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May 2012
The Healing Power of the Mind
During World War I, doctors were running out of medicine to help sick and wounded soldiers. To curb complaints and placate the soldiers, they started administering fake medication. Much to their surprise, however, the doctors noticed that the “fake” medication was actually very effective and had a cure rate similar to that of the “real” medication. Scientifically documented numerous times since then, the “placebo effect” is known today to be a very powerful phenomenon. How does the placebo effect tie in to our Being Yoga Newsletter? Please read on about our Theme of the Month, “The Healing Power of the Mind.”
The connection between the body and the mind has been clearly demonstrated by modern science. According to spiritual leader and author Tara Brach in her April 4, 2012 podcast, we now know that “our body ‘lives’ our beliefs.” She says that our bodies are like “replicating machines,” that take our beliefs and create a physical biochemistry in response to them. In fact, Ms. Brach talks about a “no-cebo” effect. As an example of that, she sites a study where researchers rubbed what they said were poison ivy leaves (but were actually harmless look-alikes) on a group of people known to be highly allergic to the plant. Amazingly, every single one of them broke out into a rash. Clearly, the mind has a closely linked and powerful impact on the body.
But it works both ways. In fact, it’s like an endless loop. The mind affects the body that responds in a way that sends messages to the brain that then takes the information and reinforces the “neurological circuitry” which was used to create the thought in the first place. Then the mind sends its strengthened feedback to the body. And that’s how “neuronal patterns” are created. For example, a person might think a worrisome thought that creates stiffness in that person’s neck. The pain created by that stiffness sends messages to the brain that something is worrisome, and that feeling creates more tightness in the neck—and on and on it goes.
Here’s where yoga fits in. Yoga breaks that cycle—both mentally and physically. Kelly McGonigal writes in Yoga for Pain Relief, “Modern science uses words like neuroplasticity to describe the process of learning from past experiences, yoga uses the word samskara…Yoga philosophy teaches that every experience you have—including your thoughts emotions, and sensations—leaves a trace on the body, mind and spirit…Samskaras become the habits of the body and mind that make you more likely to repeat your past experiences and actions and more likely to interpret the world through the filter of your past experiences. These habits keep you stuck, feeling the same emotions, thinking the same thoughts and even experiencing the same pain.” But she goes on to say, through yoga, people are offered “tools of transformation” to help them become unstuck.
“Yoga,” Ms. McGonigal says, is a “time-tested system for transforming your habits of body and mind. “ “A yoga practice that takes the breath as its starting point will influence every system of the body. A meditation that takes the mind as its starting point will give you access to your inner wisdom and help you reconnect to your natural state of joy. A movement practice that takes the body and breath as its starting point can become a moving meditation that calms the mind.” In other words, through the practice of yoga, yogis are able to break through samskaras and begin practicing new, healthful, and productive patterns of perceiving and responding to the world. And the way a person perceives and responds to the world has a profound implication for his or her life. As Ghandi said, “Your beliefs become your thoughts; your thoughts become your words; your words become your actions; your actions become your habits; your habits become your character; and your character becomes your destiny.”
Through yoga, we can shape our destiny—one posture, one breath, one thought at a time.