact nature of your personality. You can then administer corrective
measures where there are faults. And rise gradually to the trans-sattvik state.

Achieving Mental Balance And Happiness

Life mirrors our deeds and thoughts. Some people live and die without even displaying an urge for
a higher spiritual life. All scriptural works tell us that life and religion are interconnected and that
the latter guides us to live in happiness, without fear or tension, to improve our abilities and build
self-confidence. Positive thoughts and the willingness to do any kind of work entrusted to us, will
fetch success.

The rules governing pure life have been laid down in holy books. They say that life is really meant
to release the individual soul from the clutches of tempting influences in order to achieve bliss.

The soul's purity can be maintained by making the body take up divine work, to speak truth and
entertain only pious thoughts. Thoughts, words and deeds should be identical. To attain spiritual
perfection, one needs to practice meditation and chanting. The mind, senses and the intellect will all
perish with the body; spirit alone is immortal. Ultimate liberation can be secured by extinction of all
desires.

Therefore sages advise to avoid too much talk and to do more work. Sentiments of other people
should be appreciated and respected. Practise what you preach. Stay unruffled in the face of praise
or abuse. Maintaining equanimity will arise out of adoption of the procedures prescribed in the
scriptures as, one will then easily forgive and forget what others say. Never be a slave of
circumstances, say elders. The most important advice tendered by saints is: avoid hating others
whatever may be the provocation. Be friendly through maitri bhava, remain happy and smiling as
pramod and with karuna (compassion), be forgiving.

A worldly man is invariably a slave of two mighty currents of the mind - attraction and repulsion.
He is happy when he experiences pleasure but sad when he is faced with sorrow. He sticks to
pleasant objects while he runs away from those which cause him pain.

Most people are not able to resist passion and desires. But the one who overcomes them will be
calm and composed. Even men of strong moral strength have showed signs of weakness and have
fallen victim to worldly temptations. Sacred literature tells us that by developing an attitude of
detachment, it may be possible to maintain mental balance.

A story from Jain scriptures points out that a dispassionate man is unaffected by both pleasure and
pain. Four disciples once approached their spiritual master. The first said he would undergo
penance by sitting on the wooden lid of a dry well. The second said he would meditate at the
mouth of a dark den where a lion lived. The third declared that he would conduct penance in a
mountain chasm where pythons are plentiful. The youngest said he would carry out his discipline
in the dancing-hall of a courtesan, a statement which naturally evoked laughter and derision from
others.

The young man who had once been a visitor to the courtesan's house, was now absolutely
unconcerned about her charm and continued his austere life even while living in her house. Her
music and dance did not disturb his concentration. When he returned to the hermitage after some
time, his acharya found him pure, radiating spiritual aura. One can develop dispassion by looking
into the defects of sensual life. Detachment from all objects, at all times will result in obtaining
knowledge of the Self.

Habits that will push you towards depression

Anyone who has ever experienced hopelessness truly understands the disturbing effects of
depression. It is terrible illness that steals all the pleasure and energy of a person.
Depression is caused by a number of things. Following are some of the habits that lead to
depression:
Lack of exercise
It may sound peculiar, but exercise is highly important for both your physical and mental
well-being. Being inactive can lead to depression. Staying in the house the entire day and
not engaging in any physical activities causes people to become lazy or eat too much. Being
lazy and oversized is a sure way of getting yourself into a state of depression. It not only
reduces your physical mobility but also your self-esteem. In addition, whenever you feel
depressed, exercise is usually the last thing on your mind. You prefer to sit and sob than
move around.
However, it is important for you to remember that exercise makes a monumental
difference if you happen to be suffering from depression. The habit of staying in bed or
remaining planted on the sofa is absolutely a terrible idea. Our brains produce things
known as feel-good chemicals such as serotonin and dopamine.
Exercising for even 40 minutes a day helps your brain to produce more of these chemicals,
which keeps you active and in high spirits.
Poor sleeping habits and stress
If you constantly deprive yourself of sleep, you create a situation that is ideal for
depression. Medical experts and physicians recommend that you get at least seven to eight
hours of sleep every night. You should also have a routine for the way you sleep. Reading
in bed, using the laptop in bed or staying up late are just of the ways that people deprive
themselves of sleep. If you don’t get enough sleep, you become easily agitated and highly
paranoid. This lays the foundation for a state of depression. If you are well-rested, you
mind is always clear and sharp. In addition, people who do not get enough sleep do not
perform well at work. This causes them to have high levels of stress, which is very counter-
productive.
The more stressed a person is, the more they can’t sleep. This revolving cycle is what brings
on depression. Since the person can’t sleep or perform their functions properly, they
become frustrated and begin to feel trapped. If they begin to feel as though they can’t
control what is going on in their life, they end up feeling depressed. Most people don’t
appreciate that just getting enough sleep can help to deter depression.
Isolation
Being in isolation is a sure way of getting depressed. When you avoid friends and family
for whatever reason, you are creating a situation that is ripe for depression. Isolation is the
worst thing you can do to yourself, both in physical and mental terms. According to
researchers, people who have a strong social network are less likely to develop depression.
Having close relationships with friends and family actually promotes better brain
chemistry, which leads to lower stress levels. Regardless of the situation, it is always
important that you keep in touch with other people.
Over thinking
Negative thinking is among the major causes of depression. When you dwell on negative
thoughts each day, you are setting yourself up for depression. Constantly thinking about
threats, rejection, loss or failure is a sure way of getting yourself depressed. There are
things in this world that are simply out of our control, so we don’t need to dwell on them.
Thinking about something you cannot change can not only make you depressed but also
drive you insane. With all the pressures of today’s world, rumination has become a major
trigger for depression. People need to find ways of stopping these thoughts dead in their
tracks.
It is important that you always try to redirect your attention to things that are more
positive instead of obsessing on the things you can’t change. You can also try to spend
quality time with people who are close to you. Hearing their stories and listening to their
jokes will surely help to put your mind at ease. In addition, if something seems to be
bothering you too much, you can write it down and throw the piece of paper away.