10 Nov Meditation: Risks and Dangers (Yoga in Heston & Hounslow)
I sometimes read comments on how there are no dangers or risks to meditation and that you can’t meditate incorrectly. To me that advice sounds as irresponsible as telling someone in a gym for the first time that there are no incorrect ways to lift weights and that there is no danger of harming yourself.
This is especially true for people who suffer from depression. When they sit to meditate they often get completely overwhelmed with negative and painful thoughts. The attempts they make to try and meditate are extremely unpleasant, demoralising and often counterproductive.
In the Samkhya school of Hindu philosophy our tendencies, qualities and attributes are divided into three “Gunas”. These are rajas (passion and activity) , sattva (purity, goodness) and finally tamas (“darkness”).
Tamas is the quality of imbalance, disorder, chaos, anxiety, apathy, inertia, lethargy, violence, viciousness, ignorance, destruction, delusion, negativity etc
My meditation teacher Swami Saradanander taught me that if I had students who were tamasic to encourage them to take up physical activity such as performing asanas as sitting meditation may not be the best current option for them.
Physical activity brings changes in our physiology and as our feelings and thoughts emerge from the context of our physiology it follows that exercise can have a powerful impact in creating positive moods that lead to positive thoughts. It can potentially take a person in a tamasic state into a rajasic one. Once in a rajasic state a person can sit and meditate and work on developing their sattvic qualities.
One of the most pernicious aspects of depression is that it is not always obvious to depressed people that they have a problem. In our culture we tend to believe the myth that as long as you feel relaxed and not stressed than you are ok. Unfortunately you can be relaxed but simultaneously be in a highly negative state.
When we are in a negative emotional state we are exposed to damaging levels of cortisol which weakens our immune system and in the long term leaves us vulnerable to serious illness.
Dr Alan Watkins commentating on the research into life spans of long term mediators states that even among sophisticated mediators some mistake their depression and their feelings of not being connected to anything or anyone and having no purpose as a sign of transcendence. They mistake the idea of non-attachment for detachment. They see their alienation as a sign that they have transcended the material world and become spiritual beings. The sad result of this is that they die young.
Yoga students typically begin their practice with asanas which positively influence their physiology and get the body to release endorphins. They then start their pranayama practice. This rhythmic breathing increases their Heart Rate Variance (HRV) which is a powerful indicator of good health and good mood. Finally they then sit to meditate with their body and mind in a good emotional state.
In accordance with Patanjeli’s Eight Limbs of Yoga as set out in the Yoga Sutra, Yoga students also practice Yama and Niyama.
Yama covers personal restraints; self-regulation; what not to do; your relationship to the external world and to other people. These are the boundaries and/or guidelines for your practice. The principles of yama help you to simplify your life so that you can be at peace with yourself and the outside world. They provide you with an ethical basis for social interaction.
Niyama are observances; obedience to the spiritual laws governing mastery of the instincts and emotions; what to do; your attitudes to and relationship with yourself; self discipline. The niyamas are positive means of taking responsibility for your actions.
In conclusion meditation is safest and most effective with a qualified teacher and when part of a wide program that address all aspects of our body and mind. Such a program would include physical exercise (strength, flexibly, endurance) breathwork, visualisation and cold / heat exposure, all set within an ethical framework.
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