Daily Times

You might be wondering how to stay healthy in this horrendous coronavirus pandemic. As we all know that coronavirus effects our breathing so safest way out is to master healthy breathing which is possible through meditation.

It not only strengthens our immune system but also help us to achieve peace of mind and most important to reduce anxiety. Scientifically Meditation is beneficial to our vital organs of body but spiritually it enables us to strengthen our Spirit (Rooh) and connect us with Allah-SWT through a chain of transmission and further more enable us to strengthen our core beliefs and practices of Islam which leads us to a positive change in our lives.

Breathing is a natural process of life and provides oxygen to all cells of the body. It increases flow of oxygen to lungs to detox /cleanse to increase performance of core organs of the body. The more oxygen in the body gets the better. The diaphragm also plays an important role in the human body respiratory system. The diaphragm is a muscle that checks the ups and down when we breathe. The diaphragm naturally starts to work less efficiently as we age. That’s why it’s important to do breathing exercises regularly to keep diaphragm healthy and strong. Diaphragm breathing is an effective technique to strengthen the diaphragm and increase oxygen carrying capacity of the lungs. This technique is performed by taking a deep breath in, almost as if you were attempting to breathe all the way into your stomach. And as inhalation occurs you will feel the diaphragm contract. Then you can exhale through lips. This creates back-pressure in the alveoli which is great for improved lung compliance and detoxifying your lungs. Breath exercise also stops heart attack during attack and prevent heart diseases. Heart patients breathe about 2.5 times more air than normal. Nasal breathing is fundamental to prevent heart attack and crucial for wellbeing of heart patients. To stop heart attack symptoms, sit down and relax, listen to your breath, breath only through the nose, relax your chest and use the diaphragm for breathing and inhale/exhale. Doctors in UK & Canada are using similar vital ICU Breathing technique for those suffering from COVID-19.

The spirit that lies within combined with the physical body is what completes us. The same way the body has its vital organs and their respective functions, as does the spirit. The vital organs of the spirit are known as the latifa or lataif. The first and foremost latifa is the qalb, which is the brain centre of our spirits and is placed within our physical heart

When Allah SWT created us, He blew into us something of Himself. This is known as the spirit. The Spirit that lies within combined with the physical body is what completes “US”. The same way the Body has its vital Organs & their respective functions, as does the Spirit. The Vital Organs of the Spirit are known as the “Latifa”, “Lataif”. The first and foremost Latifa is the Qalb, which is the Brain centre of our Spirits & is placed within our physical heart.

The function of the Qalb is to a) receive & absorb the love that Allah feels towards us, b) Love Allah back & c) radiate Allah’s love to others. Since Allah is of Nur, His Orders, Attention, Affection are all Nur. The Spirits that lie within us are also Nur & can thus not only relate to Allah, but their food & energy too, is Nur. The problem starts when our Qalb becomes dysfunctional! This happens due to repeated sins. Since every sin leaves a black mark on the Qalb, slowly the black marks envelope the Qalb & make it lose its capacity to illuminate & radiate, it becomes dull & loses its capacity to receive & absorb Allah’s Nur & thus it becomes diseased & cannot find the energy required for the Spirit to be healthy & functional. It has also been scientifically proven that since ‘Allah’ is a two syllable word it can easily get synchronized with the breathing, & since human breath contains one long & one short breath … ‘Allah’ ‘Hoo’ these 2 words are used in order to be recited within the heart with each inhaling & exhaling breath. “Allah hoo” … By inhaling Allah and hoo exhaling with short duration makes a contact between the lungs & the heart & in turn this contact controls the heartbeat.

SIGNIFICANCE OF ZIKR ALLAH is mentioned most of the times in Quran and Sahih Muslim Hadith. To connect with an Allah-SWT through a chain of transmission there are five Exalted Messengers Hadhrat Muhammad-SAW, Hadhrat Abrahim-AS, Hadhrat Musa-AS, Hadhrat Noah-AS, and Hadhrat Eesa-AS, while Hadhrat Adam-AS is the first Prophet of Allah and the father of mankind.

Neuroscience, Buddhists and chakras (Hindus way of Meditation) studies on meditation have been capturing a lot of attention. Such studies often suggest that mindfulness or compassion. Meditation might be changing activity in brain areas linked to improvements in mediator’s attention or their ability to manage emotions. Brain areas or neurotransmitters makes the changes resulting from meditation seem more real—more tangible and believable. Neuroscientists, Buddhists and Vedas (Chakra) all believe that it reduces stress, controls Anxiety, promotes emotional health, enhances Self-Awareness, Lengthens Attention Span, may reduce age-related memory loss, can generate kindness and may help fight addictions. Psychologist’s studies and research confirms that practicing meditation can help clear away the mind’s chatter. Studies show that meditating even for periods as short as 10 minutes increases the brain’s alpha waves (associated with relaxation) and decreases anxiety and depression.

Prophet Muhammad PBUH was a deep spiritual man, and often spent time in meditation on Mount Hira. The traditional story of the Qur’an tells how one night he was meditating in a cave on the mountain when he was visited by the angel Jibreel AS who ordered him to recite. So many Quran verses, encouraging meditation can be found.

COVID-19 has caused new enormous challenges hitting belief system, heath system, social beliefs and global economic recession.

While everyone across the globe engulfed by the uncertainty of COVID-19, I still believe that Zikr-Allah and Meditation can add value to our health & core believe Is the only way forward to connect with Allah SWT through a chain of transmission to add value to our life and core believes of Islam.

The writer can be reached at faiq.shahzad@gmail.com