The mind can affect the condition of the body, just as the condition of the body can affect the mind.
We deplete our vital energy when we live a fragmented life — when our body, mind and soul are not in agreement with each other. Existentially, our body belongs to nature, our soul belongs to God, and in between is our mind which goes through a long process of conditioning by our family and society. Our life exists in relationships and these relationships are very demanding, full of expectations. An individual may not be so strong to fulfil all the expectations. It is next to impossible. As a result, we start being ruled by the social conditioning, ignoring our individual needs. In psychological terms, we become fragmented. A fragmented person can never be a happy person, as there’s an inner war going on all the time within his being. In such a situation, there are two possibilities: an individual can either go against oneself or rebel against the society. Both the possibilities create misery for the individual, who keeps struggling his whole life for attaining peace and joy.
It is really challenging to find a way out. It requires a tremendous amount of intelligence to understand this conflict and bring harmony between the conflicting elements of body, mind and soul. Yoga and meditation show the way — the way within. It is very therapeutic. One can begin with the body first, as it is very natural. Energetically one can talk to the body, communicate with it. Osho gave a meditative method which is “Reminding yourself of the forgotten language of talking to your body and mind”. He says: “People need to be taught how to be friends with one’s body. The body has to be loved — you have to be a great friend. It is your home, you have to clean it of all junk, and you have to remember that it is in your service continuously, day in, day out. It is doing everything for your survival, for your life, although you are so ungrateful that you have never even thanked your body.”
Modern medical science is now beginning to recognise what the mystics have always known — that the body and mind are inter-connected and deeply related. The remedy is yoga and meditation. The mind can affect the condition of the body, just as the condition of the body can affect the mind. Again, the remedy is yoga and meditation. Yoga can fix the body and meditation can take care of the mind at a deeper level. According to Yoga Sutras of sage Patanjali, the seventh stage is dhyana, which is understood as meditation in the modern times. It is basically dealing with the distractions of the mind. This way, the real yoga includes meditation also. In Sanskrit, yoga means the union. It is the union of body, mind and spirit. And finally what matters is the spirit, which rules both — the body and the mind. It is the life force together with godliness, the all pervading consciousness.
The prana energy functions at the optimum with the help of yoga and meditation. So one should not stop at asanas only — one should keep going further, deeper and deeper, higher and higher. The deeper the roots, the higher one rises. The roots and flowers are deeply connected. Osho says: “Your biology is your roots and your consciousness is your flowering.” A tree cannot flower independent of its seed and roots. The growth is a continuum; you cannot skip the birth pains, the suffering, the effort, the pushing upwards, and begin with the flower, the bliss, the meditation. There is no choice to be made. If you accept the roots, explore them deeply and consciously. In other words, be where you are; that is the nourishment the roots need to blossom into flowers. And finally, life is not a problem to be solved, but a mystery to be lived.
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