SLEEP, YOU MUST

In order to have optimum health, it is essential to sleep well. People deprived of quality sleep may suffer from a host of ailments related to the nervous system and heart, though not limited to it. If corrective measures are not taken, it ultimately affects the overall behavour of the sleep deprived person and his/her interpersonal relations with others.
In today’s hectic world it is common for most of us to experience tension of various kind that plays havoc and shatters our inner peace and tranquility. Such conditions in turn may precipitate sleeplessness that in turn weakens us further to deal with the exigencies of life. The vicious process renders us a wreck. However, it is a situation that can be handled with ease, if we are ready to face the problem as per the principle of nature and not by further drifting away from it. Except in severe conditions of sleep disorder where medical attention is required, it is possible to tackle the problem by some time tested yogic methods/techniques and by developing a positive bent of mind and life style. It is important to remember that swallowing of sleeping pills or indulgence in addiction are no answers to it, rather they may actually lead us to a trap far away from the expected cure.
Sleep disorders are the consequences that arise from high blood pressure, tension, anger, negative thought, insecurity, violent thought and action, addiction, indigestion and gas, or psycho-somatic pain, etc. As far as possible the affected person should try to bring in the desired changes or seek help to reverse the impediments.
It is best to remain engaged in meaningful work during the day that is not conflicting. It will help one to block the negative thought processes and reduce tension. Since foods are also the contributing factors of sleep deprivation, it is better to avoid non-vegetarian and spicy foods as far as possible. Vegetarian foods when taken without additional salt, sugar or spices can act as beneficial to the body and hence it promotes better sleep. It is helpful if the supper is light and taken at least one hour before the usual time of our going to bed. Intake of caffeine and other intoxicants should be either totally discontinued or reduced to a considerable extent since it interferes with the normal sleep cycle in us.
Before one sleeps it is good to pray for a while thanking the divine power for the bounties of life. One should also sleep and get up at the appointed time and not try to violate it. The sleeping room should be well ventilated and free from the clutters. Since the electrical and electronic gadgets and devices interfere with our normal sleep process, the bedroom need not be the jam-packed with such things.
Yogic Asanas such as Surya Namaskar, Padahastasana, Bajrasana, Makarasana, Sarbangasana, Matsyasana, Sabasana and Meditation if practiced regularly would promote good quality sleep in us. One can learn these Asanasa and any one form of meditation from an expert or Guru and do it at home. Lastly, if you still can not sleep try this for sure cure: LOVE HARD AND LABOUR HARD!

RULE OF THE GAME

It would be nice to win you tomorrow in negotiated surrenders. And in anticipation, I prepare for a defeat, though; to hang precariously and entangled in the cobwebs of the ensuing fate. Buried under piles of emotional debris, I would than taste the salty sweats for days. When your secret smiles imprison me, I believe I would go limp and demand some extra warmth. I would also unravel the mysteries of the nights and bury them when the daylights break and pretend that I knew nothing of those pains.
I know, you know black magic that can bring torrential rains forever or you may even prefer to take fresh revenge on a prisoner in chains--raw. Your sharp nails would then bleed my bodies to nourish my soul. With every passing moment, now a day, the possibilities turn uncertainties and the uncertainties—aborted possibilities; of gnawing hopes. This appears to be the only rule of the game.

THE ROADS TO NOWHERE AND A BRIDGE

Day in day out, we tend to take to the roads that assure us to take somewhere. It is a life lived very often in plenty of familiar monotony and apparent inescapable boredom, but free of risk and adventure. Same faces, same contours and same smells-we prefer to like or rather we force ourselves to succumb. It is like being remaining glued to a makeshift web of the spider spun by none other but us. It is so suffocating that we rot over the decaying but freshly painted hanging bridges, knowing well that the next day perhaps they may turn out to be our most cherished unmaking of ourselves nurtured secretly as calculated dangers.
That is why, I often thought of venturing out to walk briskly on the roads going to nowhere with disjointed tall bridges-just to be myself and none else; though I never did it even one so far. Till now, it has remained a beautiful dream in me; the day after I lost my childhood. Since then, I just wanted to reach a bridge of no return after traversing the roads of no return-I know it would have no entry or exit routes and a mysterious history of its own.
May be someday, I will ask my Maori friend about it and perhaps ask her to stand still beside me on the bridge above the rainbows.