It does not matter what a person might pursue in life, there is but one quintessential purpose behind such pursuits – happiness. But then the question many people often fail to ask is, whether such pursuit must be mired in stress and its resultant pain. Is pain inescapable? Is it something we got to deal with, without any choice? Is there a way out of it?
There can be no doubts about the fact that modern medicine has made great strides,, with the advancement in technologies. Humanity has benefited greatly from it; that it is today an integral part of our lives is certain. However, there are still a great many things, it is yet to decipher. A great many questions, it is yet to answer.
For example: Why is it that even after so much advancement in technology, people continue to suffer? Why is it that stress and resultant lifestyle diseases continue to rise and in more painful ways? Every drug that is invented or discovered, often has some or the other side effects, adding to the pains. And why is there no magic pill to eradicate stress?
Most stress-related medications available today are the ones that are directed to sedate the brain or endocrine system. Brain, along with the central nervous system and peripheral nervous system, is a part and parcel of the human body we possess. But the brain is not the mind. This is a subtle but crucial thing in life we all need to know, and yet fail to understand. The first text to describe this quintessential truth about our existence was written over 5,000 years ago in the Atharva Veda of which the Ayurveda is a part.
Fascinatingly, no modern textbooks or journals, have touched on this topic as much as the Vedic texts, including the Vedas and Upanishads.
Vedic Rishis/Rishikas have declared “Jivanasyamarthamsukham” i.e. “Objective of life is to endure bliss.”
But what is bliss? What is the difference between happiness and bliss? If you think happiness is bliss – you are grossly mistaken. Happiness is momentary; bliss is perpetual. Happiness stems from the acquiring of material objects, whereas bliss is when we accept things and learn to live with it. However, we fore go bliss, when we fail to see things from the perspective of wisdom. It is the universal acceptance of things, people and situations and working in a way to sustain peace and prosperity, in personal as well as professional life.
Any being yearns for happiness, including animals. Carnal happiness is a very crude form of happiness. But as we all know, it is often short-lived. So, if we are to yearn for such happiness – presuming it to be bliss; then we are sure to suffer. Addictions, yet another form of momentary happiness, often yields painful consequences. And yet, people do retort to such addictions since they fail to yield the bliss they yearn for.
How do we then find that happiness or realize that bliss which is without consequences? How do we get rid of these addictions with disastrous consequences in a way that is not painful? How can we lead a life, bereft of stress and without depending on such addictions?
Answering these crucial questions is the core objective of Vedic Counselling.
WHAT IS VEDIC COUNSELING?
Vedic Rishis and Rishikas (read sages) have often held the belief that “If the mind is happy then the body is healthy; but if the mind is not happy then it is a matter of time before the body is infested with diseases.
What they meant is that the mind is the master of the body. And since the mind is not the brain the medications or the drugs can never be the ultimate solutions for stress and the resultant diseases that emanate from them. This is the reason why medical doctors often ask their patients to “not take the stress.” Stress clearly cannot be cured with medications alone.
Those who are aware of the placebo effect can confirm the power of the mind. But since our understanding of the mind is bare minimum; we can never realize its fullest potential until we realize it ourselves.
While the body is made of several elements; the mind is made of thoughts and emotions. Quality of thoughts and emotions determine the quality of our mind.
There are many scientific studies to prove the detrimental consequences of negative thoughts and emotions. Handling such emotions, thoughts and resultant ideas, is the key to a blissful mind and a healthy body.
And identifying such thought patterns, emotional triggers, detrimental perceptions without logical grounds, while handling them with positive ideas, attitude and emotions can heal a restless mind. Thereby resulting in a healthy body. This is the fundamental approach of Vedic Counselling practiced at Vedic Management Centre.