On Thursday, 6th June, we at Aryaans were honoured to have been given a chance to interact with one of the most distinguished personality in the field of engineering, Prof R.K Pant who is a professor at IIT Bombay department of aerospace. He was the mentor of Vpd sir during his time in IIT Bombay. Mr. Pant has a PhD from the famed Cranfield institution of technology, UK in aerospace engineering.
Along with this he has extensive knowledge about Stress and Anxiety and how one should deal with it. He commenced the session by explaining us how uncertainty in our life is a certainty itself which leads to anxiety. He told us that our mind should be in the present and not stuck in the past or the future. Our mind and body are interrelated. Wherever you have a feeling in the body your mind is located there.
He taught us how our mind works. He said that all humans have a 6th sense along with the other 5 and it is the ability to think. All of these senses together are called cognition. Once you evaluate a thought by using these senses one starts getting feelings or sensations to which majority of people react blindly which causes misery.
Prof told us that instead of taking the right turn and reacting blindly one should take a left turn which is bare observation which leads to paece. It is the observation of sensations beforereacting to them. One must react only when its necessary and not due to vengeance or remorse but with love and affection. Sir described different methods on how to develop bare observation. One should live in the present and practice the technique of Anapana Sati.
Anapana Sati is the technique of awareness of breathe as it comes in and goes out naturally without changing its speed. He told us this method is the best as anyone can breathe anywhere and at anytime. He told us that the breath is directly connected to the mind.
In Anapana Sati u are observing the mind by manifesting your breathe. The highlight of the session was the practical trial of Anapana Sati. Where we sat in a comfortable posture, with a straight back and neck, observe the breathe and most listened to an audio file for 10 mins. It was truly relaxing. One must do this atleast twice a day.
He mentioned the different benefits of anapana sati such as it calms and relaxes your mind, helps to deal with fear, anxiety and pressure. It allows one to experience happiness and Peace and it also improves concentration and memory. And anapana sati is a scientific method. He explained us all the topics with enthusiasm and good examples. He was so responsive to all our queries.
Overall the interactive session was truly remarkable.
Sir provided us with a comprehensive understanding of these critical mental health issues and equipped us with essential tools to overcome and manage them.
We are grateful to VPD sir and the Aryaans faculty for giving us this incredible opportunity to have this interactive session and making it possible to gain knowledge from such an amazing personality.
By Sriya Saraf Class 11, MAHSS