Part 6 - Medicine should be disease specific

Let us analyze how the nature of some of the diseases and their manifestations have been changing over the time.

In the olden days, most diseases were physiological types. The diseases such as Plague, Cholera, T.B. etc. were infectious, communicable and contagious in nature. The medicinal treatment given to the patients was therefore suitable for such diseases.

In the modern times we live in, the diseases such as Plague or Cholera have been by and large eradicated from most parts of the world. They are not regarded as dreadful diseases anymore. They have been replaced by diseases such as HIV/AIDS or Cancer. Off course therefore the medical treatment of these modern diseases is also different.

Going forward in the future, as has already started manifesting, psychosomatic disorders and diseases are going to be the mainstay of human diseases, perhaps leading to pure psychiatric diseases in the future. The treatments of such disorders and diseases is bound to be different.

In all the above cases, it must be noted that, human physiology and anatomy have not changed over these time horizons. It has remained the same. What has changed is the external environment during this evolution leading to various diseases at different points in time. When in the olden days, the environment was not particularly hygiene oriented, there must have been contamination of water, air and food etc. with harmful elements which led to mass communicable or contagious diseases. As humans progressed during modern times of the present, due to the material prosperity and falling moral values etc. gave rise to diseases such as HIV/AIDs. The air pollution around us gave rise to respiratory disorders. As the stress levels due to fast and frenetic pace of life go on intensifying, more and more people will be falling prey to psychosomatic disorders such as Asthma, Diabetes, Hypertensionetc. In the future perhaps, more and more people will be troubled with pure psychiatric and neurological disorders such as phobias, anxieties, depression, neurosis etc. Thus, the single most factor affecting the types of disorders suffered is the ‘environment’.

The great sage Vasiṣṭha^[1] classifies diseases into two categories viz. ādhijavyādhi (diseases related to the mind) and anādhijavyādhi (diseases not related to the mind such as infections and contagious diseases). Ādhijavyādhis are further subdivided into sāra (essential) and sāmānya (psychosomatic ailments such as asthma, diabetes, hypertension etc.)

The sāravyādhis are diseases at the spiritual level and hence spiritual remedies are required. Whosoever is born suffers from sāravyādhis; like cycle of birth and death, body consciousness and ‘Ego’. Annihilation of the Ego is the sādhanā suggested in Yogavāsiṣṭha.

Sigmund Freud^[2] has given three aspects of the Ego Viz. Id, Ego and Super Ego. Id is biologically conditioned, instinctive and it occupies the unconscious mind. It is the animal in man. Id is the seat of what Freud calls libido (sexual energy). The Ego is environmentally conditioned. Both Id and Ego have no morals. The Super ego is morally and culturally conditioned.

The treatment of ‘Ego’ therefore will depend upon whether Id, Ego or Super ego is dominant in man.

A spiritual master, therefore, suggests suitable spiritual remedies which have to be disease specific. Human personality being a product of heredity and environment, the spiritual practices suggested for an individual must depend upon the psychological environment in which he lives.The psycho-physical environment of modern man being different, specific solutions must be carved out of the ancient text like P.Y.S. to solve the problems of modern man.

The psychological environment of modern man is determined by following factors—

1. Fanaticism:

Increased religious fanaticism leading to acts of terrorism in the name of religion at societal level. Pātañjala-Yogasūtras being science of life, which does not need any religious or cultural background and is truly secular in every sense of the word can be a solution to this problem as its applicability is universal. If yamas and niyamas, the ethical rules which form the basis of Pātañjala Yogasūtra>, are adopted, most of the social evils will vanish. Ahiṃsā, for example is a direct solution for reduction in violence and terrorism prevalent in today’s world.

As a yogī becomes established in non-injury, all beings coming near him cease to be hostile^[3] . In the previous chapter on ‘Relevant Research in the field of Yoga’, we have also seen how T.M. decreases the crime rate in the society.

2. Nuclear Families:

Disintegrating family values and systems. The stress of fast and furious modern life is taking such a heavy toll that even husband, and wife are not able to understand, tolerate and accommodate each other leading to increased rate of divorces in most developed nations of the world. Indian society is also not far behind in this aspect as can be seen from growth in divorce rates. This has direct impact on the social health. In this connection Yogasūtra II.33 (inrespect of yamas and niyamas, when these restraints and observances are inhibited by perverse thoughts, the opposites should be thought of) if adopted will bring about a change in inter personal relationship.

In this connection, the following sūtra is also important.

maitrīkaruṇāmuditopekṣāṇāṃ sukhaduḥkhapuṇyāpuṇyaviṣayāṇāṃ bhāvanātaścittaprasādanam || 1.33 ||

The mind becomes purified by the cultivation of feelings of amity, Compassion, Goodwill and Indifference respectively towards happy, miserable, virtuous and sinful creatures. The saints, sages and yogīs who gave up the idea of me and mine expanded their ego to include everything in the universe as their family. As the ego expands one goes beyond individuality thinking about society, nation and finally leading to the idea of vasau-Qa-Ovaku-TMubakम्^[4] which means the whole world is one single family.

3. Environmental Pollution:

The concept of one world family includes Flora and Fauna as well. Saint Tukaram has famously said,va-Rxavalla-IAamha-Msaaoyarvo anacaro^[5] , the world also includes flora and fauna. It is every generation’s responsibility and duty to preserve the beautiful nature and environment around us so that future generations can also benefit from its glory. However,ever increasing human greed and selfishness has a direct bearing on increased pollution and decreasing precious natural resources and damage to the environment. Pollution at all levels is the outcome. It is believed and is a strong possibility that future wars will be fought on the aspect of ‘ownership of water resources’ as it will become acutely scarce due to mindless exploitation.

4. Sedentary Lifestyle:

Increased dependence on mechanized way of life has made the lifestyle very sedentary in nature. The physical activities have greatly reduced simultaneously speed of thoughts and cerebral activity has increased exponentially. This has led to imbalance between the body and the mind. Natural homeostasis has gone for a toss leading to many a psycho somatic disorders and physiological functional disorders.

Patañjali’s emphasis on practice of āsanas and prāṇāyāma is a direct solution to the psychosomatic problems arising out of sedentary life style of the modern world.

5.Education System:

sāvidyāyāvimuktaye | ^[6]

That which liberates is education (vidyā). In the modern times, we seem to be getting tied into bondages of human misery as a result of type of job oriented education which we have.

Pātañjala-Yogadarśana is “jīvanavidyā” (science of life) teaching us how to invoke the inner potentialities of man and lead a life of total bliss and peace.

Svāmī-Vivekānanda says,^[7]

What we say a man ‘knows’ should, in strict psychological language, be what he ‘discovers’ or ‘unveils’; what a man ‘learns’ is really what he ‘discovers’. By taking the cover off his own soul, which is a mine of infinite knowledge. Education is the manifestation of the perfection already in man. Education is not the amount of information that is put into your brain and runs riot there, undigested, all your life. We must have life-building, man-making, character-making assimilation of ideas. If you have assimilated five ideas and made them your life and character, you have more education than any man who has got by heart a whole library.

Money and economic conditions guides the life patterns. Money has become the sole aim of life. The modern education system also has taken forms in such a manner that gathering information and using it for obtaining a job or employment, making a livelihood, obtaining more and more material comforts and prosperity seems to be the obvious aim of modern education system. The stress on fundamental knowledge and wisdom seems to be missing. Modern education system very rarely includes and teaches how to handle human emotions, anxieties and other such inner human faculties.

In any education system, concentration is the key to success. Patañjaliwhile discussing the effects of prāṇāyāma says that practice of prāṇāyāma helps development of concentration.

dhāraṇāsu ca yogyatā manasaḥ || 2.53 ||

For any fundamental research activity, one of the basic requirement is that of ability of contemplative thinking. Meditation is the key to in-depth thinking.

Here, [The following—Pātañjala-Yogasūtra 3.1 is completely applicable]:

deśabandhaścittasya dhāraṇā || 2.53 ||

6. Thought Pollution:

As a result of the above, one of the basic principles of healthy and blissful living ‘understanding the other person’ seems to have been lost.

Patanjali has suggested in the following Sutras:

vitarkabādhane pratipakṣabhāvanam || 2.33 || ^[8]

(In respect of yamas and niyamas when these restraints and observances are inhibited by perverse thoughts the opposites should be thought of) .

And:

vitarkā hiṃsādayaḥ kṛtakāritānumoditā lobhakrodhamohapūrvakāmṛdumadhyādhimātrā duḥkhājñānānantaphalā iti pratipakṣabhāvanam || 2.34 || ^[9]

(Actions arising out of perverse thoughts like injury etc. are either performed by oneself, got done by another or approved, performed either through anger, greed or delusion; and can be mild, moderate or intense. That they are the causes of infinite misery and unending ignorance is the contrary thought.)

Thus hold importance in this context. Patañjali explains that the solution to wrong thinking (vitarka) lies in ‘right thinking’. Every action is preceded by a thought. When the thoughts intensify, the organs of actions start obeying to those thoughts. As such when wrong thoughts are generated, they lead one to wrong actions. Wrong actions usually are of the nature of ‘Violence’ or ‘Hatred’ Only ‘right thoughts will lead to right actions. For attaining the purity of mind (cittaprasādana), it is essential that wrong thoughts are removed. It is observed that vices such as ‘Violence’, ‘Hatred’ etc. are either carried out by a person himself or is arranged through others by consent. They have roots in ṣaḍripus like anger (krodha), greed (lobha) attachment (moha). Depending on the intensity of wrong thoughts the resultant wrong actions are either mild, medium or intense. These actions lead to a great misery and nescience (duḥkhajñānantaphala). Greed makes man talk lies and encourage stealing. It makes man blind to the effects of his actions. Emotions like intense anger may even lead to murders and homicides.Patañjali thus suggests pratipakṣabhāvanā i.e. replacement of wrong thinking by right thinking.

The root cause of the problems of modern life, including Environmental pollution, is ‘thought pollution’ leading to increased corruption, criminality and terrorism.

All methods of cittaprasādana (purification of the mind) suggested by Patañjali in sūtras II.33 to II.39 and discussed in chapter IIare direct and tangible solutions for removing the ‘thought pollution’. Spiritual evolution at individual level will also result in social upliftment, which has been proved beyond doubt as reflected by life sketches of many saints and sages in India and in other countries too. These saints and sages have transformed thousands of people, showing them the way to superhumanhood.

Keeping in view the abovementioned problems, typical to modern lifestyle, suitable yogic techniques must be developed. Osho therefore emphasized more on dynamic meditation rather than traditional static meditation.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Vasudeo Sharma, Laghuyogavāsiṣṭa, Motilal Banarsidass, Delhi, Reprint 1985,p.684

[2]:

Lahey Benjamin, Op. Cit., p. 403-4

[3]:

Pātañjala Yogasūtra, II.35

[4]:

Mahā Upaniṣad, VI.71-75

[5]:

Saint Tukaram Literature

[6]:

Viṣṇu-Purāṇa, I.19.41

[7]:

Swami Vivekananda, My India -The India Eternal, Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Kolkata, 2010, p.54-56

[8]:

P.Y.S. II-33

[9]:

P.Y.S. II-34