Acharya Mahaprajna
Now let us think about the question of the relation between the bhava, impetus and health. Now think on this question. Ragashaya and dveshashaya these do not influence health directly. When the bhava influences health then it turns into the impetus. These cannot directly influence health. These influence health through the body. The brain is the most important part of our body.
One part of the brain is called limbic system and the other is called hypothalamus. Hypothalamus is very sensitive to the sentiment. It catches the sentiment and regulates all the activities prompted by the sentiment. The hypothalamus is influenced by whatever sentiment and bhava are created, and it influences other organs of the body. Our nervous system and the glandular system which function automatically are control on the earth, we also do not have any control on our automatically functioning nervous system. After we have taken our meal, it starts getting assimilated, whether we are conscious about it or not. Hypothalamus has control over the automatic functions of the body. We have no control over all our nerves and the glandular secretions and the hormones that are created. All these processes take place on their own and perform their functions. It is the hypothalamus that catches the sentiment. It influences the body through the nervous system and glandular system. A person gets angry. According to the old view on this reference which is accepted even today when the feeling of anger is aggravated, it excites the bile’s as well. Lust, grief and fear create gas (vata) in the body. This is a very old principle. It has been accepted by the psychologists’ changes. If we think about it from the point of view of medical science, whenever the passions become strong, the adrenal glands would become fairly active. If we combine both these principles, the bile’s (pitta) would have to be interpreted as adrenaline. In the language of medical science, there is adrenal secretion from the adrenal glands. This is bile’s in terms of Ayurveda. As the feelings of anger become stronger, the adrenal glands become immediately active.
The adrenal glands are required to expand all their energy in that process and have to secrete more adrenal. This extra secretion becomes the cause of physical illness.
Our health is related to the bhava. If we go up to the body, and beyond it, if we go to the mind, the problem does not get solved. There are a whole lot of illnesses that originate neither from the body nor from the mind, but they originate from the bhava. Mahavira showed his distinction between the mind and the bhava in a very subtle manner. However, what is the bhava? What is the mind? Clearly, the mind is not our nature. It is also not the nature of the jeeva. But the bhava is the nature of the jeeva. The mind is born, but the source of the bhava is within. The mind has no source within. It is a system created by our chitta. When the bhava is linked with the mind, it is called feeling or sentiment. As a matter of fact the mind is distinct from the world of emotions.
