| I write this article because I do believe in the | | | | exercises. What you'll get is a substance called |
| power of prayer. I have witnessed how prayer | | | | beta-endorphin, which promotes a feeling of |
| and mediation have provided physical and mental | | | | happiness, but it won't lead to calmness because |
| healing. Especially nowadays when the world has | | | | in the process, your metabolism is also high. |
| to go through lots of changes and chaotic | | | | I recommend that you do it in a slow rhythm so |
| situations and when people feel despair or sorrow, | | | | the nerve signals will register at the right part of |
| I recommend that we turn to prayer in hope it | | | | the brain. In addition to beta-endorphin that |
| will ease our stress or grief. Why? Because a | | | | creates a sense of happiness, slow praying will |
| prayer will be able to make us calm and soothe | | | | relax the central nervous system. When you pray |
| our spirits, as we will have something to hold on | | | | slowly and repeatedly, the process will reduce |
| to. | | | | glutamate acid, which is a workhorse |
| Some of you may have a deep religious faith, | | | | neurotransmitter of the brain, while increasing |
| hoping prayer will amazingly rescue you in time of | | | | "Gaba" (Gamma Amino Butyric Acid) that helps to |
| hardship or difficulty. In fact, prayer, in one way | | | | control the sensory perception of what's going on |
| or another, will heal us spiritually. Prayer together | | | | around us. When Gaba increases, your sensory |
| with meditation will effectively improve | | | | perceptions will be better controlled, and the brain |
| everyone's health. You will be surprised that | | | | will begin to relax. |
| prayer has actually many more benefits. Prayer | | | | Your frustration will be calmed down, and your |
| can actually improve your physical health, which | | | | aggression will weaken. This occurs after you |
| can be scientifically proved. To elaborate, prayer is | | | | continue praying for 10 minutes. After 15 minutes |
| a kind of meditation, and meditation of any sort | | | | of praying, the brain will send signals to the body, |
| can be an invaluable aid in keeping one mentally | | | | making cells begin to relax. You will surprisingly feel |
| and physically grounded. | | | | your worries are eased. At the same time, the |
| There have been lots of studies by scientists | | | | parasympathetic nervous system, which initiates |
| confirming the impact of prayer on the heart and | | | | responses associated with rest and energy |
| brainwaves. The study results showed that most | | | | conservation, will function better. |
| people who had meditated for years would | | | | This allows the hypothalamus, which is responsible |
| experience a state of physical, mental and spiritual | | | | for maintaining a regulation of blood pressure, |
| wellbeing. Recent scientific and medical studies | | | | heart rate and temperature, to function efficiently. |
| have evidenced that those with diabetes, cancer, | | | | It will make you a calmer while stimulating the |
| HIV/Aids, showed positive results. Those with | | | | secretion of several neurotransmitters and |
| diabetes have lower levels of blood sugar after | | | | pituitary hormones. These include serotonin which |
| months of moving meditation practices. | | | | works to ease stress and acetylcholine that |
| Meditation is also helpful for patients with high | | | | boosts short-term memory, thus causing you to |
| blood pressure, and cardiovascular disease. In | | | | have good consciousness. Serotonin is a precursor |
| cancer patients, it resulted in the decrease of | | | | to melatonin, a miracle hormone that works like |
| white blood cells and cancer cells. Patients with | | | | an elixir. It helps human cells live longer and |
| psychosomatic disorders also improved through | | | | induces a fair, glowing complexion. |
| laughing meditation. Yoga meditation was found | | | | The hypothalamus will also inhibit the production of |
| helpful for street children and prison inmates. It | | | | a hormone called dopamine which helps for the |
| helped them to reduce the use of drugs, by | | | | healing of Parkinson's disease and arginine |
| healing their insomnia, increasing their appetite, and | | | | vasopressin that regulates the kidneys' function. |
| lessening their worries. For patients who suffered | | | | At the same time, it reduces the production of |
| from burns, meditation helps them sleep better, | | | | the stress hormone cortisol, thus boosting a |
| boost their spirits, and ease their physical and | | | | person's immunity, and decreases the production |
| mental wounds. | | | | of adrenalin and noradrenalin, helping to slow the |
| Meditation can be interpreted in many ways: it is a | | | | cardiac function. As a result, cardiac patients will |
| religious psychology, a relaxation technique, and a | | | | have relaxed muscles and become less tired. |
| mind-body medicine which has an effect on the | | | | When you continue praying for 20-30 minutes, |
| human's psychoneuroimmunology. It is | | | | free-radicals will also be excreted from cell |
| recommended that you should practice how to | | | | membranes. If you pray with the right method, |
| control and train the five senses - sight, sound, | | | | your muscles will relax, you will breathe slowly and |
| smell, touch and taste - along with body | | | | your heart beat will slow. The waste in your body |
| movement, as they will have certain effects on | | | | cells will be released. |
| the functions of the central nervous system, | | | | However, praying for healing is, to a certain |
| peripheral nervous system, autonomic nervous | | | | degree, different from praying for religious faith. |
| system, immune system, cardiovascular system, | | | | In religious prayer, you chant several long mantras |
| and limbic system which control human emotions | | | | for the worship of a god or the sacred deities. |
| and behavior. | | | | But to pray for healing, the mantra should be cut |
| No one can argue that when our body and mind | | | | short and recited repeatedly. The chanting mantra |
| work in perfect harmony, it will result in the | | | | can be compared to music therapy in a way that |
| balance of our body and nerve cells. When you | | | | they carry short and repeated phrases. Yet music |
| pray, you will focus your mind and spirit on an | | | | therapy works slower than praying, because the |
| external object such as the changed mantra, or a | | | | signal that gets into your ear will work more |
| word/phrase, church music, a peaceful scene or | | | | slowly than the one registered through your |
| image, a candle, or even a set of pray beads. As | | | | speech. Also, note that not every prayer will get |
| a result, you are bridged to inner stillness, and will | | | | all those beneficial substances and hormones. If |
| be moved deeper into the next phase of | | | | you are interrupted in the middle of the prayer, |
| meditation. | | | | you can't obtain the full benefit. |
| Since you have focused on the words or phrases | | | | In sum, prayer is a kind of still meditation, yet |
| from a mantra or any object when praying, it will | | | | moving meditation gives better result. When you |
| trigger two changes in the nervous system, | | | | pray, it involves three functions - the mouth when |
| depending on the speed of praying. If you pray at | | | | you chant, ear as you hear the chanting, and |
| a fast speed, it will accelerate the function of the | | | | eyes are closed. But in moving meditation, you will |
| sympathetic nervous system which works to | | | | have to control more of your functions. The |
| speed up the heart. The result of fast prayer will | | | | more you can control them, the better you can |
| be like that of running, jogging or aerobic | | | | balance your mind and body. |