Sri Sri Ravishanker Ji
The nature of the mind is to seek happiness, joy, and ecstasy. Sometimes, the mind cannot find this in the area of the five senses. When it is not satisfied with just seeing, hearing, tasting, touching or smelling, it starts to crave. The mind longs for the highest peace and bliss. And in search of that higher ecstasy, the mind is lured into the trap of addiction and dependency.
Like every other addiction, smoking gives the illusion of escape. But all it leads to is misery and pain. Take a close look at any heavy smoker. And you’ll immediately recognize this sad truth. Dependence on nicotine causes premature aging and a host of other serious issues. Making a hard core smoker look old and haggard.
Cigarette smoke carries more than 4000 chemicals. 250 of these are known to be harmful. And more than 50 are known to cause cancer. According to a fact sheet published by WHO, tobacco kills nearly 6 million people every year. More than 5 million of these deaths are the result of direct tobacco use. While more than 6,00,000 die due to second hand smoking.
Although a lot of smokers are aware of the hazards of smoking, they face difficulty giving up their addiction. Even repeated attempts to kick the butt fail after a few days by giving in to the urge of having that one last drag. Though whatever may be the reason for people to start smoking, they have problem quitting it mostly due to stress at work and in personal life. The chemical composition of a cigarette calms the mind and gives temporary relief from stress, thus giving smokers a reason to cling onto the addiction. And while smoking can thrill in the beginning, its charm fades in a while. In no time at all, many health problems insidiously creep in. And then the smoker ends up wanting to shake off the habit. In vain. Repeated attempts to kick the butt generally fail. Because the smoker is always in need of that ‘one last’ drag. Unfortunately, smoking calms the mind and gives temporary relief from stress. Giving the smoker a reason to cling on to the addiction.
If you are looking for a permanent alternative to de-stressing yourself and keep away from smoking, look no further. Yoga is the key to step out of the smoke and rid you of the addiction. A local Art of Living Yoga course can help you learn ways to resist the urges of smoking. The Art of Living Yoga is an effective wellness program that aims to equip you with health enriching and de-stressing tools that help you lead a healthy and joyful life, thus letting your loved ones breathe free too! A few yoga postures and pranayamas that can help you on the way to quit smoking.
Here are the benefits of quitting smoking?
- Lung capacity improves. Stamina increases. This will become obvious during exercise sessions.
- Blood circulation and heart rate improves. Imparting a youthful glow.
- The immune system becomes stronger. Resulting in resistance to sickness and disease. Improving overall health.
- Smoking is a leading cause of cancer. Quitting smoking reduces the possibility of being afflicted by the dreaded illness.
- When we decide to quit smoking, we may experience more stress. This is caused primarily by withdrawal symptoms. The symptoms will eventually decrease. And our stress levels will go down.
- We will no longer expose our family, friends and those around us to the lethal hazards of passive (second hand) smoking.
