A Practical Guide to Mental Hygiene
In a world that is increasingly grappling with the complexities of mental health, a Belizean Yogi-turned-author is offering a timely and practical guide to navigating the intricate landscapes of the mind. As the universal conversation around mental well-being takes center stage, Yogi Charu’s new book, aptly titled ‘A Practical Guide to Mental Hygiene,’ becomes a much-needed compass for those seeking balance and tranquility in their lives. In this edition of “The Bright Side”, we delve into the importance of mental health, explore Yogi Charu’s transformative journey, and discover how his insights are illuminating a path towards mental well-being for readers around the world.
Sabreena Daly, Reporting
Recognition was extended across the room at the Belize Image Factory, as friends, family and associates reflected on life’s significant contributions of Yogi Charu, while commemorating the book launch of the Belizean Author. Titled ‘A Practical Guide to Mental Hygiene,’ Charu, a Sanskrit name bestowed upon Charles Lewis, is the author and Yogi who shares his message to obtain and maintain mental hygiene.
Yogi Charu
Yogi Charu, Author
“They have tools to use to make their mind and heart peaceful. We cannot go into the store and buy mental toothpicks, mental toothbrushes. But there are techniques. I want someone to walk away with tools. I can sit for 5, 10, 15 minutes every day and quiet my mind. Make my mind my best friend.”
Charu started this personal journey at the age of seventeen when he encountered two books: Bhagavad Gita and the Science of Self Realization. His interest and path subsequently shifted entirely, as the once aspiring doctor wanted now a life of a yogi.
Yogi Charu
“I saw the semi unconscious frog and the heart was still beating. And my mind was like, I can’t do this anymore. Yeah. I love animals. So I put down the tweezer, put down the scissors. I gracefully left my class and I never returned. I wanted to pursue this life of nonviolence, of universal love for every living being, not just humans, but animals and plants as well.”
A yogi or yogini practices yoga, a holistic system originating in ancient India. Dedicated to self-realization and inner peace, they engage in physical postures, breath control, and meditation; but the ultimate goal is a harmonious union of mind, body, and spirit, seeking enlightenment and connection with the divine.
Yogi Charu
“It’s something we do every day to evolve in our mental space. Keeping the mind peaceful and the heart space, keeping the heart filled with love, compassion and kindness. There is the meditative side of yoga. Where you sit down and you try to bring the mind as peaceful as possible, quiet as possible and it’s a beautiful challenge and I think that’s what triggered me to pursue it because I always loved challenges and then I realized the greatest challenge I could give myself is to make the mind quiet.”
In this era, yoga and meditation are highly regarded for its physical and mental benefits. But In 1993, a seventeen-year-old Charles Lewis would admit that it was not yet understood in Belize.
Yogi Charu
“They were like that’s a little strange. It was something strange. And I can empathize with, when we are in ignorance, I can empathize how we might judge something. But back then I was like, ah, I just needed to leave the country. To go live in a place that facilitated what I was studying and so we wanted to go to India and that was what we did. Just to be around people who were also living this lifestyle, you would see Yogis everywhere. They were meditating in the morning, getting up at 3, 4 o’clock in the morning, taking cold showers, breathing, controlling, and holding their breath, dedicated to silence. Studying the books and then meeting my teachers who shared these amazing practices of how to fast. for 30 days on water, how to live on air. So these were the practices I learned. So, and so, that was the life that I was impressed by.”
Now, decades later, Yogi Charu is sharing the findings of teachings taught to him in his first book; a guide, he calls it, to mental hygiene.
Yogi Charu
“This is my first book, The Practical Guide to Mental Hygiene. Because everyone does dental hygiene, body hygiene, hair hygiene, and that’s important, the yoga culture teaches that as well. They also teach mental hygiene, how to keep the mind pure. So the book, there’s a lot of practice in it to understand how our mind gets mental plaque through our five senses.”
It’s divided into the five human senses; sight, hearing, taste, smell and touch, all the senses, that Charu explains, impact the health of a person’s mind.
Yogi Charu
“If we see something, it goes into the mind. You hear something, it goes into the mind. You taste something, it affects your mind. Yeah. So, through the five senses, our mind gets either pure or cluttered. So, the book is to help you to understand, Oh, I can make my mind, do my mental hygiene every day, if I just sit down and do a little concentration. If you ask a human, how many breaths do you have in a day? No human can tell you. Whereas in the yoga culture, it tells you. And I understand how many breaths I take in one day.”
Sabreena Daly
“How many breaths have you taken in one day?”
Yogi Charu
“So, an adult in average health takes 15 breaths per minute.That means 900 breaths per hour and 21, 600 breaths in one day. Most people don’t even know that.”
Sabreena Daly
“Do you feel negative emotions?”
Yogi Charu
“I do. But whenever a negative thought enters my mind, I know how to not react to it. Envy, jealousy, greed, Charu, that’s not you. Let’s turn them into a positive. So I’m human like everyone.”
Yogi Charu believes that every person is a beautiful soul, but negative influences can lead to a polluted mind. In sharing his new book, Charu intends to make a stop at the Kolbe Foundation which manages the local prison. According to Charu, rehabilitation in the prison is a means for individuals to rediscover their true, beautiful selves.
Yogi Charu
“As I have evolved, I understand that every human is a beautiful soul. By our wrong association, our mind gets polluted. So, when I see the prisoners, I understand they are beautiful souls. It’s just their mind got, uh, deluded, uh, confused by their association. But the mind is malleable. You can change the mind. And so, I don’t see the prisoners as prisoners. No, it’s a place where rehab should be taken, so that they can find their true, beautiful self.”
Looking on the Bright Side, I’m Sabreena Daly.
You can purchase Charu’s book on Amazon.com
