Nurture Your Senses: Use them Wisely and Well

Nurture Your Senses: Use them Wisely and Well

 

Our senses are vulnerable to all the activity in our environment and are often bombarded with an overload of stimuli.   It is therefore important to nourish and protect our sense organs (ears, skin, eyes, tongue and nose)  to keep both our mind and body healthy.  In balance, the sense organs give proper messages to the mind, and bring us a sense of ease and contentment.  When misused, over used or under utilized, sense organs go out of balance and can have detrimental effects on our well being.

 

Here are some tips for nourishing and taking care of our senses.

 

Our ears need to hear pleasant sounds to be healthy such as ocean waves, a trickling brook or waterfall, soothing and inspiring music, chanting, and pleasant conversation.   Reduce exposure to harsh and loud noises.  Avoid excessive cell phone use and gossip.  Try not to listen to or watch bad news first thing in the morning.

 

Skin needs loving touch and hugs both from others as well as from ourselves.   A self massage with a good quality oil called abhyanga is especially helpful with balancing the nervous system and lubricating our skin.  A massage or other body work from a good practitioner can also be nourishing.  Avoid extreme temperatures and constrictive clothing.

 

Make sure the eyes have plenty of exposure to the beauty in the natural world, to the arts and the beauty of loved ones.  Reduce time spent in both too bright light and very dim light.  Limit also time spent looking at TV and all electronic devices.

 

Our tongue wants to taste good and healthy food that is right for the season, our time of life and constitutional make up.  Eat mostly fresh, organic and unprocessed food and savor the flavors.   We also want to take time to taste the sweetness of life.  Avoid both eating too much and eating too little as well as excessive fasting. 

 

Finally, we need to take care of our nose, insuring its contact with delightful smells like flowers, sweet smelling food, and herbs.   Use essential oils that are appropriate for you, but avoid overpowering odors.

 

 

Take time to notice how you use each sense organ and seek out positive stimuli for each one.  I spent last weekend at the beach which was very nourishing:  the sound of the waves, the feel of soft sand and the breeze on my skin, the fresh smell of the air, the beauty of the waves and the sunrise over the ocean, and the fresh food which always tastes better when one is in a peaceful setting.