It was a massive gathering of five thousand people. They had come to hear the charismatic leader speak words of wisdom. But, they did not expect the meeting to last that long. They had hoped to see some miracles and return home in time for lunch. Alas, by the time the leader finished his speech the sun was hurtling towards the horizon. The crowd was tired and hungry. The leader felt it would be unfair to send them back without giving them a bite to eat. But there was nothing to ‘bite’.
In the crowd was a little boy with a rucksack. His mother knew all about a growing boy’s humongous appetite so she had packed him a ‘little something’ for his boyish adventure —2 tiny fish and 5 small loaves of bread.
When the little boy heard that the leader and his team were looking for something to feed the five thousand people gathered there, he, in all his childish innocence, offered his two fish and five loaves to feed the crowd. The rest, as they say is history. After feeding 5000 people the organisers gathered 12 baskets leftovers! And the little boy’s act of kindness was highlighted in a bestseller for centuries –The Bible.
WHAT HAPPENED TO THE BOY?
Researchers can now tell you what happened to that little boy who selflessly offered his lunch to 5000 people. According to them, the boy would’ve lived a long and healthy life with a robust immune system, his body free of aches and pains. And the others, affected by the boy’s act of kindness, would’ve gone on to indulge in their own acts of kindness, thereby increasing the serotonin levels in their bodies, and enjoying positive health benefits for life.
It has been proved that selfless acts of kindness promote good health. In the book Meaning and Medicine, Dr Larry Dossey writes, “Altruism behaves like a miracle drug. It has beneficial effects on the person doing the helping and it also benefits the person to whom the help is directed; and it can stimulate healthy responses in persons at a distance who may view it only obliquely.”
HOW KINDNESS WORKS
When you do a good deed, there is an increased production of serotonin and endorphin in the body. These chemicals give us a natural high, which is why we feel good when we indulge in acts of kindness. These chemicals also regulate sleep and appetite, strengthen the immune system, and also reduce the intensity of the pain messages being sent to the brain. They also act as an anti-depressant. (After all, anti-depressants are given to increase serotonin in the body). Hence, medical practitioners say that continuous acts of kindness keeps blood pressure, headaches, back pain, arthritic pain and depression at bay.
BIG VERSUS SMALL
Should you be a big philanthropist to enjoy the positive health benefits of altruism? Not at all, says Dr Priya Nair, psychiatrist. “You don’t have to indulge in big acts of kindness to avail the health benefits. Small, regular acts of kindness will do the job as well. Because every time you indulge in it you experience ‘bliss’ and this wipes out the ill effects on our body. And you don’t have to be a rocket scientist to realise that experiencing continuous bliss is only going to lead to a happy and healthy life.”
More often than not it is the small acts of kindness that counts. Anita Chandra, writer, shares her experience, “I was in college when my mother was admitted to the hospital for renal failure. I was alone in the hospital, feeling lost and clueless. That’s when an old man (a kidney patient himself) approached me and began talking to me. He goaded me to eat lunch and comforted me with his words. I can never forget his act of kindness.”
Dhanusha G, Graphic Designer relates her story, “I was upset with a few things in my life. On that particular day, I was feeling vulnerable as I was travelling to work in an auto. I began to cry. Seeing this, the auto driver stopped the auto, got me a bottle of water and said, ‘Don’t worry madam, all will be well.’ He made my day!”
Dr Wayne Dyer in his book Power of Intention, says, “ A single act of kindness increases the levels of serotonin in the recipient of the kindness and the one being kind. Tamanah Ali, copywriter, proves the point right. “I was having a bad week at work and to make matters worse, that particular morning, my cook didn’t turn up. I was lamenting about it to my neighbor. After 45 minutes, my neighbour surprised me with hot breakfast. Her act of kindness lifted a burden off me. It made me happy and had a positive effect on me for the rest of the day. I remember reaching out to a couple of strangers with my own act of kindness, the same day.”
THE DOWNSIDE
However, benefits of kindness come with a caveat. You cannot be a beneficiary if your kindness is based on ulterior motives. It has to be selfless. Psychotherapist Vinaya Prabha V Baligar, who runs a Self Awakening Centre, says, “If the intention of giving is ego-driven or with the need to be appreciated or recognised then the recipient feels obligated and resentful. There would be negative emotions at play instead of feeling happy to have received that act of kindness. Similarly, the intention of the receiver too is important. If the person takes the gesture with a sense of entitlement that “you jolly well give it to me” then it makes the giver resentful. Sometimes the giver feels the need to be in control of the giving or the recipient is not open to receiving anything in fullness as ego comes into play. All these are very subtle feelings or emotional energies.” And these emotions diminish the positive effects of kindness. For Serotonin and Endorphin don’t come out to play unless the field is clear of ulterior motives and the act is a selfless act of kindness.
(inputs Mahalakshmi Prabhakaran and Jayanthi Madhukar)
Source: Bangalore Mirror,24th October,2010 Link:http://www.bangaloremirror.com/index.aspx?Page=article§name=Wellness%20-%20You§id=74&contentid=2010102420101024182052825a00f931d
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