There are men in industry whose job is to subject various metals and substances to states of stress or strain, in order to test their endurance. This can be done in many ways. For instance, a length of wire, secured at either end, then rendered rigid under prolonged and deliberate tension, will often snap, if somewhere in its manufacture, there is a flaw or weakness.
Yet there doesn?t necessarily have to be this point of weakness. If the pressure is great enough, the break will come in any case. The human mind and body might be compared to that length of wire, stretched out under the stresses and strains of life. Under acute and prolonged tension, they too, can break.
The pressure of life today is so great that many people are persistently in a state of nervous tension, and it is responsible for a multitude of ills, both mental and physical. Going back to our length of wire, let us imagine the pressure at the ends has been removed. The wire lies free and unhampered, relaxed. The opposite of tension is relaxation, and while great numbers of people seem able to drive themselves forward under the impetus of tension, there are comparatively few who can relax effortlessly, and at will. The number of tranquilizing substances and sedatives which are on sale, or prescribed by doctors bear testimony.
Insomnia plagues hundreds of thousands of people throughout the world. Likewise fortunes are spent trying to find a cure. Yet sleeplessness is nearly always caused by an inability to relax. Recognizing the need for teaching people this almost lost art of relaxation, psychiatrists and psychologists establish clinics and schools where people can acquire this knowledge.
Women whose business is to make other women look and feel beautiful (and this is a powerful step on the road to health and happiness) know that tension can create havoc. In their beauty parlors and salons they offer clients artificial means of acquiring relaxation. There are varied, ranging from soothing baths, massage, facial and body ?packs?, to carefully selected exercises which relax tense muscles and nerves.
Why, then, can some lucky people relax at will, without recourse to artificial aids, or expensive treatments? I knew a lady who could curl up and go to sleep as relaxed and contented as a house cat, whenever the opportunity presented itself and sleep was needed. From these ?cat-naps?, she awoke refreshed and strengthened to deal with any problems in her world, and she was not a docile person, but a woman of tremendous energy and enthusiasm.
History tells us that many great minds had this ability. Napoleon could command sleep no matter what world-shaking decision might be troubling his mind. So too, could Winston Churchill. Naturally, the greater the expenditure of nervous strength, the more urgent the need for relaxation when opportunity serves.
If relaxation does not come naturally to you, you can acquire it, as an art, with a little patience and an intelligent understanding of the body?s functions and needs. Nor is it necessary, as many people believe, to get tensed in order to succeed. For nerve and muscle, obeying the mind?s orders respond as well in a relaxed state as when being driven ?all out?.
In nine out of ten cases, people work better in a relaxed state of mind. In personal relationships, tension between people leads to troubles that can have life long consequences. In business, the high-powered executive who gets wonderful figures on the sales sheets, may also have frayed tempers and shattered nerves; or if they do not, then the colleagues who work with him.
Learning to relax involves mental discipline, except for those whom the art comes naturally, when ?letting go? is an instinctive, and as healing, as sleep. Since the governor of the body is the mind, the mind must first be taught to accept the idea that it is necessary to relax for the body?s good.
Relaxation, once the habit is acquired, can be practiced anywhere. To begin, find yourself a place where you can lie down in comfort and where you will not be disturbed. (Later, the art now mastered, you will find that the presence of others is no hindrance, but at first, it is better to be alone.) On your bed, or on a chair in a quiet garden, or a nearby meadow, it doesn?t matter just where, empty your mind of all thoughts that are troubling you. This isn?t easy; in fact, it is the hardest part of the exercise. I find it helps to concentrate upon some inspiring image, a rose unfolding its petals, a waterfall sliding over glistening rocks, a hand caressing piano keys.
The mind stilled to tranquility, turn it to the relaxation of the body. Beginning with your head and working to your feet, ease the tenseness in every muscle and nerve of your body. When you have your head relaxed, move to your neck muscles, and so on, if any part tightens, go back and order it mentally to relax. Wait till it does, before beginning the relaxation process again.
Once you have achieved complete stillness and immobility of your entire body, hold this till you feel absolutely at peace. Maintain this as long as you wish, at the same time keeping your mind still and calm. If anxious or worrying thoughts intrude, summon the mental image with which you first induced relaxation.
Once acquired, this way can be practiced anywhere, on a train, flying coast to coast, in a chair, in the park, etc. For perfect relaxation it is best to lie down, but it isn?t mandatory. Once you have learned to relax the mind, you will likewise enjoy a certain measure of physical relaxation. If you are normally a tense person, it requires more patience and concentration to master this technique.
The ability to relax lies without you. Everyone has it, only civilization has rendered it a lost art for some. Yet it will never be achieved unless you understand and respect your body?s need for periods of rest and tranquility. Remember the stressed wire I used for illustration? Don?t let your mind and body become stretched to unbearable states of tension; learn, instead, to relax.
