Transformation of an insensitive addict

Transformation of an insensitive addict Raja began his day with Bacchus and ended it with Bacchus. During the day too he consumed Bacchus. One particular night in a sozzled state, he went to a parish in the neighborhood and broke down. The priest consoled him and narrated his own story. Apparently the savant of God was once addicted to morphine and snake bites. Raja’s body chilled and he remained transfixed, gazing at the cross and hoping for redemption . But this insensitive person , hosting an insensitive mind over a period of time had become an insensitive addict. Next morning once again in a state of stupor, he landed at the doorstep of Satya Sai Baba’s temple. The priest was performing Puja and was taken aback at the entry of this unwelcome visitor and admonished him for the aberration. He asked him to pray to Baba for grace and a speedy recovery. The insensitive mind again acted as a barrier for blessings to flow. Raja’s behavior did not transfigure and he continued with the consumption of alcohol. It had taken a severe toll of his system. He suffered from a bout of jaundice. On recuperation, he continued with the habit. His drinking had become quotidian n and there seem to be no light at the end of the tunnel. He had become alcohol dependent and there seemed no respite from the malady. Alcoholism is a defining moment in the life of an addict . It is a debilitating ailment which needs to be appreciated by the family and society and every addict needs treatment to combat this illness. The healing apart from being mere physical necessarily needs to be spiritual and metaphysical. There were fights, repeated squabbles and altercations within the family. His children were petrified and in a s constant state of anxiety and tension , while encountering their father. The mother ceaselessly and incessantly cursed the day she was married to the ungrateful and insensitive person. Raja began selling the silverware of the family and even dipping into his provident fund, to procure the daily quota of alcohol . The couple had minimal interaction. Sex with Raja was a tormenting affair and torturous to her body and soul. Her mind was scarred by endless abuse by her stone-hearted obdurate and inconsiderate husband. However, she bore the brunt with remarkable fortitude . Her life appeared dark and gloomy. But , she prayed for the recovery of her husband to Lord Hanuman and recited Hanuman Chalisa unfailingly apart from fervently praying to the Vishistadvaita mystic Sri Raghavendra Swami of Mantralayam . This was on the valuable advice and guidance offered by Raja’s grandmother. Prayer provided her with some mental comfort and succor and she had a space to declutter an overloaded mind which was teeming with negative thoughts and was brimful of a gloomy disposition. Who is an addict? A person who is addicted to any particular substance, say an illegal drug or alcohol ! What is addiction? A physical or psychological need of a habit forming substance, such as a drug or alcohol. In physical addiction , the body adapts to the substance being used and over a period of time requires increased amounts to reproduce the effects originally produced by smaller doses, without which the addict has withdrawal symptoms “Every form of addiction is bad, no matter whether the narcotic , be alcohol or morphine or idealism” wrote Carl Jung. An addict lives in a constant state of denial and becomes highly ego-centric and self centred individual. They can be termed as chronic self centredness or selfishness. Their monkey minds only crave for that additional stuff! Such individuals are obsessed with only their own selves and that is the centerpiece of their nightmarish and macabre existence. How does one bring about a 360 degree change in their lifestyles? They need to seek professional help under the aegis of a psychiatrist or get admitted to a rehab to rejig their lives. It is binding on the addict to surrender to a Divine Power and surrender without any strings attached and can seek the help of professional bodies like Alcoholic Anonymous. It is imperative on the part of the family and friends( if they still care) to make the addicts realise that their self centred behavior is hurtling them down the precipice of hubris. Practice of Yoga and Pranayama too have a salutary effect on the mind and bodies of the addict. Further the addict can undertake a course in the ancient Buddhist technique of Vipassana or join the Happiness Programme of the Art of Living. Most importantly , the addict should not live like a recluse and remain cloistered in the dark confines of their unlighted and unilluminated minds. He should be made to think about the problems faced by the society and emerge as a welfare oriented citizen. The idea and spirit of performing service / Seva to the society would channelize energies towards a positive direction. The problems encountered by the addict should appear smaller than those of the society. The addict should begin sharing his joys like toys and not merely sorrows . It is law of nature that what gets shared enlarges and magnifies . Incase joy and moments of happiness are shared , such thoughts get magnified. Such acts have a salutary effect on the mind and the addict begins to feel happy and make an attempt to get out of the hole. Then the million dollar realization dawns that there is life beyond the watering hole. The addict needs to live in the present moment and lift his level of Prana / Chi. Breathing technique like Sudarshan Kriya , has a palliative effect and bring about the awareness in the individual to start living in the present moment and he makes amends with himself, the family and society. Raja , is sober today and recovered with the abundance of love and blessings he received from several masters and by undertaking the Art of Living course. There are several people like Raja who are in dire straits who require immediate attention. They need to traverse the path from the present insensitive state to becoming sensitive to the needs of their selves, family and society. As the talismanic Barrak Obama says,” Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we have been waiting for the change we seek.” Overcome Addictions Through Sudarshan Kriya Harilal Gandhi was addicted to alcohol. He tried in vain to give up drinking but could never kick the habit and eventually succumbed to the lethal disease called alcoholism . He became quotidian smoker. Gandhiji’s son was also said to have committed adultery and for a brief while converted to Islam and was known as Abdullah Gandhi , much to the chagrin of his illustrious parents. ” I had very little opportunity to be very close to him,but the little time I spent with him convinced me that he was not a bad man. I regard him to be the most intelligent of the four sons of Bapuji. He was very humorous,very generous and very hospitable ; yet he was given to drinking . Why?Who is to be blamed?” writes Saraswati K Gandhi ( Harilal’s daughter-in -law). Perhaps it was the troubled relationship with the Mahatma that derailed Harilal’s life, the pent up anger and frustration in his mind. Tobacco and excessive consumption of alcohol lead to severe physical and psychological disorders . It has a deleterious and debilitating effect on the human body. Any individual can be addicted to sex, substance, food (bulimia), cinema, television or even social media. Such addictions weaken our resolve and diminish our aura. It depletes our physical and mental energy. Talking of smoking , our parliamentarians came up with outlandish theories stating that there is inadequate Indian evidence to correlate tobacco and cancer . WHO estimates that tobacco caused 6.4 million deaths in 2014 and 100 million deaths over the course of the 20th century. Similarly , the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention describes tobacco as “the single most important preventable risk to human health in developed countries and important cause of premature death worldwide.” Smoking is a major risk factor for heart attacks,strokes,chronic obstructive pulmonary disease(COPD) including emphysema and chronic-bronchitis and cancer(particularly lung cancer , cancers of larynx and mouth, and pancreatic cancer).Cigarettes sold in underdeveloped countries tend to have higher tar content , and are less likely to be filtered ,potentially increasing vulnerability to tobacco smoking related diseases in these regions. Given this grim scenario how does one quit smoking and or those addicted to Bacchus, give up drinking? With my wretched experience, with unrelented smoking and drinking , I would recommend the courses of Art Of Living as a palliative for these addictions. We need to breathe properly to overcome these vices. The pivot of the Art Of Living Courses is the unique breathing technique called the Sudarshan Kriya. Sudarshan Kriya harmonises the rhythms of the body and emotions and puts them back in tune with the rhythms of nature. Being in sync , we feel positive about ourselves ,love flows naturally in all relationships( say what was lacking between MK Gandhi and Harilal Gandhi). Sudarshan Kriya technique enables us to skilfully use the breath to change the way we feel , and start having a say over our emotions . It reinforces the default rhythm within an individual and negative emotions of discomfort , discontent , unhappiness get purged. Regular practice of Sudarshan Kriya , pranayama , yoga and meditation brings about a 360 degree change in the personality of an addict or a person who is only looking back in anger . A renowned cardiologist from Hyderabad Dr Ramachandra of Sri Sri Holistic Hospitals recommends Sudarshan Kriya to all his patients for a quick rehab . Further he opines this breathing technique is almost like hyperventilation and relaxes an individual tremendously . Regular practice of this breathing technique infuses energy, optimism and puts a person in an auto mode (default mode of nature). We are cannonaded with almost 50000 thousand thoughts a day . Most of them are negative in nature . Sri Sri Ravi Shankar says breath is like a string and your mind is like a kite . Proper breathing ensures you float and not crash land in the journey of our lives. So let us breathe our problems away. The Serenity Prayer The abridged version of the Serenity Prayer which has been adopted by Alcoholics Anonymous is as follows: God grant me The Serenity to Accept the things I cannot change Courage to change The things I can AND Wisdom to know The Difference