YOGIC LAUGHTER
TASTE OF LAUGHTER
- Details
- Created on Saturday, 11 April 2009 13:02
- Written by Marian Moore
Marian @ Krysan
THE WELLBEING CONSULTANCY
Planting Golden Seeds in Northumberland, Tyne & Wear, and Durham
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· TASTE OF LAUGHTER ·
On being ... curiouser ... and curiouser ...4 February 2012
Dear FriendsLAUGHTER - THE BEST MEDICINE
I can vouch for the fact that there are many paths to the top of the mountain, but there is only one summit - love. Love is the genetic code of the universe. To see God everywhere and in everyone is the goal of our human existence. Everyone, without exception, is our brother and sister. This divine kinship also extends to mountains, rivers, plants, suns and universes. Everything is alive with God's infinite consciousness. Now, consider this invitation to laughter. It could change your life - for the better. But, always remember,
Marian @ Krysan
1 AN INVITATION TO LAUGHTER YOGA
Early in 2011, I attended a conference in Newcastle upon Tyne where the delegates were invited to take part in a Laughter Yoga workshop. What a surprise! If you are on the look out for something special in the way of good cheer (and good news) for your community or voluntary organisation keep an eye on the Krysan website. For enlightenment and a glimpse of Laughter Yoga's origins in Mumbai, India turn down the sound and click here:
Benefits of Laughter Yoga with John Cleese
2 ADVANTAGES OF LAUGHTER YOGA
Here are a few advantages of laughter of the Yoga (or any) kind. Laughter Yoga:
3 WHAT HAPPENS AT A LAUGHTER YOGA SESSION?
Laughter Yoga was pioneered by Dr. Madan Kataria, a medical physician and his yoga teacher wife in 1995. It is a blend of stimulated laughter techniques, interspersed with breathing and stretching exercises and lasts about 30 minutes. A talk on happiness (or even a little Haiku Poetry) can be added for good measure.
4 WHEN TO USE LAUGHTER YOGA
You can use it as:
5 THE 40 PER CENT SOLUTION
Now, consider this. The chart below is intended to show that happiness levels are not fixed forever at birth as many people believe. Although 50% are thought to be 'genetic' and 10% are thought to be 'situational', we are left with 40% which are seen as 'controllable'. It's this 40% that will concern us here! This is our room for manoeuvre, for opportunities to increase or decrease our happiness levels through what we do in our daily lives and how we think.
6 LAUGHTER - THE BEST MEDICINE?
Maybe a session of Laughter Yoga will blow a few cobwebs away. And, maybe it is just what the doctor ordered. Charlie Chaplin himself said laughter was the best medicine. Who are we to disagree with someone who has made millions of people laugh - from all over the world and for more than a century.
7 KRYSAN ON LAUGHTER
These are some questions and answers from a children's science examination:
Q: Name the four seasons.
A: Salt, pepper, mustard and vinegar.
Q: How can you delay milk turning sour?
A: Keep it in the cow.
Q: How is dew formed?
A: The sun shines down on the leaves and makes them perspire.
Q: What are steroids?
A: Things for keeping carpets still on the stairs.
Q: What happens to a boy when he reaches puberty?
A: He says good-bye to his boyhood and looks forward to his adultery.
Q: 'What does the word 'benign' mean?'
A: Benign is what you will be after you be eight.
You have to laugh. It's good for you. That's official.
And, how do I know this? Out of curiosity (and you know what that did), I found the money for the fee, braced myself for the unknown, and took myself off to a weekend Laughter Yoga Leader Training Session in Durham City. On reflection, it was money well-spent and now I'm certified (!) as having successfully completed the required training for Laughter Yoga Leadership under the guidance of Laughter Yoga Teacher, Lotte Mikkelsen.
Unforgettable. I would add that this was an absolutely unforgettable experience. I enjoyed (and laughed) through every single, exhausting moment of the two-day event. I was in good company throughout as like-minded people had travelled to Durham from all over the North of England. Like me, they had signed up to learn 'to laugh for no reason' and the skills to persuade others to do likewise for the good of their health.
Fake it until you make it. You don't have to be a comedian to take part in Laughter Yoga or even have a sense of humour to enjoy the experience. You simply follow the Leader's instruction, 'fake it until you make it' and hey presto! Before I say more about the contagion and the undoubted magic of laughter, here's something more about the research which has been carried out by scientists over the past two decades.
Research. Significantly, this shows that laughter has a positive impact on the various systems of the body (including our precious immune system) and helps to remove the negative effects of stress which is known to be the number one killer today. In a nutshell, we are told that more than seventy per cent of illnesses, such as high blood pressure, heart disease, anxiety, depression, frequent coughs and colds, peptic ulcers, insomnia, allergies, asthma, menstrual difficulties, tension headaches, stomach upsets, and even cancer, are somewhat related to stress.
Laughter for the maintenance of good health.
The concept of Laughter Yoga is simple. Many people believe that one must have a good sense of humour in order to laugh and these same people see a sense of humour as being all about telling jokes, being funny and witty. Consider this. We are not born with a sense of humour - it is an acquired skill. On the other hand, we are all born with the tremendous potential to laugh.
Laughter and children. The scientists have found that children laugh spontaneously 300-400 times a day and usually (as all parents know) this means without any joke-telling whatsoever. A child does not laugh because he or she has a sense of humour, but rather because it is in the very nature of the child to be joyful.
To develop a sense of humour one merely has to remove the inhibitions and mental blocks which have been created by one's own self, by one's parents, and by an over-seriousness in society at large. Once these barriers are removed, the infinite potential of each and every one of us to laugh will unfold automatically - as will our sense of humour. In Laughter Yoga, you 'fake it to make it'. Does that now make sense?
In India where Laughter Yoga started, the culture was such that people in the past rarely even smiled. Today these same people, the people of India, are to be found everywhere laughing, cracking jokes and enjoying humour as never before. More strength to their elbow. And, please note the Laughter Club phenomenon so evident across India is developing apace with more than 5,000 Laughter Clubs throughout the world.
Return to joy. As mentioned above, it is intended above all else to allow us human beings to be joyful and playful as we were meant. The encouragement (the return) of this trait of joy which we were born with will undoubtedly help all of us navigate through life more effectively and create more opportunities for finding happiness.
Consider this. Always remember that there is a heavy price to pay for taking oneself too seriously. Depression is the world's number one sickness. So, here's another two of those examination gaffes to end with, these being for everyone, everywhere who likes to laugh.
Q. Give the meaning of the term 'Caesarian Section.'
A. The Caesarian Section is a district in Rome.
Q. Explain one of the processes by which water can be made safe to drink.
A. Flirtation makes water safe to drink because it removes large pollutants like grit, sand, dead sheep and canoeists.
Spirit Grow
18 April 2012
Lotte Mikkelson Post on Facebook
• What is laughter? In English...
Snorting: a snob expressing disapproval
Sniggering, snickering: insensitive, unsympathetic and immature
Cackling: loud, ape-like shrieks, enjoying the misfortune of others
Chuckling, chortling : laugh quietly or with restraint
Belly-laugh: open and trustworthy
Giggling, tittering : laughing nervously
Braying : laugh loudly and harshly
Cachinnating : laugh loudly and in an unrestrained way
Guffawing : laugh boisterously
Howling, roaring : laugh unrestrainedly and heartily
- END OF A WEBPAGE REVISITED -
- ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED IN APRIL 2009 -
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