Practical and Spiritual Living – Part 2

Venu Payyanur

In the previous article we discussed about the benefits of taking bath everyday morning. There are few more important points that one must take into consideration while taking bath. Though it can sound superstitious or irrational, I felt it is important to mention it here and you are welcome to accept it or reject it based on your own intelligence and understanding.

• Olden days, people used to take their morning bath either in a pond or in river near their homes. The morning walk that one must do to reach the ponds or rivers is certainly very good for the health, particularly for those who usually do not do any exercise.
• After taking bath, in ponds and rivers, the person use to stand for few minutes giving ‘tharpana’, to the forefathers, facing south. Whatever may be the scientific or spiritual explanation of this ritual; this gives us an opportunity to remember the sacrifices made by our forefathers for bringing us up. It also reminds us on our responsibility to the next generation.
• Even if you are taking bath in your own bathroom, girls are not supposed to take bath completely naked. In olden days it is said that sky travelling ‘Gandharvas’ could get attracted to those beautiful girls and possess them thereby losing their virginity unknowingly. However these days we have different types of Gandharvas who are walking with portable camcorders and other video recording equipment ready to get cheap popularity by publishing them through MMS, internet, etc. Such stories are so many these days and no amount of care and precaution is unreasonable.
• It is better to face east while taking bath in the morning particularly if you are taking bath in the open. One can also recite many mantra while bathing and most popular one is

Gange cha Yamune chaiva Godavari Saraswati,

Narmade Sindhu Kaveri jalesmin sannidhim kuru

In this water, I invoke the presence of holy waters from the rivers Ganga, Yamuna, Godavari, Saraswati, Narmada, Sindhu and Kaveri. Another mantra that makes us environmentally conscious and friendly and those believe in these rituals must also do whatever is possible to protect our rivers from all kinds of pollution.

• Which part of the body you must wipe first after the bath? Usually we do not think about it and most start with the face and head. But scriptures suggest that one should never wipe the face first, instead wipe the back, squeeze that water out from the towel and then wipe your face and head. There are two ‘Devi’, ‘Sridevi’ and ‘Moodevi’ waiting to reside in your body as soon as it is clean and ‘Moodevi’ always wins. That means if you wipe your face first, ‘Moodevi’ takes position there and your day will be spoiled. If you wipe your face after wiping the back, ‘Moodevi’ sits at the back and ‘Sridevi’ sits on your face guaranteeing a wonderful day for you. This has also a scientific backing. Your back, which is the place above your buttocks to the neck, has the largest area which is exposed and wet now. The water would evaporate and cooling your spinal cord, resulting in many backbone related diseases. By wiping your back first, you are eliminating any potential health problems in future.

Prayer follows bath. After cleaning the body externally, it is time to cleanse the mind through prayers. Chanting Om is the first step towards meditation. All that you need to do is to sit in a peaceful place, on the floor, gently close your eyes, take a deep breath and chant Om. While doing so, completely relax your muscles. Don’t tighten your muscles; otherwise you won’t be able to feel the energizing effect of chanting Om. Meditation on Om will revitalize your energy and rejuvenate you completely. One must chant ‘om’ a minimum of 7 times, but can be 10 or 30 minutes based on the time available and the many benefits that you will receive once you start this practice. You can also recite other mantras based on instructions from your Guru or knowledge.

After Japa, it is time for meditation. Meditation for 10 – 15 minutes is very good for the activation and refreshing of the brain. If you have one, place a mat on the ground and sit upright with your legs crossed and your hands in your lap. If you like, you can hold your thumbs and forefingers together. This posture prepares you for meditation by making a circle of energy from the base of the spine to the top of the head. The beta level of brain is a state when the brain produces electric waves of 13.5 and above cycles per second (cps). Alpha state produces 8.5 – 13 .5 cps waves; it is a shallow state of meditation. The delta state goes further down to a medium state of mediation. Going further down to theta level is very difficult for common man. But in these meditation states, the brain cells and the body get fully activated. Memory, thinking capability and temper affect very positively by morning meditation. Meditation cleanses, purifies and strengthens the mind.

After the Japa and meditation, next step is refreshing and toning the muscles and bones. Most of us are not in the habit of doing exercise in the morning. This generally leads to rigidity in the skeleton joints. A hard and strenuous exercise can lead to over strain to heart muscles and other parts of the body, leading to heart problem and BP. The best and harmonious exercise for the body is said to be Suryanamaskar. This is a combination of seven yoga asanas and known as the king of the exercises. Hence performing Suryanamaskara (depending upon your age, physiological conditions and health the number can vary from four to ten) will give flexibility to muscles, cleaning the muscles, smoothening the skeleton joins and also purification of blood due to increased blood circulation to all the tissue corners of the body. However never start this yoga asana without the guidance of a matured and experienced ‘Guru’.Savasana and Pranayama could be performed after Suryanamaskara. One can also visit temples or other places of worship before sitting down for pure vegetarian breakfast. Alternately one can also perform aerobic exercises like brisk walking or jogging in the morning or evening to maintain a healthy body and happy mind.

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