By Mary Jaksch
The cure of the part should not be attempted without treatment of the whole. No attempt should be made to cure the body without the soul. Let no one persuade you to cure the head until he has first given you his soul to be cured, for this is the great error of our day, that physicians first separate the soul from the body. - Plato
What is healing?
The Oxford Dictionary says ‘healing’ means to make sound or whole, or to restore to health.
Can meditation heal?
Healing as wholeness is a grand theme that includes the spiritual aspect of meditation. I’ll take it up in a later post. In this article, I’ll narrow my question to how medical or mental illness responds to meditation.
One of the researchers who have looked deeply at healing and meditation is Jon Kabat-Zinn, PhD, the Professor of Medicine Emeritus at the University of Massachusetts Medical School,. Kabat-Zinn has published many papers on the benefits of meditation. His book on using meditation for chronic pain conditions is called Full Catastrophe Living
Read below what Kabat-Zinn’s research revealed:
Healing the body
Here is an overview of the reduction of symptoms in various diseases after regular practice of meditation:
- People with heart disease: 45% reduction
- High blood pressure: 43% reduction
- Pain: 25% reduction
- Stress: 31% reduction
In one study, Professor Kabat-Zinn reported that the skin lesions of psoriasis patients who listened to meditation tapes cleared up four times faster than those who did not.
Jon Kabat-Zinn said about these findings:
- The implication is that the mind can actually enhance the healing process by a factor of four, and if people need fewer treatments, it costs less,” Kabat-Zinn explains.
Other physiological benefits of meditation
- Deep rest (as measured by decreased metabolic rate, and lower heart rate);
- Lowered levels of cortisol and lactate (two chemicals associated with stress);
- Improved blood pressure;
- Drop in cholesterol levels;
- Improved flow of air to the lungs;
- Significant slowing of the aging process.
There is an interesting healing method that the 17th century Japanese Zen Master Hakuin used in order to cure a life-threatening illness. He suggested placing an imaginary ball of soft butter on one’s head. And then vizualise it melting and flowing down the body. Hakuin said:
Gradually this feeling flows downward: the shoulders, elbow, chest, diaphragm, lungs, liver, stomach, backbone, and buttocks. This sensation is felt throughout the body, and it circulates moving downward, warming the legs, until it reaches soles of the feet, where it stops.
If we analyze Hakuin’s healing practice, it seems very much like doing a body meditation or body scan, in which one moves the warm light of awareness through the body.
I once used awareness to heal an undiagnosed growth in my sinus. There was a two week gap between the initial scan and the appointment for a biopsy. In that time the growth had completely disappeared. During that time I followed a routine of doing an awareness meditation three times daily, focusing on my sinuses.
Meditation can not only assist in healing the body, it can also heal the mind.
Healing the mind
Researchers at Harvard Medical School found that meditating brings about dramatic effects in as little as a 10-minute session. Several studies have demonstrated that subjects who meditated for a short time showed increased alpha waves (the relaxed brain waves) and decreased anxiety and depression.
I must admit, I have some reservations about these findings. Maybe it’s possible to detect short-term changes after ten minutes of meditation. But I doubt whether they would be permanent!
Psychological benefits of meditation
- Increased feelings of vitality and rejuvenation
- Increased happiness
- Increased emotional stability
- Decreased anxiety
- Decreased depression
- Greater creativity
- Less stress
- Decreased irritability and moodiness
- Improved learning ability and memory
- Increased feeling of peacefulness
- Increased insight.
One thing can be said for sure: meditation is one of the most potent medical interventions. And that’s not even taking into account the spiritual benefits of meditation that can transform our life!
What do you think of the healing power of meditation?
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Those results are quite amazing, thanks for sharing. I’ve always been under the idea that meditation does help, especially when we calm ourselves down and relive the physical pressures that build up through the likes of stress and anger.
Stumbled!
Cheers,
Glen
Glen Allsopps last blog post..The Definitive Guide on Achieving Your Dreams
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Hi Glen!
Yes, It’s amazing, isn’t it! I used to lead a healing group of cancer sufferers. It was wonderful to see how zen meditation followed by a body scan and laying on of hands eased their suffering.
Yes, I know that laying on of hands sounds a bit surprising, but we all have the capacity to heal others. Try it! Here’s how:
Sit in silent meditation and pour your complete attention onto the palms of your hands. Soon you’ll notice that they’ll heat up and start to tingle. I think of this as activating the hands.
Then lay your hands gently and very mindfully upon another body. The person will feel the heat and energy of your hands deep in their body. This can relieve pain and start a healing process.
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Hi Mary,
This is SUCH a great post and yes, I believe meditation can heal. When we look within the true healing begins. I LOVE that quote from Plato — makes me scratch my head every time I see quotes like these from GREAT thinkers of long ago…. If this has been being said for so long, HOW did we get so off track and continue physicians separating the soul and body? All I know is I am very happy light is being shed on this now and so many wonderful alternative methods of healing are being honored. Meditation is an essential in my life every day now and I KNOW I am MUCH better off for it.
Thank you for this excellent post.
Love,
Jenny
Jenny Mannions last blog post..Healing — The Unlimited Possibilities
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In Indian ancient texts, which are the basis of Yoga and Ayurveda, meditation is roughly referred to by the word, DHYANA= To focus. In Yoga we have PRANAYAMA= Learning to control the life force. I am agreat believer in meditation and regularly do Pranayama.
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Meditation is a huge part of my life. I definitely notice the difference between when I regularly meditate and when I don’t. This certainly includes my physical well-being.
Clint Stonebrakers last blog post..It Ain’t Happening Now
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Hi Jenny!
I was surprised as well to find Plato’s remark. Somehow our view of what health has got very narrow since his time.
My sense is that healing is often not what we expect. Because healing in a wider sense isn’t really about being free of symptoms, but about being at ease.
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Hi Hersh!
That’s very interesting. Ancient healing methods are unexplored treasures.
BTW “Dyana” turned into “Chan” in China, and then into “Zen” in Japan.
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Hi Clint!
What changes do you notice in your body when you meditate, or when you stop meditating?
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Hi Mary,
There is no question meditation works and we don’t have to be a geniuses to figure it out
I can done much more if I stop and take time to relax between work on the computer.
When I meditate I just simply concentrate on my breathing and feeling afterward is amazing – calm and focused. It is not always easy for me to completely eliminate mind chatter when I meditate.
Recently I came across and got Paul Scheele’s paraliminal CD (there are many of them, depends on what you want to change). It is based on Holosync technology (the only one I found work for me). They utilize Alpha, Delta, Betta and Theta frequencies to have brain get into meditative state.
I just start using Paul’s paraliminal CD and I can tell this is the only one not including holosync CDs) that make me totally calm when I wake up in the morning. I use it before go to sleep.
It works consistently every time. I don’t know about changing believes yet, because I recently start to use it, but it worth a look I think. It will work great for busy people.
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Mary – Wow, I have meditated mostly to develop mindfulness and for stress relief. I haven’t had an experience with actual physical healing, but the research looks good!
It doesn’t seem too far off since meditation in general gives you a feeling of deep well-being. Interesting post!
Amanda Linehans last blog post..How To Be Flexible
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Mary, I agree with all benefits you have mentioned. I believe meditation heals your soul as well. If there are any experiences that have scarred you or broken you, meditation is one of the best balms known to heal and make you whole again. At least that’s how it has been for me.
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Hi Peter Levin!
Personally, I would never use a gadget like a CD or similar for meditation.
Meditation is so much more than just hitting the right brainwaves! It’s the most amazing journey of discovery.
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Hi Amanda!
Yes, the mind is amazing and has huge potential for healing.
I suppose, at a stretch, you could say that the efficacy of placebos has something to do with the healing power of meditation. When we take a pain medication, we tend to focus on the part of our body that hurts.
BTW here is a very interesting YouTube talk on placebos: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bHBwHVbUwig
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Hi Avani-Mehta!
You say, “Meditation is one of the best balms known to heal and make you whole again.”
That’s lovely! That’s really a spiritual view of the healing powers of meditation.
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Mary, that’s a great video regarding placebo, thanks
I understand your perspective on process of discovery and meditation itself
Different people get to the same goals in different ways.
For most people it would not be real to seat and meditate and for buys people especially technology is the way to go.
My point is that it is not just hitting brain waives, it is one of the ways to reach the meditative state and get desired results which is happiness, fulfillment, wholeness or whatever desire people might have and enjoy the process this way.
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Thanks for this post. I particularly resonated with what you said about meditation stimulating creativity. I tend to meditate for brief periods whenever I’m confronted with “writer’s block,” and I find that, sometimes within minutes, I come up with more interesting ideas than I would in hours of blankly staring at the computer screen.
Chris Edgar | Purpose Power Coachings last blog post..Getting To The “Heart” Of Public Speaking Anxiety
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Hi Chris!
I agree – meditation is a wonderful way to boost creativity. It’s what keeps my writing inspiration pumping!
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Love the Plato quote! Thanks
Jonathan | enlightenYourDay.coms last blog post..Dr. Wayne Dyer’s practical guide to meditation and his nine spiritual principles.
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I’ve been an on again, off again student of meditation for many years and only recently have I begun to commit to a daily practice, bringing theory and personal experience together and what a difference it makes! The more I awaken the more I find myself able to act and to live from a deeper place of compassionate awareness, in contrast to living a life caught up in habitual, reactive patterns of thought and emotion that are ingrained, long-standing habits. And the more I can freely choose my actions and my focus the more I am free from stress and worry and anxiety, all of which take their toll on my mental, emotional and physical health! “It is not events in themselves that cause stress, it’s how we perceive and respond to those events.” Meditation gives me more awareness and freedom to choose how I respond to what life brings me and it makes all the difference in the world. Thank you so much for all your shared wisdom and insight!
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