Health is Wealth

Key words: health, wealth, happiness, life style, fate

Health is wealth; no doubt for it! If health is lost, everything is lost. We can’t lead a happy life without proper health. To a certain extent, it is within our hands to take correct steps for maintaining good health.

But certain things are beyond our control. The other day I went to a leading hospital where one of my relatives had been admitted for treatment. She was in the intensive care  unit  under artificial respiration. Her whole body was covered with different tubes and wires.  She was not in a position to talk, drink water or take meals. She has no financial problems. Children  are grown up and employed. Husband is her side throughout the day. About five years back, she had under gone a kidney transplant operation. She is in the mid fiftys.

Here comes the question - what is life? Is it beyond one’s control and leave it to the mercy of God. It is very difficult to give a proper reply. Money is required to lead a comfortable life. But health is a prerequisite for all that. Some diseases are hereditary and perhaps difficult to diagonise and have a proper treatment while some are due to wrong life style of the present day. Improper and unbalanced food, lack of physical exercise, smoking, too much intoxicating drinks, mental tension and worry are some of the factors contributing to life style diseases like diabetes, high bold pressure, cholesterol, obesity etc.

Remember the old adage – “Prevention is better than cure. “ Instead of going for a treatment at a later stage, it is always better to take preventive steps from early child hood itself. Children should be educated in their school days itself the importance of good  life style and the necessary steps to be followed. In addition to the importance of maintaining physical health, it is very essential to have advice on the mental health also.

But unfortunately it is seen that due attention is not paid with regard to mental health. A positive attitude towards  life  devoid of hatred, anger, envy and tension is of utmost importance. A contended life, with a friendly and helping attitude towards fellow members of the society without looking towards religion, cast and  creed is the attitude that is required.

 

Onam -The festival of Kerala

 

Onam – The festival of Kerala

 Malayalees (people of Kerala) through out the world celebrate ‘Thiruvanam’ in the month of Chingam ( August).. The storey behind this festival is as follows. King Mahabali was ruling Kerala at that time. People were extremely happy and were leading a comfortable life – devoid of theft, fight and quarrel. Devas became jealous of Mahbali and requested Mahavishnu to take some effective steps to curb the influence of Mahabali. Vishnu then took  the form of a Brahmin boy (Vamana) and approached King Mahabali. The king enquired as what the Brahmin boy wanted. Vamanan told that he wanted only three feet of land. Vishnu then suddenly grew in size and measured the whole world and heaven in two steps and for the third Mahabali showed his head. Vamanan then pushed Mahabali down to the earth.

As requested by Mahabali , he was granted permission to visit his country men once in a year , on the  Thivonam (onam) day. Keralites all over the wordl celebrate Onam with full of vigour and vitality. They make flower beds (pookkalam)  in front of their houses. Family members assemble in their ancestral houses and will have sumptuous  meals. Different types of games are  played. All wear new dresses.

 

      Mental Tension and Worry- The disease of the modern world

The other day Sindhu, a B Tech final year student told me that she   forgot to write her roll number in the answer book of the examination.

I asked her why?

She answered that she was under  mental tension and as such forgot to write her roll number.

People of all ages starting from a kindergarten student to a senior citizen from all strata of the society -  house wife, engineer, doctor, politician etc  all are under tension in one way or the other.

But is it possible to avoid this mental tension?

Swami Vivekananda says “The calmer we are, the less disturbed our nerves, the more shall we learn, the better our work be”. But seldom we can find a  person leading a calm and peaceful life. Now a days nervous tension has become a regular phenomenon. Some of the stress induced diseases are heart attack and high blood pressure. The degree of tension may differ depending on the place and situation. Some may be undergoing tension in his office , others may suffer in their home and some others may be undergoing both in their office and home as well.

Stress can’t be completely avoided but it can be controlled to a certain extent. Stress can be positive as well as negative. It is the negative stress which causes nerves tension, anger, jealousy and other problems.

If we are able to remain calm under any provocation, to a large extent tension can be minimized. For this we should have strong will power and faith in our self. We should learn to live in the present forgetting the past. By practicing meditation, to a large extent, tranquility can be maintained and also  regular   practice will help in removing negative feelings.

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Happy and Comfortable Life

Key words- Happy life, health, human being, emotions

Everybody in this world  want  to lead a healthy and happy life.  But is it possible to quantify happiness?

Definitely not.  It is a state of mind and depends on the attitude of the person concerned.

The basic requirements of a human being are food, shelter and clothing. One can have a meal of a small quantity of cereal while another can have a five star meal; one can have a small one room hut  for self and family while another can have a multi storey house in a large estate; while one can have a single piece cheap dress while anther can have a gold laced costly three piece suit.

In addition to the basic amenities, one should have good physical and mental health . Then only one should be able to enjoy life to its full extent.

But what is the  state of most of the people of this present day world. From a small baby to a grownup youth to a senior citizen, almost all are under some sort of pressure due to the mental agony ,worry and tension. It can be on the personal account, official account or on social account.

Is there a remedy for all these problems? Yes, it is there; but one has to find the solutions himself and practice accordingly..

If one can control his emotions, his anger, resentment and greediness and then have a positive outlook towards life, one will be able to lead  a happy and joyf

 

Environment and Value Education

Key words: environment, value ,education, natural resources

Education can be through formal and informal channels. Value education with respect to environment should help  to bring  a new sustainable way of life. The environmental value education should inculcate   natural and cultural values, social justice, human heritage, equitable use of resources, managing common property resources in the minds of all persons.

In the present day world we are giving importance to development only with out understanding thee problems caused due to destruction of our environment. Our mind set should be changed so that the development should be with due regard to sustainability or equitable use of resources. The unsustainable development leads to economic growth of the rich and powerful while it makes the poor more poorer

Values in general sense deal with ones own principles and standards.

Values in environment education focus on the following aspects- effective utilization of natural resources, keeping the surroundings clean, excessive use of fertilizers and pesticides in farms, effective use of water and power etc. All these issues are connected to the quality of human life.  They deal with respect for nature. These  values  will help  in leading a  healthy, productive and happy lives in harmony with nature.

Environmental values are the feelings that help us in preserving nature. Values are not constant. Concepts of what constitutes 'right' and 'wrong' behavior change with time. Once shooting of animals was taken as a sport. But now it is considered as a crime. It indicates that value system changes with time.

We have to develop a sense of values that are linked with a better and more sustainable way of life for all people. The positive feelings that support environment include a value for nature, cultures, heritage, and equity. We must also pay attention to  aspects that have negative impacts on the environment. These include our attitude towards the degradation of the environment, loss of species, pollution, poverty, corruption in environmental management and the rights of future generations.

We need to adopt the values to bring about a better way of life on earth for all people and all living creatures.

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 Brisk Walking – The remedy for all diseases

Key words - Blood pressure, Cholesterol, Blood Sugar, Over weight

Everybody in this world want to lead a healthy and comfortable life devoid of diseases. In the present day world, lot of persons are suffering from life style diseases such as high blood pressure, diabetes, overweight, high cholesterol etc. At the age of seventeen itself  the youngsters are forced to lead the life of   seventy year old persons

Is there a remedy for this? Yes, sure it is there. Brisk walking is a simple and easy exercise to reduce the ill effects of all these life style diseases. It also helps to improve metabolism. Along with exercise, it is very essential to control the diet.

According to the World Health Organisation “ A walker loses weight, ,reduces conditions associated with hypertension, lowers cholesterol, slows ageing and  increases strength ,flexibility and stamina.” Thirty minutes of brisk walking helps to burn off around 200 calories.

There is a saying in China  that “ Old age is inevitable but there is no excuse for senility’. Sedentary living and passive life style lead to weak muscles and reduced stamina. Few minutes of brisk walking every morning will help in reducing the bad effects of ageing. Mental fitness is also very important just like physical fitness.

Walking can help prevent osteoporosis (thinning of the bones), control diabetes and also relieve from back pain.  It will also be having a tranquillising effect on the ill effects of sedentary life as well as that  of the  highly stressed environment .

Walking can be in the morning or in the evening.  An early morning walk warms up body and also mind. Mind will be filled up with positive thoughts. Evening walk is the time for taking stock of one’s day time activities. It will also help in having a good sleep in the night.

A large number of scientific studies have shown that brisk walking develops cardiovascular health and protects against heart diseases.

Walking increases the amount of oxygen supplied to all tissues, increases HDL 

Welcome 2021

Time and tide wait for no man, thus goes the old adage.

Year 2020 will be down in a couple of hours from now. Year 2021 has reached our door steps.

Doctors advise that all persons (children and grownups) should have an annual check up of their body to find out any disorder and take corrective steps. But seldom one has a mental check to identify their drawbacks and take corrective steps. In the present day world, majority of persons are undergoing mental tension and  worry resulting in agony.

No doubt every body would like to lead a healthy and happy life. But unfortunately for various reasons people are not able to remain happy. It follows the old dictum:

                        “ Water water every where                           

                            But not a drop to drink”

So what to do?

Fill your mind with pleasant thoughts, Be positive.

Have balanced food, regular physical exercise.

Do your duty and forget about the result.

Wish you all a very happy year 2021!

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