Discovering the Purpose & Meaning of our Lives:The Japanese Secret to a Long ,Happy & healthy Life.

RULES OF LONGEVITY :

Recently I read a very inspiring book- IKIGAI-‘The Japanese Secret to a long & happy Life’ authored by Hector Garcia & Francesc Miralles which had a great influence on me.This writetup of mine is inspired by the great insights in the book to “long & happy living”.It provides us with life changing tools to discover our purpose in life leaving behind urgency ,nurturing friendships & following our passions in life.It guides us in bringing meaning & enthusiasm to our everyday life making it full of energy & glow.I am presenting here some of the finer points in my own words for my valued readers . Happy Reading .

As per WHO ,Japan has the highest life expectancy in the world-85 yrs for men & 87.3% for women. It has the highest ratio of Centenarians in the world,more than 520 in every million people.Japanese are always busy occupying themselves with their duties & tasks.In addition to a healthy diet & an integrated health system in which people go to the Doctor for regular checkups to prevent diseases.Longevity in Japan is closely tied to its culture .The sense of community and the fact that they keep active until the very end are the key elements of their happy prosperous lives .There is a purpose in their lives wherein they keep busy even if there is no need to work !This principle guides them to make things of beauty for the community & for themselves.They keep & maintain vegetable gardens !They belong to all neighbourhood associations where they care for each other.They are passionate about everything they do,even little things -celebrate all the time with music ,dance & songs.They reconnect with nature regularly to recharge themselves after getting tired or spent.Their diet contains lot of vegetables & fruits on daily basis thus accounting for their 30% calorie intake.Grains comprise of White rice & noodles!They consume little sugar in the form of cane sugar & juice.They eat fish & pork three times a week for their necessary protein intake as per body requirement.

The Japanese follow the principle of “Eat less & live longer”

Calorie restrictions will extend life span with adequate nutrition(superfoods with high nutrition value)has powerful effect against obesity ,type 2 diabetes,inflammation ,hypertension &reduces metabolic risk factors associated with cancer.An alternative to following 80% diet rule on a daily basis is to fast for one or two days each week.They utilize the use of antioxidants in the form of green tea ,ginger/cinnamon tea.The antioxidants are molecules that slow the oxidation process iin cells neutralizing the free radicals that cause damage & accelerate ageing. Melatonin is a powerful antioxidant helping us in living longer strengthening the immune system.It slows the onset of Alzhimers, prevents osterporosis & fights heart diseases. Calorie restriction reduces levels of IGF-1(its a protein in the blood that plays a significant role in the ageing process) in the body of humans & animals.

Ageing process & advice on how to slow it down? Our neurons start to age in our twenties although this process is slowed by intellectual curiosity & desire to learn ,dealing with new situations, learning something new everyday, playing games & interacting with other people seem to be essential antiageing strategies for the mind.A more positive outlook in this regard will yield better mental benefits .Stress is accused of killing longevity where the body wears down(degenerates) much faster during periods of crisis causing health problems.

Anti-ageing attitude :

1)Serenity in the face of a setback can keep you young as it lowers anxiety & stress levels-stabilizes behaviour,2)Many centenerians had lives that were difficult at times but they knew how to approach these challenges with a positive attitude & not be overwhelmed by the obstacles they faced .3)The search for meaning or purposeful life becomes a driving force that allows us to achieve our goals.

The secret of longevity is depicted through the attitude of two Japanese who were interviewed regarding their outlook towards life: 1)JEANNE CALMENT(122 yrs age):It may have been her sense of humour.On her 120th Birthday, she said,”I see badly ,I hear badly,I feel bad,but everything is fine” 2)Walter Browning (114 yrs age)He said, “that if you keep your body & mind busy ,you will live a long life.”You never stop learning as you grow old & trembling in your anatomies, you may awake at night listening to to the disorder of your veins.Keep learning.”

The effects of stress on human body & how to manage it ?

Stress is a natural response to the information recieved by the body as potentially dangerous or problematic.Theoritically its a useful as it helps to survive in hostile surroundings & in course of our evolution,this response is used to deal with different situations & flee from the predaters.It has a degenerative effect overtime causing irritability,insomnia ,anxiety & high BP.The absence of needed harmones release cause depression.Some means of reducing the stress are Yoga ,meditation & breathing excercises such as Kapal bhati & Alom vilom.The essence is to reduce & manage stress.

Rules for Longevity & a happy life :

1)Keep your stomach 80%full only & stop taking snacks between meals ,2)Eat sweets once a week, 3)Avoid spending time with toxic people, surround yourself with friends as friends are like good medicines. 4)Do not spend too much time on computer or mobile,5)To build resilience into our lives we shouldnt fear adversity because each setback is an opportunity for growth.6)Dont worry & keep your heart young.Laughter is important,there is no secret to it !The trick is to live life to the fullest.7)Stay active ,dont retire & never give up.Keep doing useful work for others & help them out even after our professional activity has ended.8)Live in the moment without regretting the past & fearing the future.9)Being thankful for each & everything:happiness grows.10)Follow yr mission to find the purpose of your life for longevity.

Incidently its my Birthday today(I have turned 64 yrs old ) & am sure I deserve many nice wishes & hearty blessings from you all for a long, happy & purposeful life ahead! Thank you all for the same in advance.

I uploaded this family photo(I am at extreme right) for denotatation purpose only.

NOTE PLEASE :I am very grateful to the writers of the book- IKIGAI-‘The Japanese Secret to a long & happy Life’ authored by Hector Garcia & Francesc Miralles for the invaluable insights to a long ,happy & purposeful living through the great book which we should all have in our book-shelf.