Healthcare-II ; Pujya Gurudev

Healthcare and Spirituality

=Pt.ShriRam Sharma Acharya

The term stress is defined precisely in Physics (Mechanics) as force divided by area of impact. But there is no such pinpointed definition at physiological, neurological or psychological levels. For practical purposes, physicians and psychologists broadly describe ^[1] it as — “a disturbed state of mind resulting from the imbalance between the demands of a person’s environment and that person’s capability to meet this demand”. A close cousin of “stress” is “depression” which also causes or aggravates a wide spectrum of psychosomatic disorders, including low blood pressure, anxiety, suicidal tendency, insomnia, some kinds of cancers, amentia, epilepsy, sciatica etc. It mainly arises due to one’s inability to get what one expects and aspires from the world and from one’s own self.

Neither modern medical science nor any alternative medication mode has been able to ‘cure’ stress and depression without incorporating some sort of psycho-spiritual healing. But then a natural question arises — how spirituality could help combating these problems? In what respect would it be different from and would complement use of Psychiatry and Clinical Psychology? Still broader question is what should be the mode of incorporating this new dimension into health care modules? Can health care system ensure health for all by focusing on this component?

Before attempting to answer these vital questions and addressing related issues of what one is supposed to do at personal level to benefit from it, we should first understand that Psychiatry and Psychology, as renowned experts of modern medicine also affirm ^[1] , deal mainly with mental well-being, that too in the sense of not having any abnormality or disorder. The diagnostic and therapeutic modules under these disciplines mainly focus at weakness or malfunctioning at the level of brain. The entity of mind itself is recognized and studied here with respect to behavioral aspects and manifestation of brain functions. But mind is a faculty of consciousness force. It exists at a much higher and sublime plane than the brain. It derives sustenance and evolutionary thrust from spirituality. Spirituality pertains to enlightenment and vigor at the levels of subconscious and unconscious mind and hence at the deeper roots of emotions ^[3 .

The role of spirituality in healthcare has several dimensions:

(i) spiritual healing; 

(ii) preventive impact of spiritual practices; 

(iii) overall well-being, and improvement and enhancement of vitality, immunity and physical and mental potentials by augmenting spiritual strength.

Thanks GOD, Thanks Sadguru,

Shiv Sharma