The Golden Aged Brain
Do you care for your brain as much as you do for the rest of your body? In today’s fast-paced world, many of us forget that brain health is central to our ability to live happily and well.
It is not just a matter of making sure that the brain gets the physical nutrients it needs. There is also the aspect of what kind of thoughts and feelings we give it, and how it is trained to respond to people and circumstances According to traditional Indian understanding, human beings were once mentally programmed with such pure, divine qualities as to be able to live together in perfect harmony. This golden age was not a dream, but a reality that lasted for many lifetimes.
The basis of it was a complete freedom from fear that accompanied the pure recognition of ourselves as primarily spiritual beings, enjoying the human experience. Over time, we lost sight of our divinity, and began behaving badly with one another. Various kinds of negativity entered our consciousness, often in the form of vices such as ego, lust, attachment, greed and anger. Today, the brains of most of us have become affected by some such negative tendencies, causing us varying degrees of distress. The good news is that just as we can decide what programme to run in a physical computer, so it is with the brain. We have the power to change its circuitry. But to fully exercise this power, a key realisation is needed: that we are NOT our brains.
Creating an awareness of the distinction between the brain and the individuated consciousness that runs it – the soul – is central to the practice of Raja Yoga meditation.
Our sense of self is usually bound up with the ideas, opinions and perceptions received in our “fallen” world. These helped us to survive adversity but were often in conflict with the pure love at the core of our humanity. By finding the courage to step back from these limited habits of thoughts and feeling, into an awareness of the inner being, we find ourselves drawing on a Divine Source of that which is highest in ourselves. Philosophers and even some scientists are coming to the conclusion that this may be the only way of rescuing us from the selfish and destructive behaviours that cause so much unhappiness.
If millions of us undertake such a journey of renewal, might it be possible for us to re-establish such a golden-aged consciousness as to bring back a golden-aged world?
