Story time
Let me tell you a short story. One day an impatient patient came to a doctor. His back was sore, his head was aching, and he couldn’t sleep. So the doctor decided to examine him from head to toe.
A thorough investigation revealed no problems at all. All his reports were negative. His blood reports were clear, his blood pressure was normal, he had no cholesterol, and his kidneys were good. The doctor told him that medically he was hale and hearty, but the patient insisted that he was not!
He asked the doctor to re-investigate because he did not feel as well as his reports declared him to be. The doctor patiently heard him out and offered him a suggestion, ‘There is a circus in town. A joker there makes people double up with laughter. Sit there for some time, laugh a lot, and you will feel better.’
The patient said, 'Doctor! I’m that joker who entertains people, makes them laugh but I have so much stress myself.’
True signs of health
A couple of years ago I was invited to address a group of medical professionals at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS). Research conducted there found that 60% of the resident doctors were unwell. They had high-stress levels and many other related problems. It is a common belief that doctors must be perfectly healthy because they create health for society, but that’s not the case. Unless someone can laugh and smile from the core of their being they are not considered healthy in the Indian ethos.
In India, the Sanskrit/Hindi word for ‘healthy’ is 'swastha', which means one who is established in oneself, one whose actions match what he says. Only such a person can be considered healthy.
In our country, if someone’s words did not match his actions, people would not blame him; they would just consider him unwell. We never blamed a culprit. We considered them physically or mentally unhealthy and treated them with yoga and Ayurvedic remedies.
These provisions helped to make a person wholly and completely healthy. A person is healthy when he is committed and of good character. And he wants for others what he wants for himself. A pleasant and committed mindset is a sign of health. Fortunately, they now recognize this fact the world over that happiness is a factor for good health.
Ayurveda vs Allopathy
I was invited to the first conference of Ayurvedic doctors in India in 1980. I was only 24-25 years old. Allopathic doctors were also attending the conference, many of whom were from AIIMS.
At the conference, the Ayurvedic doctors discussed turmeric. They said turmeric is an ‘ayostapni’, meaning that it arrests ageing and is an antioxidant. Ayurvedic doctors emphasized the importance of turmeric, while allopathic doctors refused to believe them. They believed it was superstition and that turmeric had no value. But today’s latest research shows that turmeric is the best anti-depressant. It has the quality of 19 life-saving drugs. What those Ayurvedic doctors were saying has now been proved correct.
Butter vs Margarine
Similarly, a whole generation grew up thinking butter is bad for health. A couple of months ago, Time magazine published an article saying butter is good for the heart. They have said one must have at least two teaspoons daily to prevent heart disease.
For 50 years, people thought butter was harmful and switched to margarine. But now they say margarine is the bad guy and butter is good! Anything that melts when you kept in your palm is good for you; it won’t block your arteries. Margarine doesn’t melt in your hands; butter does.
Science cannot afford to have prejudice as it's ever-growing. At the same time, spirituality cannot afford to maintain superstitions. It should be open to debate, and not blindly followed just because it is in the scriptures. It is necessary to see whether it is applicable in today’s day and age. We should think about the reasons behind what the scriptures say.
The scriptures say that water be filtered through a cloth before drinking. You will see cloth tied over the mouth of the taps in many Jain households. Flies and insects sit on that cloth, creating many other problems. So even the good clear water which comes out of it becomes impure.
The scriptures tell us that we should eat with our hands. But people are eating with forks and spoons. If we want to wean them away from the habit then we must understand why eating with their hands was advised.
Our ancient knowledge systems should be open to scrutiny and scientific examination. We should look at them with a scientific temperament. We should neither discard them due to prejudice nor follow them blindly. Find a middle path where you take the old and the new and move forward. Life should have a place for both the old and the new.
