Many adults are conditioned to believe that laughing is unbecoming of them and that it doesn’t fit their idea of how a serious, grown-up person should behave. These ‘serious’ people are most often the most tense and vulnerable to stress-related health problems.

The best medicine?

It was when I was training to teach the practice ‘Laughter Yoga’ that I discovered laughter is truly not just for fun. Laughing actually does have great health benefits. Health benefits that are proven, such as the lowering of blood pressure, anxiety, depression, insomnia, allergies, asthma and stress. Laughter is the easiest and the safest way to alleviate all of these and prevent further sickness.

Also, when we laugh, extra oxygen is brought into the body. The advantage of this is that it strengthens the immune system and releases endorphins, which are natural painkillers your body makes and the combination makes us energised and happy. Laughter that comes from the belly also dispels stagnant air from the lungs and replaces it with fresh vital energy the same way pranayama [yogic breathing] exercises do.

Amazingly, scientific proof shows that the body does not know the difference between fake or real laughter and so the body will receive the same physical and psychological benefits whether you were really laughing or faking it.

All of us catch it eventually

As a practice, laughter yoga is unique as it teaches you how to laugh spontaneously. It incorporates yoga breathing techniques and laughing exercises. During a laughter yoga session, you will be able to experience how even forced laughter in a group setting quickly becomes true laughter; infectiously spreading like a virus.

Laughter has a healing effect. It has the power to reduce stress, encourage joy and strengthen the mind by clearing it of unwanted, negative thoughts. It is also a spiritual practice, helping us to develop love, kindness and compassion. Laughing brings us together and unites us—it is a common language we all speak.

By making laughter a bodily exercise simple for anyone to follow, it can be practised by anyone regardless of their cultural background or language. Zen meditation encourages us to ‘forget the self’ and in laughter too, we can put aside our self-made identities for a while.

Be a kid again

In a way similar to children, we can laugh purely for the fun of it, without there being any reason as long as we are willing to become child-like and playful. Playfulness helps us to develop a sense of humour and brings more laughter into our lives.

Once you learn how to play, laughter is a natural outcome. When you learn to encourage laughter by using your body, the mind just follows as motion creates emotion. Notice how depressed people sit hunched up, moving slowly with downcast eyes—these postures are not possible when you laugh. Raising your arms and laughing to the sky will dispel depressed thoughts.

Laughter Yoga is about finding the child within who allows us to play. Once you learn to be playful, laughter is a natural outcome of that play.

Practice makes perfect

Our bodies and mind can be trained to laugh. In the same way as learning to ride a bicycle, once you learn it, you never forget. Practice and repetition is the key. We can condition ourselves to laugh more as long as we give ourselves permission to laugh.

If we are able to laugh more, we will increase our sense of wellbeing and have the ability to deal with our problems easily. It will also help us develop empathy for others, allowing us to be more generous and forgiving. Personal worries become less overwhelming when we are willing to laugh. Life today, with its fast pace and demands, is tough. What we want to learn to do is not allow these stresses to consume us.

Sign me up

Joining a laughter club is the perfect way to learn how to laugh instinctively, as a group helps us to be less inhibited about laughing. Group sessions also enable us to laugh for longer, 15 – 20 minutes of laughter has the best effects.

Laughter clubs began in 1995 and are the brain child of Dr Madan Kataria, a medical doctor from Mumbai. He began a laughing club in a local park with five people and today, the thousands of yoga laughter clubs in over 72 countries around the world are a testimony to the benefits of laughter. If you are unable to find or attend a club, it is quite easy to practise alone or with your family and/or colleagues.

Laughter becomes more meaningful when it is intended not only to make oneself happy, but others too. In laughter clubs, this intention is called “The Inner Spirit of Laughter”. According to Dr Kataria, “when you laugh you change, and when you change the whole world changes”. This sentiment is true in every spiritual discipline. We cannot change others—it is our own attitude that must change first.

Consistent laughter promoted a positive mental attitude, and when one is able to change a negative mood then the whole perspective towards life and people in general changes. No one is ever too old to play, and the spirit of play lives forever.

Laughing at your credit card bill is an exercise incorporated in a laughter yoga session along with a show of empty pockets and laughing. Repeating exercises like these in a group setting help us to really laugh about these things in private. If our circumstances cannot change, then the least we can do is change our attitude towards them!

This was first published in the August 2013 issue of Complete Wellbeing.

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Let the journey begin, let it be magical.

The way has been prepared, people are expecting you.

In hindsight, that is exactly how it was. As soon as I landed in India, I met all the people who would help me make this country my home. A number of those people continue to remain a part of my life even today. I imagined I would never leave Kovalam, I believed it to be home. And I did stay back.

Swimming against the tide is never easy, but life may call us sometimes to take ‘radical’ decisions; to go against our cultural upbringing and instilled belief system, to move away from our comfort zone and do what our heart knows is correct.

Deciding to live in a community

For 10 years I ran yoga and massage holidays in Kerala, using my home as the venue and accommodating 3 – 4 guests each time. It was a small enterprise, but I was able to support myself and pay the rent. Outwardly social and inwardly reclusive, I was able to recharge my batteries in the quiet monsoon months.

Some difficulties in my personal relationships, first led me to explore a silent meditation retreat in Tamil Nadu. It was a healing, insightful and rewarding experience for me. I visited the same centre more than 10 times in 2 years, but I was sure that prolonged community living was not my cup of tea. Yet, sometime in 2007, a seed had been planted in my mind to do that very thing. I sat with the question of whether or not I should journey again, give up my income and move into a centre as a community member.

I grappled with the ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ of this decision, I worried about all the logistics and had long internal debates.

At an imperceptible moment, suddenly there were no more questions, just a decisive yes… do it! All the ‘hows’ were no longer given any credence; I left them to take care of themselves and for faith and trust to take care of me.

In 2006, Fr AMA Samy accepted me as his disciple and shortly after that I became a staff member at the centre. So, from 2007 until mid 2012 I lived at Bodhi Zendo, a Zen Centre near Kodaikanal in Tamil Nadu, South India. I simply followed the flow and stopped all resistance.

It was the most rewarding experience for me, providing amongst other things, a steep learning curve in community living!

Moving from community living to being on my own

More recently, something called me to move on again and I sat with the question of whether or not I should leave Tamil Nadu and return to Kerala to live on my own. It was the same scenario; I sat and I worried about if I really wanted to journey again and of the logistics of it all. The internal debates continued for about 18 months. When I finally had the courage to voice my need to journey on, ‘life’ supported me and the questions were answered.

It was a hard transition finding myself in a new situation, concerned again with supporting myself financially and being responsible for house maintenance.

The spiritual journey is often portrayed as a life of bliss but this is a fallacy. I went through some dark weeks, doubted my ability and had serious concerns about how I would manage. There are difficulties in community living too, but there is always support holding us up.

On a deeper level, I did not regret leaving the known for the unknown and hung on to faith and trust to help me. I knew that once a ‘sitting group’ was established the rest would fall into place. Sitting with a group gives us the chance to connect with one another on a profound level without the need for words. Someone asked me what I got from sitting. I replied that it reminds me of who I’m not!

I myself do not understand why my journey took the routes it did, or why it is so important for me to practise zazen. When I sit together with a group, I understand a little more. The support found in group sitting is incalculable. I am thankful to all the turns that my life has taken, for those have brought me to the place I am today.

Be willing to journey!

This was first published in the April 2013 issue of Complete Wellbeing.

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Can we still find some relevance in a set of pictures from the 12^th century? Yes! Only if we grasp the essence and accept that to find something, we have to lose it. When we find it, we see that it was there all along. In our exploration, we have to throw away the things hiding it from our view. Yet, we also have to live in the world, support ourselves and families, maintain relationships, work, shop, cook, clean, eat and sleep. No wonder, we need great faith and great determination as our companions! Now let’s look at the pictures.

Picture 1

To begin, a young farming boy is seen in picture one, most probably asking the question; ‘Who am I really?’ That could mean re-assessing our lives. Am I happy? Is there joy in my life? Am I fulfilled as a human being? Is there more to my life than spending all my day engrossed in projects and workload. Such questions and similar ones mark the beginning of our search for the ox.

Picture 2

In search of our Ox, we look for books, teachers, videos, gurus. Perhaps we find an interesting course to attend and, listening to the teacher, we feel as if they are speaking to us personally. The words resonate within us and there it is—we find traces of the Ox.

Pictures 3 – 5

Mindfulness will lead us to find the Ox and, with discipline and self control, will help to catch the Ox. We get the inspiration to make changes and perhaps are satisfied with this progress, but wait… there is the long process of taming the Ox [picture 5]. Can we become masters of our mind and not slaves to every whim and desire that arises? This could be a long and arduous process for many. Why go too far, you’re probably already a slave to your computer and mobile phone and they rule your life. Think about it.

Picture 6

Here our seeker friend is found proudly riding the Ox back home; the object of his goal apparently achieved, he is one with the Ox. He is happy and believes his journey has ended. He is satisfied with the progress made and is enjoying the success. This is comparable perhaps with the sought-after promotions or our delight on receiving recognition. It is hard to be honest with ourselves, but try stepping back to see if your attitude is one of self-satisfaction.

Picture 7

That’s how, in picture seven, the Ox disappears; it is forgotten and the seeker is alone. Maybe you are content and no longer seeking, or more likely, feeling isolated and lonely. Fundamentally, the picture reminds us that we are self-absorbed. No one else matters. We live totally in our own minds. But good company [satsang] is vital in spiritual life. Join with or form a sangha—a group of like-minded friends with whom you can share your practice and experiences.

Picture 8

Faith and trust carry us on and reaching the next stage, Man and Ox both forgotten, we find an empty circle. Zero! No person, no Ox, nothing! Nothing to see but emptiness. However, the circle is enclosed; it is full of space. So, do you view the circle as empty or full? When you attain your true self, the mind is empty yet limitless.

Picture 9

Returning to the Source may be the answer. Appreciating nature, marvelling at the miracles all around us, things over which we have no control and where we have no say in the matter. A tree blooms, the stream flows. There are birds and fish, and there is no person shown. The options and interpretations are limitless.

Picture 10

Finally, entering the marketplace with open hands. Most often referred to as ‘returning’. Coming back to the marketplace from which we wanted to escape, coming back with empty hands of compassion. Returning with a will to serve and with the ability to love without expecting anything in return. So much so that you can’t stop yourself from doing it. Allowing compassion to flow freely, first toward your own circumstances and then extending it to others.

This is the aim of Zen practice.

At the end, in the last picture, an old man is seen with a young boy. Returning to ordinary life with a different perspective; empty hands; not holding on to anything; life continues but the search has ended. Having gone through the processes described within the pictures, our young boy ages and becomes ageless.

We are not who we thought we were. We are insignificant yet greater than we imagined. We are not alone; we are all in this life together; old and young, rich and poor. Are we really any different from one another? Can we put the insignificant part of us aside and allow the greater part to come forward and be of help to others?

In the start of this article, I gave you only half of the story ‘What is the Way’. I end by giving you the final lines: “What about you: do you see it?”, the monk asked. “So long as you see double, saying I don’t and you do, and so on, your eyes are clouded,” said the master, to which the monk asked, “When there is neither ‘I’ nor ‘You’, can one see it?” The master replied, “When there is neither ‘I’ nor ‘You’, who is the one that wants to see it?”

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Perhaps you have a practice that helps you bring some sense and balance to your life—such as yoga, meditation, chanting. But this is confined to a specific time. Once you step out of the yoga class or conclude your meditation for the day, the marathon of your thoughts begins again. Indeed, one cannot be meditating or practising yoga asanas all day. However, the home and workplace itself provides us with ample opportunities to be ‘mindful.’

For many of us, daily chores become an opportunity to think about other things while doing them. We’re so accustomed to doing these activities that we no longer need to be aware while doing them. So the key is to bring mindfulness to the most basic things that you do.

Once you step out of the yoga class or conclude your meditation for the day, the marathon of your thoughts begins again

As you wake-up

When you start the day with brushing your teeth, pay attention! How does the toothpaste taste? What temperature is the water? What sensations are you experiencing in your mouth? Notice your body posture; are you tensed over the sink? Experiment each day; with different aspects of your morning. Take those few moments of doing something ordinary and let it become something extraordinary. Even to appreciate the ease with which we do miraculous things like breathing, can assist us to take a short break from the constant chatter of our minds.

Off to the office

If you walk to work, try changing it into a walking meditation. Be sure your back is straight and your shoulders relaxed. Then, as you walk, turn your attention to your breath and notice if your breath is coming from high up in your lungs or from lower down in your abdomen. Good breathing comes from our abdomen. When shoulders are slouched the breath is restricted and the body does not receive enough oxygen. Once you are breathing and walking comfortably, turn your attention to your body. Notice how one foot goes up as the other comes down. Feel the weight of your foot. Walk faster… does your breathing change?

Notice your surroundings

What temperature is the air and where do you feel it contacting your body? Can you hear birds singing or is the traffic noise too loud. If traffic is bothersome, consider the people in the cars, also hurriedly rushing around. Maybe try to feel a sense of connection with them; ultimately we are not so different from one another.

Good breathing comes from our abdomen. When shoulders are slouched the breath is restricted and the body does not receive enough oxygen

The working day starts

Depending on your job, there may be many you interact with or only a few. Either way, develop more consideration for your colleagues. Be mindful of how you affect them. Have consideration for others and do not let yourself be too self-absorbed in your own duties. The work place can be a breeding ground for conflicts, politics and misunderstandings. If you usually find yourself reacting immediately, take a moment to recognise that and try a different response. Take a deep breath, notice where the tension is in your body, breath it out; smile! A very easy thus very difficult response; it takes practice.

Zen is very simple and hence a very difficult practice. It begins with watching our breath; nothing more. The practice is to keep coming back to this breath awareness, over and over and over again. It is a life practice. Do not be despondent if it takes time to bring mindfulness into your working day. Try small things; take it one step at a time. Eventually mindfulness will feel natural and ‘normal.’

If we can observe ourselves with a degree of honesty we can learn to take ourselves less seriously. Some humour in the workplace can help alleviate stressful deadlines. I am not suggesting we laugh about such matters, but perhaps become able to laugh at our reactions to them.

Zen is very simple and hence a very difficult practice. It begins with watching our breath; nothing more

You’re having to deal with a difficult customer or a complaint? Take that deep breath first. Then, as I said earlier, notice where the tension is in your body, breathe it out and smile! Our bodily posture can affect our mind and the state of our mind is reflected in our body posture. Stay alert to both. What you are aiming for is to stay calm and balanced.

Attention to work aids can be the most helpful tool. If your desk is cluttered and you can never find what you want when you want it, re-organise it. Being able to instantly reach for a report or a pen when you need it helps the mind remain calm and balanced. All easier said than done I know, but take heart; here’s a famous Zen story that will reassure you.

Zen students are with their masters at least 10 years before they presume to teach others.

Nan-in was visited by Tenno, who, having passed his apprenticeship had become a teacher. The day happened to be rainy, so Tenno wore wooden clogs and carried an umbrella. After greeting him Nan-in remarked: “I suppose you left your wooden clogs in the vestibule. I want to know if your umbrella is on the right or left side of the clogs.” Tenno, confused, could not immediately answer. He realised that he was unable to carry his Zen every minute. He became Nan-in’s pupil, and he studied six more years to accomplish his every-minute Zen.

Make time for silence

Something else you may like to consider is having a period of silence in your working day. If you have group tea breaks, ask your colleagues if they would like to see how it feels to have that time in silence. Initially this is difficult for many people as we are so used to making ‘chitchat’ to fill up silence. View it as a time to re-balance, to silently watch your breath while allowing your mind to settle down too. In the long run this helps improve our concentration and creativity. In a still mind, ideas can more readily surface. Lunch time is also an ideal time to utilise mindfulness. Eat in silence and as you eat, taste each mouthful; distinguish different flavours and become aware of chewing and swallowing your food. Enjoy it!

Mindfulness and bodily awareness are tools that you can use anywhere to regain a sense of calm and balance. The beauty is that no one even knows you are employing this technique unless you want them too.

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