Cheeky Tales by Preethi

As a child growing up in a Hindu Society in Southern India, I was brought up with a strong sense of religion. My grand parents and parents, not to mention the myriad aunts and uncles encouraged us to visit temples and worship God. Many of you may know of the hundreds of God in India. One such God is Lord Ganesha. He is widely worshipped across India and easy to identify thanks to his Elephant Head.  He is said to be the remover of obstacles and is also known widely known as the God of Knowledge and Learning.

 When we would visit a shrine of Lord Ganesh we were encouraged to do what is known as Thopukaranam. This is criss- crossing of your arms across your chest to touch opposite ears (Right hand touches the left ear and Left hand touches the right) and in this posture you do sit ups. This we were told aids in gaining knowledge. This has been passed on through generations of Hindus and like everything else followed by generations with the true tenacity of faith and belief.

Recently I came across this technique called Super Brain Yoga. A neurologist Dr Paul Nogier has spent years studying the brain and come up with this technique to energize and recharge the brain. A study shows that this increased the academic and behavioral performance of school age kids, including kids with ADD/ADHD, down syndrome and learning disabilities. Learn more at http://www.superbrainyoga.org/. As I read this, I was surprised to discover something! This super brain yoga is the exact same thing as the Thopukaranam we were encouraged to practice as kids. This is the same technique that has been believed to enhance learning ability through generations of Hindus. This is not the first time that I have come across a perfectly sensible scientific explanation for something that has been practiced on unquestioningly by generations of people just because they had a simple element – Faith! And this will not be the last!

(Images Courtesy- Google Images)

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