Cameron Stauth - Meditation as Medicine: Activate the Power of Your Natural Healing Force

In Meditation as Medicine, Dr. Dharma Singh Khalsa shows us how the tremendous power of medical meditation can heal not only the body but also the mind and soul. I strongly recommend it.

Deepak Chopra, M.D., author of How to Know God

Meditation as Medicine explores one of the most ancient methods of healing known to humankind, whose benefits have been affirmed by hundreds of careful scientific studies. Dr. Dharma Singh Khalsa is a respected physician who skillfully guides us in a journey to greater health. Whether you are a beginner in meditation or a veteran, you will benefit from this very wise book.

Larry Dossey, M.D., author of
Reinventing Medicine and Healing Words

Meditation as Medicine is a new concept, but the techniques that it uses are ancient, part of the wisdom tradition of India. The authors of this book explain those techniques in a clear and engaging manner, making their relevance to the prevention and treatment of disease very obvious. I found much practical advice here.

Andrew Weil, M.D., author of
Spontaneous Healing and Eating Well for Optimum Health

Meditation as Medicine is an extraordinary guide to tapping into the innate healing powers we all have. I highly recommend it to everyone at all levels.

Judith Orloff, M.D., author of
Dr. Judith Orloffs Guide to Intuitive Healing

Meditation as Medicine is required reading for anyone truly interested in the role of meditation in the healing process.

Arielle Ford, author of Hot Chocolate for the Mystical Soul

Activate and use your deep natural abilities now with Dr. Khalsas book Meditation as Medicine.

Mark Victor Hansen, co-creator, #1 New York Times bestselling
Chicken Soup for the Soul series

Within these very pages is the best knowledge you can find. Everybody must seek it out.

Yogi Bhajan, Ph.D., master of kundalini and white tantric yoga

Kundalini Research Institute

This Seal of Approval is granted only to those products which have been approved through the KRI Review process for accuracy and integrity of those portions which embody the technology of Kundalini Yoga and 3HO Lifestyle as taught by Yogi Bhajan.

The ideas, procedures, and suggestions in this book are not intended as a substitute for the medical advice of a trained health professional. All matters regarding your health require medical supervision. Consult your physician before adopting the suggestions in this book, as well as about any condition that may require diagnosis or medical attention. The author and publisher disclaim any liability arising directly or indirectly from the use of the book [or of any products mentioned herein].

Fireside
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Copyright 2001 by Dharma Singh Khalsa, M.D.

All rights reserved, including the right of reproduction in whole or in part in any form.

First Fireside Edition 2002

F IRESIDE and colophon are registered trademarks of Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Manufactured in the United States of America

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The Library of Congress has cataloged the Pocket Books edition as follows:
Singh Khalsa, Dharma.
Meditation as medicine: activate the power of your
natural healing force/Dharma Singh Khalsa.
p. cm.
Includes index.
1. MeditationTherapeutic use. I. Title.
RC489.M43 S57 2001 615.852dc21 00-68206
ISBN 0-7434-0064-X
0-7434-0065-8 (Pbk)
ISBN 978-0-7434-0064-0
eISBN-13: 978-1-4391-1753-8

For my wife, Kirti,
a shining example of love, divinity, and grace.

DHARMA SINGH KHALSA, M.D.

For Gabriel, my magical son,
born the first hour of November 11, 1991.

CAMERON STAUTH

This book is written to help you develop a very high level of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health. It can also be used to help you heal from an illness. Of course, it is not a substitute for medical care, but is a very effective adjunct. Many of the patient illustrations in Meditation as Medicine are from my clinical work. Other accounts came when I asked the universe to provide me with healing stories. In almost all cases, the persons identity was masked to protect confidentiality.

Dharma Singh Khalsa, M.D.

PART ONE
Healing with Medical Meditation

CHAPTER ONE
Introducing Medical Meditation

CHAPTER TWO
Healing the Physical and Ethereal Bodies
How Medical Meditation Works

CHAPTER THREE
Scientific Research on Medical Meditation

PART TWO
The Healing Elements of Medical Meditation

CHAPTER FOUR
Breath
The Kiss of God

CHAPTER FIVE
Posture and Movement
Why Was I Born into This Body?

CHAPTER SIX
Mantra
The Tides and Rhythms of the Universe

CHAPTER SEVEN
Mental Focus
The Mind-Power Effect

CHAPTER EIGHT:
Sadhana
Combining the Elements of Healing in Daily Practice

CHAPTER NINE
Medical Meditation Heals Body, Mind, and Spirit
Nicoles Story

PART THREE
Healing with the Chakra System

CHAPTER TEN
The Chakras and Their Dysfunctions

CHAPTER ELEVEN
The First Chakra
The Seat of Survival

CHAPTER TWELVE
The Second Chakra
The Cradle of Creativity

CHAPTER THIRTEEN
The Third Chakra
Father Sun, Mother Earth

CHAPTER FOURTEEN
The Fourth Chakra
From Passion to Compassion

CHAPTER FIFTEEN
The Fifth Chakra
The Voice of Truth

CHAPTER SIXTEEN
The Sixth Chakra
The Path of the Soul

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The Seventh and Eighth Chakras
Between Heaven and Earth

Joan Borysenko, Ph.D.

Dr. Dharma Singh Khalsa is a brilliant, funny, and gentle physician who has devoted his life to healing through time-tested yogic techniques that are beginning to yield their secrets to medical science. One of my first memories of Dharma is his impromptu performance of Beatles songs at a talent night at a professional conference for which I was the master of ceremonies. Wielding a well-used guitar and wearing his immaculate white turban, he made a wonderful symbol of East meeting West. A childlike joy emanated from him, drawing the audience into a space of delight. The yogic disciplines that Dharma has mastered and practices faithfully have not made him dry and ascetic. Rather, they have allowed him to live life more fully and abundantly, with great mental and physical strength. They can do the same for you.

For almost twenty years I researched the mind/body connection, the pathways through which the mind and emotions affect immunity and other physiological systems. Like many researchers in integrative medicine, my interest in the field stemmed from personal health problems that the best of our powerful modern medicine could not help. Chronic migraine headaches, irritable bowel syndrome, dizziness, anxiety, and an irregular heartbeat made my graduate studies at Harvard Medical School very difficult. Fortunately, my lab partner in physiology was a student of yoga. He suggested that I try some of the same yogic breathing exercises and meditations that Dr. Khalsa outlines so effectively for you. After a few months of practicing these techniques, my symptoms disappeared. I felt more peaceful and joyful than I had believed possible.