HATHA YOGA/PART 29
CHAPTER 29.
NATURE'S SWEET RESTORER— SLEEP
Of all of nature's functions that should be understood by
people, sleep seems the one which should be so simple that no instruction or
advice should be needed. The child needs no elaborate treatise upon the value
and necessity of sleep—it just sleeps,
that's all. And the adult would do the same if he lived closer to nature's
ways. But he has surrounded himself with such artificial environments that it
is almost impossible for him to live naturally. But he may go a considerable
distance on the return journey to nature, notwithstanding his unfavorable
environments.
Of all the foolish practices that man has picked up on
his travels away from nature, his habits of sleeping and rising are among the
worst. He wastes in excitement and social pleasures the hours which nature has
given him for his best sleep, and he sleeps over the hours in which nature has
given him the greatest chance to absorb vitality and strength. The best sleep
is that taken between the hours of sunset and midnight, and the best hours for out
of door work and the absorbing of vitality are the first few hours after the
sun rises. So we waste at both ends, and then wonder why we break down in
middle-age or before.
During sleep nature does a great part of her repair work
and it is highly important that she be given this opportunity. We will not
attempt to lay down any rules about sleeping, as different people have
different needs, and this chapter is merely given as a slight suggestion.
Generally speaking, however, about eight hours is the normal demand of nature
for sleep.
Always sleep in a well
ventilated room, for reasons given in our chapter on fresh air. Place upon
yourself enough bed-clothing to keep you comfortable, but do not bury yourself
under the mass of heavy bed-clothing that is common in so many families— this
is largely a matter of habit, and you will be surprised at how much less
bed-clothing you can get along with than you have been using. Never sleep in
any garments that you have worn during the day—this practice is neither healthy
nor cleanly. Do not pile up too many pillows under your head—a small one is
enough. Relax every muscle in the body, and take the tension off of every nerve, and
learn to "loaf” in bed, and to cultivate "that lazy feeling” when you
get under the covers. Train yourself not to think of the affairs of the day
after you retire—make this an invariable rule and you will soon learn to sleep
like the healthy child. Watch a child sleep, and what it does after going to
bed, and endeavor to follow its plan as nearly as possible. Be a child when you
go to bed, and endeavor to live over again the sensations of childhood, and you
will sleep like the child— this one piece of advice is worthy of being printed
alone in a handsomely bound book, for if followed we would have a race of
greatly improved people.
If one has acquired an idea of the real nature of man,
and his place in the universe, he will be more likely to drop into this
childlike rest than will the average man or woman. He feels so perfectly at home
in the universe, and has that calm confidence and trust in the overruling
power, that he, like the child relaxes his body and takes the tension off his
mind, and gradually drops off into a peaceful sleep.
We will not give here any special directions
regarding the bringing on of sleep to people who have suffered with
sleeplessness. We believe that if they will follow the plans for rational and
natural living given in this book, they will sleep naturally, without any
special advice. But it may be as well to give one or two bits of advice along
this line, for the use of those "on the way.” Bathing the legs and feet in
cool water, just before retiring, produces sleepiness. Concentrating the mind
on the feet, has been a help to many, as it directs the circulation to the
lower part of the body, and relieves the brain. But above all, do not try to go to sleep—this is the worst
thing in the world for one who really wishes to sleep, for it generally acts
the other way. The better plan, if you think of it at all, is to assume the
mental attitude that you do not care whether or not you sleep right off—that
you are perfectly relaxed—are enjoying a good "loaf,” and are perfectly
satisfied with things as they are. Imagine yourself a tired child, resting in a
half-drowsy way, not fully asleep nor fully awake, and endeavor to act out this
suggestion. Do not bother about later in the night, and whether or not you will
sleep then—just live in that particular moment, and enjoy your "loaf.”
The exercises given in the chapter on Relaxation will get
you into the habit of relaxing at will, and those who have been troubled with
sleeplessness, will find that they may acquire entirely new habits.
Now, we know that we cannot expect all of our students to
go to bed like the child, and awaken early like the child, or the farmer. We
wish that this were possible, but we realize just what modern life,
particularly in the large cities, requires of one. So all that we can ask our
students to do is to try to live as closely to nature in this respect as
possible. Avoid so far as you can, late hours and excitement at night, and
whenever you get a chance, retire early and rise early. We realize, of course,
that all this will interfere with what you have been taught to regard as
"pleasure,” but we ask that in the midst of this so-called "pleasure”
you take a little rest once in awhile. Sooner or later the race will return to
more simple manners of living, and late hour dissipation will be regarded as we
now regard the use of narcotics, drunkenness, etc. But in the meantime, all
that we can say is "do the best you can for yourself.”
If you are able to get a little time off in the middle of
the day, or other times, you will find that a half-hour's relaxation, or even a
little "snooze,” will do wonders toward refreshing you and enabling you to
do better work when you arise. Many of our most successful business and
professional men, have learned this secret, and many a time when they are
reported as being "very busy for a half-hour” they are really lying on
their couches, relaxing, breathing deeply, and giving nature a chance to recuperate.
By alternating a little rest with one's work, he will be able to do twice as
good work as if he had worked without a break or rest. Think over these things
a little, you people of the Western world, and you may be even more
"strenuous” by varying your strenuosity by occasional relaxation
and rest. A little "letting-go” helps one to take a fresh grip and to
hold-on all the harder.
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