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Source: The Hindu (http://www.hinduonnet.com)

 

Body-mind correlation

 

 

 

HEALING EMOTIONS: Daniel Goleman; Rupa and Co., Post Box No. 7017, 7/16, Ansari

Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi -110002. Rs. 195.

 

"A SOUND mind in a sound body" is the popular maxim. But, how far can a sound

mind help in keeping the body sound is a perennial question engaging the

attention of scientists, neuro physicians and psychotherapists the world over.

 

The connection and correlation between the brain, emotions and the body immune

system and the beneficial impact of a peaceful mind on the body immune system

require a deep and careful study. It is in this context that a series of

dialogues were held on different occasions in the last decade by a group of

Western intellectuals with the Dalai Lama and some Buddhist scholars. The group

consisted of specialists in neuroscience, cognitive psychology, mental health

and allied sciences and the meetings were appropriately called "Mind and Life"

conferences.

 

The book under review is a compendium of the proceedings of the third such

conference held in 1991, where 10 Western scholars of different disciplines had

a useful interaction with the Dalai Lama and Buddhist experts on meditation.

 

Buddhism postulates various forms of meditation, with varying degrees of

severity and also enjoins not only Ahimsa (as a negative action i.e., inaction)

but also performance of virtuous actions, on the positive side. The Buddhists

were also concerned with mental health as well as physical health and even

several centuries back wrote medical treatises exploring the intimate connection

between these two. They concluded that bodily illness is more due to mental

activities and emotions like anger and passion.

 

During these discussions, it was broadly agreed, based on scientific research,

that the mind can indeed control emotions like lust and anger and thus lead to

peace Shanti, as repeatedly mentioned in the Vedas. This, in twin, results

in lowering blood pressure and minimising the chances of incidence of various

diseases. To this end, Yoga, Pranayama and meditation are actively encouraged

and taught extensively both in the East and West.

 

The various medical tests conducted on patients to determine the correlation

between mental activity and physical health are described and discussed, evoking

considerable interest. The Dalai Lama observed, quoting some examples, that

meditation and inward peace do alleviate the physical pain to a significant

extent.

 

He also observed, in the course of discussions, that there may be different

levels of consciousness, independent of the functioning of the brain. This is

also an accepted theory in the Hindu philosophy and the indicates five levels of

consciousness as wakefulness, dreaming state, dreamless sleep, fainting and

ultimately death. In this context, the relationship between the thinking mind

and the physical entity, brain, also came in for animated discussion; and it was

concluded that ethical guidelines for good living may help in immunisation

against diseases.

 

The group then had a lively discussion on whether ethical values can be delinked

from religion, so as to be of appeal to agnostics and atheists as well. While on

this, man's attitude and concept of ethics can be divided into three categories

as individualism, perfectionism and rationalism. Individualism tries to justify

action, from the point of view of one's own interests. Perfectionism sets an

ideal standard as objective, which one tries to reach to the extent possible.

Whereas rationalism is based on the optimum ethical values that can be

stipulated with the given parameters, in the given situation.

 

Even the idea of compassion is relative and not absolute. To save 10 innocent

people, one rowdy can be killed and this killing is indeed relative compassion.

Compassion has to be a basic trait in human beings, without relevance to race or

religion. Similarly the demarcation between truth and untruth and right and

wrong, is not absolute, observes the Dalai Lama. When your friend wants your gun

for shooting his enemy, you utter an untruth that the gun is not with you and

this untruth is fully justified. Any action that leads to a harmful consequence

is wrong and the action leading to beneficial consequences is right.

 

The Western scholars report that it has been clinically proved that states of

mind like lust, anger, stress or depression affect the strength of the body

immune system and the robustness of the cardio-vascular system. On the other

hand, the beneficial mental states are calmness, optimism, happiness and love

towards others. The unkind states tend to increase blockage in the arteries,

leading to heart diseases.

 

In fact, the Harvard Medical School found on analysis that the single emotion

most common, prior to a heart attack, was anger. A bout of anger lowers the

pumping efficiency of the heart, resulting in drop in the blood flow to heart.

These conclusions were also confirmed by independent studies conducted by

Stanford and Yale Medical Schools. Medical evidence shows that next to anger

comes depression as a contributor to such health problems. Stress also

significantly affects health and experiments showed that such emotions tend to

double the risk of not only heart diseases but also asthma, ulcer, arthritis and

headache.

 

Clinical trials conducted in California and Harvard universities also showed

that conversely, optimism, joy and such pleasurable habits reduce incidence of

diseases. Next, the interaction between the mind, nervous system and body immune

system is discussed at length, citing neuro-scientific studies conducted in this

regard, like EEG. The relative roles of the left and right sides of the brain

were analysed and it was found that brain structures play an important role in

controlling emotions like desire.

 

Similarly there is a fairly long discussion on coping with stress of different

types like emotional, physical and environmental (extreme cold or heat,

pollution, etc). In this connection, the Buddhist monks and philosophers view

one's own suffering as due to past "karmas" (even as the Hindus do) and as a

spiritual opportunity for practising equanimity. They are thus able to control

stress effects to a large extent. They even go to the extent of feeling

compassion towards evil-doers. The different meditation techniques adopted are

discussed as also details of courses conducted on stress reduction and

relaxation, giving examples, , of some interesting case studies.

 

Vices are categorised like lust, gluttony, vanity, anger, envy, avarice, pride

and apathy to ethical values. Likewise virtues are divided into two categories

as cardinal ones, which are basic, independent of religion and infused virtues,

based on one's religion. The psycho-physical analysis of these and their

remedies by maintaining mental equilibrium are discussed.

 

Self-contempt or self-debasement, which is stated to be widely prevalent in the

West is next taken up for discussion, when the Dalai Lama observes this is not a

common trait among Tibetans. The opposite trend of self-esteem and egoism also

comes in for animated discussion.

 

In this context, the Dalai Lama clarified that Buddhism has an open mind on its

tenets and teachings and is not dogmatic. If scientific research controverts or

disproves any of its hitherto accepted theories, it has no hesitation in

acknowledging the validity of scientific conclusions.

 

While to a layman this book may appear to be a bit abstract and abstruse, it can

be read with interest and be of benefit to students of research, psychoanalysis,

neuroscience, psychotherapy, psychology, philosophy and medical profession in

general.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

V. N. GOPALA DESIKACHARIAR

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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