With advances in medical sciences, the mind-body dichotomy seems to be fading away and it’s now realised that they comprise one entity albeit two different forms. Which impacts the other more may still be a matter of research, but that the two impact one another significantly cannot be doubted. Firmly entrenched in the knowledge-era young India, the teaming millions that comprise generation Y need to understand this given the kind of pressure their minds have to bear. Recent statistics doing rounds in the news stories these days bear testimony to the fact that all is not well as coping with this pressure is taking its toll on the young and promising minds.
In the popular Bollywood blockbuster of 2009, 3 Idiots, there was a very touching scene. It was the funeral scene of an engineering student Joy lobo who had committed suicide by hanging himself because he was not able to complete his project and was facing dismissal from the institute. Rancho, the protagonist played by Aamir Khan, is shown standing behind the director of the institute. The director, played by the Boman Irani, is known for his abnormally tough and no-nonsense approach and perhaps his toughness compelled Joy to end his life. Rancho is shown murmuring the contents of the postmortem report of the deceased, ‘Everyone thinks this is suicide. In the post-mortem report, cause of death is given as an intense pressure on windpipe resulting in choking. What about the mental pressure of the last four years the student underwent due to the unnecessary rigorous ways of the college, that’s missing in the report. This is not suicide, it is murder’.
Suicide or murder, the fact remains that mental pressure is capable of forcing people to take extreme steps. And there are a myriad of reasons, from trivial to serious, that create mental pressure in the present century. Handling this is perhaps the real issue.
3 Idiots may be just one film. But it mirrors the contemporary Indian society that is becoming more demanding and the youth are finding it difficult to cope with those demands. Against this backdrop, yoga as a way out can be thought of and is being rightly patronised by the Government of India and the United Nations.
The youth not only in India, but the world over have more or less similar mindsets. Controversies surrounding the nature, origin and potential of yoga as panacea notwithstanding, there are reasons to believe yoga is good for both mental and physical health. little wonder, yoga in the US has become the ‘in’ thing.
From Hollywood stars to even ordinary Americans, all are seeking solace in this ancient Indian path to health and enlightenment. Yoga that was largely surrounded by a mystical aura also gives benefits which the scientific medical community is now ready to believe. It has come a long way since the time it was largely synonymous with transcendental meditation.
As a high percentage of maladies that afflict people are in some way related to stress and yoga being useful in stress management, the medical science is now recommending the practice as a part of the larger package of holistic medicine. And yes, if nothing else yoga at least can give an engagement with the body and mind for some time every day. This is no bad bargain.
The writer teaches management at Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad (Jharkhand). He can be reached at ppathak.ism@gmail.com