By Dr. Sawraj Singh
The recent research shows that the eastern concept of moderation in eating prolongs your life and improves quality of life. An article in the BBC brings out the fact that you can prolong your life and improve quality of your life by consuming fewer calories. The eastern concept of a better life which is more creative and productive revolves around moderation particularly in eating and sleeping. Sri Guru Granth Sahib which I consider the Zenith of the eastern spirituality and wisdom, emphasizes moderation in eating and sleeping are the essence of a healthy and good life. In the sixties, when I was a medical student, we were taught that animal proteins were superior to vegetable proteins because they were rich in the essential amino acids. We were also taught that caloric intake was very important for good health and if we do not take enough calories then our health and quality of life will suffer. However, a recent article in the BBC just proves the opposite. Cutting back on calories improves the quality of your life and prolongs your life. We have also come a long way in promoting meat for a better quality of life. More and more well informed westerners are cutting back on meat or are becoming vegetarian. I feel that sooner or later some research will also validate the concept that moderation in sleeping is also good for your health. Just like the concept that a fixed number of calories are essential for good health, the west has been adamant that a minimum and fixed number of hours of sleep are essential for maintaining good health. However, the eastern concept of sleep emphasizes that there is a lot of individual variation as far as sleep requirement is concerned. Therefore, insisting that a fixed number of hours are essential for everybody negates the natural concept of diversity and promotes the wrong western concept of uniformity. When we compare the eastern and western concepts then a few things stand out. First, the eastern concepts promote relativism compared to the western absolutism. Similarly, the eastern concepts advocate diversity as opposed to the western imposition of uniformity. Another big difference is that the eastern concepts emphasize moderation compared to the western tendency toward extravagance. Extravagance is related to arrogance while moderation goes together with humility. Extravagance and Arrogance are the foundation of consumerism whereas humility and moderation are essential to make people again human beings from consumers. The Indian people, particularly the Punjabis have become one of the most faithful and enthusiastic followers of consumerism and are paying a very high price in the form of their health. They should pay attention to the latest studies and trends in the west. It will become clear to them that many westerners are discarding the wrong western concepts and are adopting the sound eastern concepts. The Indians and particularly the Punjabis should start looking to the East. Sri Guru Granth Sahib is not only the Holy Book of the Sikhs; it is also a great source of spirituality and wisdom for the whole world and the mankind. .
Dr. Sawraj Singh, MD F.I.C.S. is the Chairman of the Washington State Network for Human Rights and Chairman of the Central Washington Coalition for Social Justice. He can be reached at [email protected].
