Meditation helps to change the brain and boost immunity – The experienced meditators had shifts in genes related to fighting viral infection.

I mentioned “prayer” in yesterday’s article and I’d like to introduce other two interesting articles on “mediation” here.

According to the first article, “meditation helps to change the brain and boost immunity.” There is scientific evidence to prove it, as shown in the second article saying that “a group of people who meditated every day had far more antibodies specific for influenza than the non-mediation group.” Surprisingly, “the experienced meditators had shifts in genes related to fighting viral infection. It turns out that genetic-level altars have been confirmed.

It is only a matter of time before the new coronavirus could be a pandemic. However, these articles show you that your calmness is very important. To put it in the other way around, if you get panic, it would significantly reduce your immunity and put you all the more in danger. The reason why Wuhan has a great number of deaths is partly the effect of 5G but I suppose the main reason is the panic among people that was caused by lockdown of the city.

Even in Japan, too, we might see some towns put under state-imposed lockdown or forced to voluntarily have a lockdown. At that time, it depends not only on physical preparations but also greatly on your mindset whether you get panic or stay hikikomori or social withdrawer. You should stockpile food to some extent and have some cash on hand to stay “lighthearted hikikoromi” and “calmness” is also important.

Modern people mistakenly believe that it is a virtue “to go after their goal and achieve it” and they tend to be at a loss of how to cope with the situation where they have no goal. When purchasing a goal, your eyes are focused on one point. The more you get concentrated, the more you get tense. Have you ever noticed that the eyes of a Buddhist statue are open slightly outwardly and out of focus?

Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart, close your eyes and look at the lower part of the right ankle of your right leg with your right eye and the lower part of the left ankle of your left leg with your left eye. Look at them in your heart. Try not to stare hard. Just do it only for one minute, and you’ll feel very relaxed. You can do it when you sit on a chair, too.

Mediation is to make your mind empty. When your mind is empty and you never go after your goal, your consciousness will expand. You can notice what you don’t usually notice. People generally called geniuses put great value on the inspiration gained through meditation. It determines the difference between a genius and an ordinary person whether he/she can carry out such level of meditation.

Masatoshi Takeshita

March 4, 2020