Showing posts with label Healing of Prayer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Healing of Prayer. Show all posts

Sunday, November 25, 2007

Night Prayer and the Human Body Clock

By Hwaa Irfan


The sleep-wake cycle of the pineal gland becomes disrupted as we increasingly eat, socialize and sleep not questioning the psychological and physical effects of our pre-occupations. In trying to keep up with the schedules of the day it becomes increasingly difficult to switch-off the problems of the outside world we take home affecting domestic commitments.

“Surely in the daytime you have prolonged occupation” (Surat ul Muzzammil 73:7).

This implies that there is counter-balance in the night to daily preoccupations. What could be achieved in the evenings could sustain and nourish us into the day. However, we use artificial light to extend those pre-occupations. Once the daylight ends, the pineal gland goes into increased production of melatonin. By extending light artificially to levels of and above 500lux we impede its production. A darkened room with a 100watt bulb provides 100lux if we are five feet away. This doesn’t compromise the release of melatonin.

Factors Affecting Melatonin Production

Factors in our working lives can affect melatonin production. Electric utility workers based at a generation station were found to have reduced melatonin levels being exposed to electro-magnetic fields. Their colleagues in the administrative section working under 60hz of alternating current working in low light offices in the daytime also had reduced nighttime melatonin levels (Penton p.1).

Other elements also compromise the pineal gland like tranquilizers, beta-blockers, calcium channel blocking drugs, sleeping pills like benzodiazepines, Non-Steroidal Anti-Inflammatory Drugs like Ibuprofen and excessive (3mg daily) intake of Vitamin B-12 (Nedley p.6, 7).

Night-time Praying

The question of the purpose of sleep continues to haunt scientists. In vibrational medicine, one hour of sleep balances each chakra, with a minimum of three hours in total for really healthy people. For the really healthy, three hours is all that is needed by the higher chakras, which in turn balances the four lower ones (Gurudas p.60). So what do we do with the rest of the night?

“Rise for prayer in the night, except a little, Half of it or less. Or add to it – and recite the Qur’an in slow, measured, rhythmic tones” (Muzzammil 73:2-4).

Fadhlalla Haeri informs us that these verses tell us to take what we need for rest and if we rise from rest there is balance in it. “Surely rising in the night is stronger in impact, and straighter in speech (Muzzammil 73:6). He continues saying that ‘Nashiatul-layl’ is the maximum darkness during which one’s sleep is sound, the energies are low, and the field of reflection is clear and empty. This part of the night has the best results (Haeri p.12-14).

The part of our body that functions in this capacity is the pineal gland. In the Indian tradition, it is the Seat of Consciousness, the seventh energy point, the Crown Chakra. The pituitary and the pineal gland work in unison through relaxation and meditation which Rasulullah (saw) practiced much before The Revelation. Flashes of intuition occur with increased practice, raising consciousness from an emotional nature to awareness. Haeri continues, “when we go into sajdah our individual profiles are obliterated when performed meditatively. We are in Tawhid (unity) echoing the cosmic expansion” (Haeri p.38). In Indian tradition the seventh chakra spiritualizes the intellect and is associated with the personal ability to integrate with Allah (swt). Then spiritual fulfillment is able to resolve negative emotions.

The Pineal Gland


When the sun sets, the pineal gland shifts gear and produces its primary hormone melatonin in larger quantities until it peaks from 2 – 3.00a.m in the morning (Majidali p.7). It is a derivative of the amino acid trytophan, and rises and falls daily within our blood according to the circadian cycle (Ultranet p.1). This cycle sets the biological clocks, turns on the immune system and inhibits tumor promoters like estrogen (Penton p.1) Jet-lag is a disturbance in this cycle (Sleep p.7).

The center of navigation in birds and other animals, the light sensitive pineal gland produces the hormones: melatonin, epithalamin, serotonin, vasotonin and melanin. Epithalamin is related to our learning capacity and slows aging; serotonin has a strong influence on sleep, pain and well being and vasotonin is related to rapid deep sleep (Gates p.1). The hormone antigonadotropin suppresses ovulation (Medic p.8). Melatonin regulates the sleep-wake cycle and inhibits sex hormones before puberty. In addition, Jordanian scientist Samer Hattar’s recent research has discovered that a single protein cell –melanopsin- in the retina seems to detect light by which the human body’s internal clock is reset. (Hattar p.1).

Modern-day Living and Melatonin Production

Melatonin production is reduced by late-night TV viewing.

The 1995 National Sleep Foundation polls revealed that half of American adults have sleeping problems at one time or another. Habits like drinking alcohol too late, exercising before bedtime, sleeping at different times, concentrating on work before trying to sleep and shift work are contributory factors (NSF p.4). In addition, production of melatonin is reduced by excessive

exposure to artificial light, late-night T.V viewing, electromagnetic fields, chemical pollutants like pesticides and beta-blockers for heart disease, high blood pressure and headaches. Studies indicate that even the most modest exposure to extended light stresses our bodies, accelerates aging and debilitates the immune and nervous systems.

Caffeine in coffee, black tea and certain types of sodas reduce melatonin jeopardizing its natural antioxidants, which are vital to cell protection during waking hours. Yet it must be said it is the quality not the quantity of sleep that restores and rejuvenates the body.

In children, melatonin levels are 120 picograms dropping to 60 picograms at ages 20 – 30. Seen as a ‘youth drug’ store bought melatonin has reportedly caused fatigue, depression and arterial constriction (NSF p.2, 3). In England and Canada, it is considered a drug and only obtainable by prescription. The FDA has yet to remove it from US health stores.

Modest food restrictions increase the number of melatonin receptors in the body, so short-term fasting is seen as a plus increasing day-time plasma melatonin levels to night-time levels (Majidali p.2, 7, 12). One can also increase one’s melatonin levels naturally from foods like oats which contains 1,796 picograms, sweet corn at 1,366 picograms, rice at 1,006 picograms, ginger at 583 picograms and barley at 378 picograms (Gates p. 1, 2).

In vibrational medicine when the chakras are aligned and balanced there is a greater appetite for food in its natural state and greater sensitivity to the chemical environment that man has created for himself (Gurudas p.170). However, Shaykh Fadhlalla Haeri reminds us, “All it takes is purification and awareness of our intentions, and then our intentions unify with our actions, then we are in tawhid (unity) with Allah (swt) and ikhlas (sincerity).”

Sources:

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Hwaa Irfan is a staff writer for Health and Science section of Islamonline

from : http://www.islamicmedicine.org/
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Studies Show Fajr Prayer is Healthy

By Karima Burns, MH, ND


"And He it is Who made the night a covering for you, and the sleep a rest, and He made the day to rise up again" (Qur’an 25:47).

Certainly sleep is one of the blessings from Allah. At the end of a busy day a person looks forward to sleeping and regaining enough energy for the next day. Sleep is also important for good health and safety reasons. However, studies vary as to how much sleep is enough. Some studies claim 8-10 hours is a requirement for everyone. However, the Prophet Mohammad (saws) used to sleep very few hours in the night and used part of the night for prayer. Recent studies confirm that this may actually be healthier for some people.

Sleep is important for health and safety reasons. Lack of sleep can lead to mental illness, relationship problems, absence from work and even traffic accidents.

Researchers have found that people with chronic insomnia are more likely than others to develop several kinds of psychiatric problems, and are also likely to make greater use of healthcare services (Yang). Lost productivity due to sleepiness has been estimated to cost the national economy as much as $100 billion annually and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has estimated more than 100,000 auto crashes annually may be fatigue related (Yang). Because of this, some studies claim that 8-10 hours should be required for everyone. However, recent studies have confirmed what the prophet Muhammad did may be healthy for some people.

"…the Prophet slept for a part of the night, (See Fateh-al-Bari page 249, Vol. 1), and late in the night, he got up and performed ablution from a hanging water skin, a light (perfect) ablution and stood up for the prayer (Bukhari)."

Modern studies show that this may actually be the best advice for many people. In fact, many studies are showing that less sleep or even lack of sleep can be healthier in some cases.

A six-year study of more than a million Americans shows that a good night's sleep lasts seven hours. It also showed that people who sleep for eight hours or more tend to die a bit sooner. Study leader Daniel F. Kripke, MD, says,"You really don't have to sleep for eight hours and you don't have to worry about it. It is evidently very safe to sleep only seven, six, or even five hours a night (DeNoon)."

Kripke and co-workers analyzed data from an American Cancer Society study conducted between 1982 and 1988. The study gathered information on people's sleep habits and health, and then followed them for six years. Study participants ranged in age from 30 to 102 years, with an average starting age of 57 years for women and 58 years for men. In the study the death risk for people with too much sleep was 34% as compared to only 12% for those who slept 8 hours and only 22% for those who had too little sleep.

These findings are similar to those in the dietary realm that show that eating too much food is much more harmful than not eating enough (of course massive extremes such as starvation and not sleeping at all are not included in this discussion). Kripke even noted that, "For 10-hour sleepers, the increased risk of death was about the same as that for moderate obesity."

Some studies have even experimented with sleep deprivation to cure depression. Up to 60% of depressed people will show a 30% improvement after just one night awake, according to a review article published in the January 1990 issue of the American Journal of Psychiatry. People who feel the most depressed in the morning and improve later in the day seem to benefit the most from a night without sleep (Yang). However, keeping people up all night is not a long-term solution and researchers often found a relapse in people once they went back to "normal" sleeping hours.

Further research showed that one reason staying up all night worked was because sleep inhibits the thyroid stimulating hormone (TSH) that helps control our metabolism and, indirectly, our levels of energy. An estimated 25% to 35% of depressed patients have low TSH levels. Recent research has shown that while sleep inhibits the release of TSH, staying awake through the night and the early morning hours boosts it. This "new" scientific research is completely in accordance with the habit of the prophet (saws), which was to sleep shortly after Eisha prayer (earlier than most people sleep nowadays), and wake in the very early morning hours (sometimes as early as midnight) again to pray.

Ibn 'Abbas said, "The Prophet slept till he snored and then prayed (or probably lay till his breath sounds were heard and then got up and prayed)." Ibn 'Abbas added: "I stayed overnight in the house of my aunt, Maimuna, the Prophet slept for a part of the night, (See Fateh-al-Bari page 249, Vol. 1), and late in the night, he got up and performed ablution from a hanging water skin, a light (perfect) ablution and stood up for the prayer. I, too, performed a similar ablution, then I went and stood on his left. He drew me to his right and prayed as much as Allah wished, and again lay and slept till his breath sounds were heard. "

This is similar to the therapy given to depressed patients in Europe who are told to sleep early for a week, awake at midnight and then ease back into a "normal" sleeping schedule by waking a bit later each morning, but no later than sunrise (Yang).

If you already feel you don’t have enough sleep you may wonder, though how less sleep can make you feel better. Oftentimes sleep problems are related to sleep quality rather than length of sleep. Things a person can do to improve their sleep quality is: eat at least two hours before bedtime, change to healthier dietary habits, check with a doctor about possible sleep apnea, snoring issues, or TMJ, sleep on your side, avoid alcohol and sedatives, lose weight and find a comfortable mattress.

So how do you know how much sleep you need? Many people instinctively feel what is right for them. If you feel great after 7 hours, but feel tired if you get five hours or nine hours then you know that seven is your "ideal sleep" time. However, sleep requirements may also vary with life events. During travel or personal trauma or illness sleep requirements may increase.

John McDougal, author of several dietary books, offers a further distinction between people who need more or less sleep. He says in his book The Quick McDougal Cookbook, that healthy people usually need only 5-7 hours of sleep a night. This, in fact may be the reason many people think they need more sleep. Bad dietary habits can cause sleepiness. One such example is the heavy feeling one gets after eating a large meal or the drug-induced state that bread causes in some people. Dr. McDougal says that as long as a person is healthy they should need less than 8-hours of sleep. Medical science seems to be saying that if you need more that 8 hours of sleep you need to work on some dietary issues and strive to need less sleep. Even the prophet (saws) spoke against extremes in sleep deprivation and told men who stayed up all night for days on end praying, that they needed to moderate their habits and also get some sleep.

Sources:

· www.webmd.com

· Yang, Sarah. "Staying Up to Beat the Blues."

· DeNoon, Daniel. "Are you Sleeping Enough – Or Too Much?"

Durgan, Amy. "Tips to Sleep More Soundly."

from : http://www.islamicmedicine.org/
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Winter Depression and Prayer

By Rajah Lang and Mirium Amer

"As I grew older, the arrival of autumn every year brought with it a sense of depression held over from my youth. The coming of winter blanketed my heart with a darkness that seemed to be inescapable. Although the world was covered in white, my emotions were black and grim. I became sullen, I gained weight, all I wanted to do was sleep. The sadness appeared in late September, and seemed to fade away with the first new leaves of spring, and the call of the arriving robins. Like the crocuses and daffodils awakening from their slumber, my soul seemed to wake up as well.

"As an adult, I have learned to put a name to this seasonal depression: Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD. Somewhere, somehow, a wise and knowing person recognized that millions upon millions of human beings across the world acknowledged the same symptoms I had suffered through virtually every autumn and winter of my entire life. This wise and knowing person put a name to it, and suggested treatment: light. Bright, blazing, intense, warm, wonderful light." - Mirium

Many people suffer from what is call SAD or Seasonal Affective Disorder. SAD is a particular form of acute depression. People born in warmer climates and move to cold climates find they are unusually susceptible to this disorder. However, no matter where you live, this disorder usually begins when the temperature begins to drop, and the daylight hours grow short. This winter depression may be accompanied by a craving for sweet foods and a resulting weight gain, as well as difficulty in motivating oneself to rise from bed in the morning before sunrise. In severe cases medical attention needs to be sought, especially for those persons whose normal routines are interrupted and they find themselves withdrawn and overly sad, seeking sleep during the daytime hours, and unable to perform their normal duties.

Some people also experience Summer SAD due to lack of exposure to the sun in the summer months. This may be due to long hours at indoor work or to avoidance of the sun in very hot climates - such as Saudi Arabia. Symptoms of Summer SAD may be poor appetite, weight loss and insomnia. Either type of SAD may also include symptoms present in some other kinds of depression, such as feelings of guilt, a loss of interest or pleasure in activities, persistent feelings of hopelessness or helplessness, or physical problems such as headaches and tummy troubles.

In ALL cases of SAD, however, melatonin seems to be the common link in the causes of the disorder. Melatonin is a natural hormone made by the body's pineal (pih-knee-uhl) gland. The pineal gland lies at the base of the brain. When the sun goes down, and darkness comes, the pineal gland "goes to work." As melatonin production rises, a person begins to feel less alert and body temperature starts to fall. Sleep seems more inviting. Then, melatonin levels drop quickly with the dawning of a new day. Levels are so low during the day, in fact, that scientists often have difficulty detecting melatonin at all during the day. Melatonin levels thus go hand in hand with the light-dark cycle, not just for people, but also for plants and animals that keep alert during the day. Melatonin production is also related to age. Children manufacture more melatonin than the elderly do and melatonin production begins to drop at puberty. Also, when days become shorter and darker the production of this hormone increases. Melatonin levels in the body determine a person's activity and "energy" level. High melatonin levels cause drowsiness, while low melatonin levels correspond to an alert state of consciousness.

Light therapy using special light lamps is the most common ways to alleviate this struggle for alertness. Our bodies need a full spectrum of light to carry out a variety of metabolic processes and produce melatonin at acceptable levels. Light entering the eye regulates body chemistry, and in particular, the secretion or suppression of melatonin. Note, however, that due to UV dangers, therapists do not recommend the use of tanning beds as a cure for SAD http://www.nu-light.com.

Some very light-sensitive people who live or work in dim environments may feel improvement with increased exposure to normal room light. Research studies show, however, that most sufferers of SAD and winter doldrums require exposure to light levels much higher than ordinary indoor lamps and ceiling fixtures provide. Such therapeutic levels are five to twenty times higher (as measured in lux or foot-candles by a light meter) than typical indoor illumination in the home or office. Aside from these environmental treatments, some sufferers find that standard antidepressant medications provide relief, even if they do not reach their normal level of well being until spring or summer. Many patients have been in psychotherapy and found it to be helpful to them in many ways - but unfortunately, not in relieving their SAD symptoms www.lightandions.org/blt.htm.

However, as Muslims we can have faith that the symptoms of SAD will not remain all year long. For Allah (swat) set everything in motion and the days will grow long again as soon as December 21st. On this shortest day of the year in the Northern Hemisphere, the sun is at its lowest and weakest, a pivotal point from which the light will grow stronger and brighter once again feeding us with light and warmth. This event will alleviate SAD and make it easier to arise and perform wudu and salat.

Sources:

American Academy of Family Physicians. "Information from Your Family Doctor, Seasonal Affective Disorder." American Academy of Family Physicians. February 2000.

Anderson JL; Rosen LN; Mendelson WB; Jacobsen FM; Skwerer RG; Joseph-Vanderpool JR; Duncan CC; Wehr TA; Rosenthal NE. "Sleep in Fall/Winter Seasonal Affective Disorder: Effects of Light and Changing Seasons." Journal of Psychosomatic. 1994 May, 38:4, 323-37.

Bagby RM; Schuller DR; Levitt AJ; Joffe RT; Harkness KL. "Seasonal and Non-Seasonal Depression and the Five-Factor Model of Personality." Canda: University of Toronto: J Affect Disorders. 1996 Jun 5, 38:2-3, 89-95.

Birtwistle J; Martin N. "Seasonal Affective Disorder: Its Recognition and Treatment." British Journal of Nursing. 1999 Aug, 8:15, 1004-9.

Lindsley, Gila. "Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD): About Light, Depression & Melatonin." USA: New Technology Publishing, Inc.

http://www.healthyresources.com.

http://www.nu-light.com/

www.lightandions.org/blt.htm

from : http://www.islamicmedicine.org/
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The Healing Power of Prayer Beads

By Karima Burns, MH, ND




Yahya related to me from Malik that Ziyad ibn Abi Ziyad said that Abu'd-Darda had said, "Shall I not tell you the best of your deeds, and those that give you the highest rank, and those that are the purest with your King, and are better for you than giving gold and silver, and better for you than meeting your enemy and striking their necks?" They said, "Of course." He said, "Remembrance (dhikr) of Allah ta ala (Hadith Bukhari Book 15:7.24)."

Towards this goal many Muslims carry a sibhah, or prayer beads. Traditionally, prayer beads are used to keep track of how many times one has recited Subhan Allah, Alhamdulliah and Allahu Akbar. The most popular way is to use them after the obligatory prayer to recite the dhikr [remembrance of] Allah:

Narrated Abu Ma'bad: (the freed slave of Ibn 'Abbas) Ibn 'Abbas told me, "In the lifetime of the Prophet it was the custom to celebrate Allah's praises aloud after the compulsory congregational prayers." Ibn 'Abbas further said, "When I heard the Dhikr, I would learn that the compulsory congregational prayer had ended (Bukhari Vol.1: Book 12: 802)."

However, although the dhikr Allah has been recited from the time of the Prophet, the sibhah as we now know it today has not been recorded as being in existence at that time. Some accounts of history show that Muslims adopted the sibhah from India in the 2nd Islamic century and through them, in 1214, that the Christians adopted the idea and started using the rosary (Gulik).

However, methods of assistance have always been employed in religious devotion even before the sibhah. Tradition states that before the sibhah, stones were sometimes used to recite. Other religions used knotted cords or woven shawls to keep track of recitations.

Modern technology, however, has added a new dimension to prayer beads when electronic sibhah were invented. Many people even prefer not to use a sibhah at all. However, using a sibhah is not only helpful in keeping track of remembrances, but can be healing as well, depending on which wood or stone has been used to make the beads.


At the Islamic Shopping Network many kinds of prayer beads are available from Turquoise and Tiger Eye stone to Sandalwood and Rosewood beads. A search of other sites reveals a number of sites dedicated to making custom stone beads for all religions. A search of the local markets of the Middle East reveal an even larger selection of sibhah.

And just as using beads for prayer is a long-standing tradition, so is healing with beads. Throughout history cultures have used gemstones and wood for healing. Dr. Robert Frost, a physician in Basel, Switzerland, recently studied the scientific properties of these gems and woods and created a method of testing woods and gemstones that reveals their healing properties in scientific terms (Frost). In his clinical work, Dr. Frost discovered that using the correct gemstone or wood could reduce pain, prevent allergic reactions, improve coordination and even increase muscle strength.

To give some examples; Tiger-eye is traditionally used to enhance understanding and strengthen belief. It is healing to the stomach area and is often used to assist with problems of the kidney, pancreas, liver, small intestine or stomach. It has also been found to have a calming effect on people who hold it.

Turquoise keeps the feeling of unconditional love in one's heart and helps one feel more connected with Allah. It also assists in the digestion of proteins and thus aids digestion. Turquoise also helps draw out negative feelings such as envy or anger from a person. It assists in healing ailments of the thyroid, throat, ears, neck and respiratory system. It can also help to combat allergies or heart problems.

Beads of amber can help lift the heaviness of burdens, amethyst can be spiritually uplifting or heal the stomach or liver, and black onyx helps one to change bad habits. There are many books and websites that speak about the healing power of gems. Beware in your search, as some sites are mystical and foreboding. But there are an equal number of scientific books and websites that offer information on gems to the general public.

The healing power of wooden prayer beads is often in their scent, which is released and revived with usage. The scent of rosewood is traditionally used for nervous tension, frigidity, and headaches. It also assists the immune system, helps to fight viruses and regenerate cells. It is good for jet lag and skin inflammations and has the ability to relax a person without making them drowsy.


Beads made of sandalwood emit a scent that has been used for healing since the time of the prophet. Sandalwood is an antidepressant, antiseptic, insecticidal, and sedative wood. It can assist in the healing of cells and is used to assist the immune system in any healing process or to prevent illness.

In the Tafseer of Ibn Juzayy, it is said that the Prophet Mohammad said in a message from Allah, “I am in my slaves opinion of Me and I am with him when he remembers Me. If he remembers Me in himself, I remember him in My self.” For this reason and the reason of easy transport, prayer beads are a popular gift from one Muslim to another. With a little more thought, this gift can be physically uplifting as well as spiritually.

Sources:

· Gottleib, Bill. “New Choices in Natural Healing.” Emmaus, Pennsylvania: Rodale Press.1995.

· Gulick, Robert Jr. “Muhammad the Educator.” Lahore: Institute of Islamic Cultures. 1953. p.61.

· Frost, Robert. “Gems and Woods.” Robertfrost.net. 2001.

· Hadith Bukhari

· Tafseer Ibn Juzayy

· Woodward, Valerie Ann. “The Fragrant Mind.” Novato, California: New World Library. 1996.


from : http://www.islamicmedicine.org/
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