Our life has several aspects. Wholesome or holistic happiness is the sum of satisfaction that we derive from each of these aspects. The cardinal ones of life zones However, are either ‘Rational’ – read ‘Mindful’ or ‘Emotional’ – read ‘Heartful’ or sometimes both. By nature, human happiness is linked to desires and their realization. By contrast, therefore the lack of happiness or stress is the difference or variance between “Desires” and their “Realization”. If the human progress is based on desires, it is true too, that we either have poor desires or have desires that make us feel poor. In the fast-paced world today, we have lost our ability to connect our life with its various aspects. That makes desires random and leaves them afloat in a state of flux.
We then run to a host of therapy centres that provide a natural healing of the body, mind and soul in the hope that some magic wand would set them right but do not lead our lives on principles of healthy living. What do these centres provide for all our ills? Our lives, most of the times are sedentary, we eat food that should never be eaten, we live on medicines that are chemicals, and we abuse our mind, body and soul till they rebel.
Cleansing of the body and mind is innate to Ayurveda, as it is to Yoga. ‘Panchkarma’ or the five procedures enshrined in Ayurveda, eliminate the toxins from the human body. Metabolism, a chemical process that occurs within living organisms to maintain life, leaves behind toxins which need to be flushed out. ‘Yogic Kriyas’ also help similarly, to lead a contented life.
Though these centres offer a host of services for price tags that sometimes are fancy, it is debatable if they also provide a lasting balm to the toxic souls in agony. Are the toxins really flushed out? Or is this is more a feel good factor, at the end of spend of a fat purse? As a consequence, the theory and practice never ever meet. Once out of the therapy centre, we tend to get back into the routine, till the next detox sojourn. The pressures of the times we live in ultimately catch up with our destinies.
In such a milieu, are we not just multiplying our life pressures with digital toxins? Which ‘Panchkarma’ can bail us out of this predicament? Mind mapped digital media now plays the pied piper resulting, in distancing us from our own vital life aspects and constantly tying us to choices put up by marketers. A vivid example of how we have lost our mind or are increasingly losing it to social media, is how an individual may be unable to even recall by the evening as to what he or she liked on a social media post or page. A ‘Wow’ does rarely bring in its wake a ‘How’. Thus objectivity is losing ground to ‘false aspirations’
Many friends have turned foes. Families have lost the personal touch. No longer, even meet at the dining tables elicit any interaction, except staring blankly at the mobile screens. Fake forwards have played havoc with personal lives. Hands free sometimes makes humans look zombies not just speaking to themselves but emoting in myriad ways. The extended overuse of technology has been found to reduce quality of sleep, cause eye strain and vision problems, as well as lead to the increased occurrence of migraine headaches. A research survey of over 7,000 participants found that approximately 70% of those who use technology with screens have experienced “digital eye strain”. A study published in The Journal of The American Medical Association reported that teens and young adults who frequently used digital media were more than twice as likely to develop symptoms of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).
This growing malaise in the society seeks moderation of social media, primarily due to social media platforms’ goal of encouraging constant use with likes, notifications, and infinite scrolling. In fact, new regulations are being thought of to ward off these long-term ill effects. To ward off these addictive features, social media platforms such as Instagram have begun to explore alternative methods, such as making likes on a user’s post invisible to the user, to shift the focus away from constant notifications and likes.
Some companies have even launched movements against technology addiction. For example, in October 2019, Google released Paper Phone, a google product consisting of a printed piece of paper folded into eighths that contains relevant information to our day, much like a daily planner. The motive behind the project is to provide the utility of a smartphone in a simplistic and less dynamic delivery. There are other projects focusing on building phones with less functionality like the Light Phone, Siempo and Mudita. How useful such efforts will be when we are so addicted to smart phone features like editing a film on the fly?
This leads us to deduce that our journey today is from ‘No Where’ to ‘Now Here’ to ‘No Where! Development of personal, Social and emotional aspects are never attached the weights they deserve in our lives. Digital detox, where we voluntarily refrain from using our smartphones, computers, hand-held devices, Internet and social media platforms is probably the digital Panchkarma we need.
The brain’s two lateral halves also known as left hemisphere and right hemisphere have Neurons / Receptors which are used for various bodily functions. The left hemisphere of the brain is in charge of the rational functions while the right hemisphere, the emotional functions.
Development of “Heart Full” and “Mindful” abilities in a Spatial or three dimensional and temporal or chronological and sequential environment is the most ideal form of human development. Unfortunately, we are in a scenario where we get little time for reflection and are increasingly losing our ability to make personal choices. We are merely driven by digital and social media and that will further deepen ahead, with the onset of Artificial Intelligence. The advent of AI is herding and locking up human ability to think and reflect. Human Social and Emotional aspects will be lost in the maze ahead.
The biggest casualties of such advancement are our ‘Emotional’ or ‘Heartful’ intangibles, such as conscience, reflections, ambitions, love, empathy and many more.