<p>I was watching Sadhna, a Hindi film from the 1960s directed by B R Chopra and starring Sunil Dutt as a college professor. In the film, his widowed mother longs for only son to marry so that she may have a daughter-in-law to care for both him and the household. But Sunil Dutt’s character is reluctant. The anxiety and disappointment weigh so heavily on the old lady that she takes to bed. Medication fail to revive her spirits and even doctors seem helpless.</p>.<p>At this point, one of Sunil Dutt’s aunts suggests an unusual solution. Even if he does not want truly wish to get married, he could at least bring a girl home so that his mother might pass away peacefully, believing her cherished wish fulfilled. Reluctantly he agrees, and a young woman is hired to visit daily for a week, posing as his prospective bride.</p>.Breaking free from the mind's time travels.<p>Lo and behold, things change dramatically. Instead of breathing her last, the old lady begins to recover. Within days, she is out of bed, her eyes bright with purpose, planning a the wedding with renewed enthusiasm. Till such time that she was mentally sick, her body refused to cooperate but once she recouped mentally, her body also regained health.</p>.<p>The lesson is simple but profound: even in the worst situations, we should not allow our mind to get sick. That can paralyse our entire body. To remain hopeful even in the worst situation is a great quality as was demonstrated by the Thai football team boys who remained entrapped in the tunnel for good seven days and our own workers who got trapped in the Uttarakhand Tunnel under construction, two years back,and could be taken out almost after a month or so.</p>.<p>To remain mentally healthy, the best way is to consciously avoid doing anything that can take away one’s peace of mind. This is possible when one learns to manage stress, anxiety and maintain emotional well being. It is important to cultivate such godly qualities as humility, patience, tolerance for the views of others, contentment, control on wanton desires, practicing a sense of gratitude, compassion and to have a feeling of sharing and caring -- all of which play a key role in ensuring emotional well being.</p>
<p>I was watching Sadhna, a Hindi film from the 1960s directed by B R Chopra and starring Sunil Dutt as a college professor. In the film, his widowed mother longs for only son to marry so that she may have a daughter-in-law to care for both him and the household. But Sunil Dutt’s character is reluctant. The anxiety and disappointment weigh so heavily on the old lady that she takes to bed. Medication fail to revive her spirits and even doctors seem helpless.</p>.<p>At this point, one of Sunil Dutt’s aunts suggests an unusual solution. Even if he does not want truly wish to get married, he could at least bring a girl home so that his mother might pass away peacefully, believing her cherished wish fulfilled. Reluctantly he agrees, and a young woman is hired to visit daily for a week, posing as his prospective bride.</p>.Breaking free from the mind's time travels.<p>Lo and behold, things change dramatically. Instead of breathing her last, the old lady begins to recover. Within days, she is out of bed, her eyes bright with purpose, planning a the wedding with renewed enthusiasm. Till such time that she was mentally sick, her body refused to cooperate but once she recouped mentally, her body also regained health.</p>.<p>The lesson is simple but profound: even in the worst situations, we should not allow our mind to get sick. That can paralyse our entire body. To remain hopeful even in the worst situation is a great quality as was demonstrated by the Thai football team boys who remained entrapped in the tunnel for good seven days and our own workers who got trapped in the Uttarakhand Tunnel under construction, two years back,and could be taken out almost after a month or so.</p>.<p>To remain mentally healthy, the best way is to consciously avoid doing anything that can take away one’s peace of mind. This is possible when one learns to manage stress, anxiety and maintain emotional well being. It is important to cultivate such godly qualities as humility, patience, tolerance for the views of others, contentment, control on wanton desires, practicing a sense of gratitude, compassion and to have a feeling of sharing and caring -- all of which play a key role in ensuring emotional well being.</p>
