World today is facing an unprecedented situation where we are forced to self-isolate from the world. We have come up with things to do at home in Coronavirus Time. In this situation, we could either sit and mourn over the situation we are in or may try to look over for positives. Though it may be troublesome for us to face a new reality and completely shut the eternal world, it is also a time when we focus on things that could improve our inner world and relationships. Let's look on these 7 ideas, which we could implement to get most of this situation.
- Learn new skills through Online classes
- Join 21 days put to practice sessions
- Watch YouTube videos and listen to podcasts
- Read Books
- Meditation
- Yoga
- Spend time with yourself
Learn new skills through Online classes
One thing which keeps the world going even in the time when millions of people are suffering from the novel coronavirus is the internet. Many of us are now working from home and delivering our commitments through the help of this technology. One other thing which we could take advantage of through the internet is the world of online classes. Online classes could be used to learn new skills, attend lectures, transform your life, etc. JKYog is having several online events that may help you to turn self-isolation into joyful self-transformation. At a time when working from home is the new normal and people are cut off from many sources of material entertainment such as dining, shopping, travel, socializing, we have been simultaneously gifted with a perfect, retreat-like environment in which to renew our spiritual growth and stay healthy. You could join online classes on guided meditation, Yoga, Bhagavad Gita, Shloka recitation, Kirtan learning, Satsang, and various others by registering on their website.
We could spend this time learning new skills which may help us in either our career or in our spiritual journey or we may also learn it just for fun. JKYog is delivering so many online classes both for children and adults where they can learn meditation, languages like Sanskrit, Hindi, Gujrati, etc., reciting Shlokas, Bhagavad Gita, etc. Children also have the opportunity of attending the Balmukund Online camp where they learn many of these skills. One may take the help of these and various other online classes for improving our overall life skills.
21 days put to practice sessions
As Swami Mukundananda puts in one of his videos on 21 days Happiness challenge, sharpening your mind is as necessary as sharpening of ax for a woodcutter. If we keep using the mind and do not spend time sharpening it, it will become obsolete. We are in a world, where technology and skill are upgrading very fast but, in our fast pace life, we do not get time to upgrade our minds at that speed. This time of coronavirus outbreak has given us that time. We are at home now for 24 hours. Even if we do the same amount of work as we did in office, at least the time of conveyance is saved daily which are in hours for most of us.
You may join the ongoing 21 days Daily Sadhana sessions. Daily Sadhana is an online platform for gaining spiritual knowledge, tools for devotion, and true spiritual transformation from anywhere in the world, under the direct guidance of His Holiness Swami Mukundananda! The 21-day sessions will provide FREE access to this course in an online classroom setting with the added advantage of real-time discussion of key concepts that you would otherwise review on an individual basis. You may do various things here. You receive Vedic Wisdom through Swamiji's Lectures and participate in special guided meditations by Swamiji on different devotional themes. You may soak yourself in melodious kirtans or divine chants, prayer, and Aarti. You may also review key concepts through exercises, discussion with fellow spiritual aspirants, and QnA with session moderators! Experience for yourself the inner transformation that takes place when doing this course under the divine guidance of Swami Mukundananda!
Books
It is an old saying that books are the best friends of man. This stands true in modern times as well. The benefits of reading books are evident both for your physical and mental wellness. It is true for children and adults alike. Medical professionals prescribe parents to read beside their children from the beginning to instill the qualities of self-respect and presentation skills. Swami Mukundanand book – 7 Mindsets for success, happiness and fulfilment is a great option focusing on positivity and attitude. If you have not read it yet, it is a good time to do it. Its kindle version is available over amazon. There is another book by Swami Mukundananda titled Yoga for the Mind. Body, and Soul. There are lots book for children too. You could access the amazon page link for the collection by clicking here or simply typing Swami Mukundananda books in amazon.
Improves brain network connections
Various medical studies have confirmed that reading books increase the functioning of brain nervous systems. It stimulated different parts of the brain and improves the transfer of messages between nodes.
Improves diction and understanding
The more you read, the more words you encounter and the more words you get to learn. This helps you in improving your communication for both written and spoken skills.
Increase your empathy towards other people
Reading books on the lives of people, leaders and different societies increase our ability to accommodate different views and respect people coming from wide backgrounds
Improve sleep quality
Studies claim that books help in both inducing and improving the quality of sleep over time. Experts recommend reading books at night to have maximum effects.
lessens stress and anxiety
Researchers have claimed that reading books for about 20-30 minutes decreases the stress level by at least 40%. Reading books thus also help in reducing the blood pressure considerably and especially helpful for patients with health problems
Combats depression
For those who are affected by depression, reading books on self-help and sometimes even fiction helps in coming out of their world of self-isolation and help them feel better
Inhibits cognitive deterioration due to aging
Books also help to reduce the signs of aging from the mind and keep the memory functioning for a longer time. Some studies also claim of increased life years.
Watch YouTube videos and listen to podcasts
We live in an age where we are not required to wait for our favorite program to come on television at a particular time period. Today, we could watch almost anything on any topic by the help of various video streaming platform like YouTube. Be it watching old serials, music videos, cooking classes or Swamiji videos. This time when we are at home 24 hours a day YouTube usage have naturally increased. However, what we watch over there is of main concern. YouTube contains thousands of videos of Swami Mukunandanand with numerous playlists over various topics including both on spiritual upliftment and physical well-being. Even if we watch an hour of lectures daily, it will not be finished in any near time. Swamiji videos are available in both English and Hindi in the channels of JKYog and Swami Mukundananda Hindi. You could listen to a video to ease your situation, gain spiritual knowledge, revisits old lectures or simply sing kirtans along with it. Swamiji also has these two excellent videos on the situation of Coronavirus (Q/A on Coronavirus Part 1 - Facing the Crisis, Immunity tips and your Duties and Q/A on Coronavirus Part 2 - Best use of Time in Lockdown period, Future Lessons)
At times, internet may be slow, or we may be tired watching the screen, or we may want to do some work, or we may be driving. At these times, it will not be possible to watch videos. In many of these times, we are practically doing nothing. We could utilize this time by listening to various podcasts. Nowadays, podcasts are available for various topics and almost every popular radio channel have a podcast operating. There are also a lot of Swamiji lectures on JKYog SoundCloud which could be listened through podcast. This would help you in relieving your stress, gain spiritual knowledge and at the same time utilize your time in some meaningful work rather than wasting it. There are also so many soulful kirtans on it which could be listened at any time.
Meditation
Meditation is one of the most beneficial tools you can use for success and happiness. Now, since we have more time flexibility, we could attain various online meditation sessions. JKYog is also providing Guided Meditation classes every day in the week. You could take these classes and improve your inner strength. This would also help you in taking yourself away from the coronavirus world for a few moments and will give you inner peace for some time. The practice of meditation has extreme spiritual benefits, as proven, along with the material health benefits. Taking care of your spiritual vehicle is also a requirement to thrive in spirituality. Fortunately, meditation packs a powerful one-two punch that helps your sadhana progress and improves your health. Meditation has various benefits like mentioned in the blog titled – 7 benefits of Meditation - How meditation improves life.
Reduce Stress
The biggest health benefit of meditation is that it reduces stress. In the Western world, meditating is primarily used in stress-reducing therapy. Opposed to taking anti-stress medication or other supplements for maintaining a calm manner, you can meditate using any of the guided meditations you prefer, such as the JKYog YouTube the channel, which has many different meditations
Restore Memory
A scientific study also shows that a certain type of method of meditation, a repetitive mantra with moving of the fingers are very effective in restoring memory as you age
Increase Sleep Efficiency
Increasing sleep efficiency is a major quality of meditation that practitioners find extremely useful. Studies prove that meditators sleep longer and quicker than those who do not
Increase Focus
When it comes to the matter of focus, many people struggle with this concept. Fortunately, in the same way, that training your mind is like working out on the spiritual side, meditating overtime builds intense focus.
Decrease Depression Levels
For those going through a tough time in their lives, or for those suffering from depression, meditation is a very valuable tool that doesn’t cure, but it does ease the person
Positive Feelings
Meditation calms the body down, and it also helps you to think with a peaceful mind. It assists in experiencing positive feelings.
Maintain Blood Pressure
Most beneficial for the masses is the decrease in blood pressure
Yoga
Swami Mukundananda in Yoga for the Mind. Body, and Soul, described yog as the union of the individual soul with the Supreme Soul. Yog incorporates the principles of healthy and righteous living in our daily life. With the luxury of flexible timings, we have now, we could easily devote some time in the morning for different Yogasans. As Swamiji explains in lectures, a new habit is formed when we do something repeatedly. We may utilize this situation to get ourselves the habit of doing Yoga daily. We may do a mix of yogasans, or physical poses, each day. This would help us in rejuvenating ourselves and keep this habit even when things become normal as before. JKYog is also offering various online classes on Yoga. You could register them by clicking here.
Spend time with yourself
One person whom we ignore for a large portion of our life is our self. We keep looking at others, trying to understand them, their behavior, their shortcomings, their inner conflicts, etc. but never focus on ourselves. This is a golden time to do it. This is a time when we may try to look inside us for understanding ourselves. We may look for our shortcomings and try to rectify them. We may try to see our inner conflicts and try to resolve them. And, in order to do that, we must spend time with us. In our daily lives, we may take some time for us without doing anything. Just us. And many of the tools discussed above like meditation, are great bits of help in doing that. The Daily Sadhana program introduced by Swami Mukundanand is an excellent way of spending quality time With and For Yourselves. Daily Sadhana courses are structured into well-defined modules that cover different high-level topics in a systematic manner. The modules are further organized into individual daily lessons that dive into the details of those topics. Each lesson includes a video lecture, meditation, reviews, exercises, and many other features. Progress through each module by completing all the lessons in the modules. Visit Daily Sadhana website today to register for it, or click here to know about the importance of it from Swamiji.
Let’s use this time to transform our lives from within and look within to resolve the problems of the world and to nullify the apparent heaps of today and yesterday’s problems, and the stress that they cause, into minuscule, imperceptible humps on an otherwise tranquil path to tomorrow, paving the way for a more exciting and welcoming future.