Laughter --The Best Medicine

LAUGHTER-- THE BEST MEDICINE.


In a world so constantly torn apart by stress, anxiety and tension, probably no other medicine has been found as effective as laughter, particularly in respect of its ready availability and universality of application—not to speak about its being free. Probably this prompted the famous British scientist Prof. J.B.S. Haldane to quip “You can bear even a tumor with sufficient sense of humour”. More than three decades ago, when the famous journalist Norman Cousins, former Editor of The Saturday Review, London, laughed his way back to health from a supposedly incurable disease, he not only saved his life but lent credibility to the saying made more famous by the Reader’s Digest’s popular column under the caption ‘Laughter is the Best Medicine”

Norman Cousins was struck with an incurable spinal disease and was admitted to a well-known hospital in U.S. He was treated there for a long period with apparently no appreciable symptoms of improvement. The gloomy atmosphere of the hospital combined with dim prospects of recovery made him think about an alternative. One day he suddenly decided to get himself discharged from the hospital after consulting the doctors. He moved into a comfortable hotel room. There he avoided all doctors, nurses and all medicines and medicated himself with massive doses of vitamin-C. More than this, he arranged to view endless runs of humorous comedies by Marx Brothers, Laurel and Hardy, Charlie Chaplin etc in addition to seeing the cartoons of the world famous cartoonist David Low. Cousins was astonished to discover that 15 minutes of laughter every day enabled him to get 2 hours of sound sleep. With this humour therapy, Cousins could cure himself completely of a sickness, which was thought incurable at one time by modern medicine. Sometime later he contributed a series of articles on humour therapy to the “New England Journal of Medicine” based on his personal experience and subsequently published the now very popular book “ Anatomy of an Illness”.

While scientists had earlier studied the general effects of laughter on the body, Cousins’ experience opened floodgates to medical profession on the importance of humour therapy. Their further studies established that there is a profound connection between humour and psychological states and that it is possible for a large number of patients to laugh and get cured. In fact, doctors and scientists all over the world established a link between humour and longevity. In course of time, humour therapy became so popular that most hospitals in America started introducing what are called as “Laughing Rooms’ where patients, their family members, doctors etc could check in and relax themselves with a joke book, book of cartoons, a Marx Brothers comedy etc.

With the popularity of humour therapy rising, a dedicated entrepreneur in America by name Joel Goodman established a project known as “Humour Project” in New York in 1977, a sort of a forerunner for the present Laughter Clubs. There he conducted a series of workshops, classes and seminars with the help of professionals, specialists, doctors, psychologists etc with the main purpose of propagating the importance of humour therapy in leading a healthy life. Within a short span of about 12 years, Goodman could spread the message to nearly 2 lakh business executives, healthcare professionals, educationists, parents, and health counsellors etc who were benefited by his Project.

India has always had a rich heritage of wit and humour for hundreds of years. To the ancient Indian humourist, nothing was beyond the pale of laughter. We had our Birbals, Tenali Ramakrishnas etc who regaled people with their ready wit and humour. Right from the days of Bharata who wrote the Natyashastram, various Sanskrit dramatists and rhetoricians have emphasized the important role of humour in life. In fact, these rhetoricians have made such a deep study of humour that they have been able to broadly classify humour into six types based on the degree of laughter it provokes, as detailed below:

1. SMITHA : The slight restrained smile in which the teeth are not visible, but in which the eyes are opened wide with delight and the cheeks are slightly raised [called Kenne Aralike in Kannada]
2. HASITHA : The full but silent smile in which the teeth show, the eyes seem to grin, and the cheeks are full with pleasure [ called Mugul Nage in Kannada]
3. VIHASITHA : Laughter in which a sweet giggling sound is made as the face reddens slightly and the eyes and cheeks contract [ called Kirudani Nagu in Kannada]
4. UPAHASITHA : Hearty laughter in which the head and shoulders bend and move and the nose wrinkles up as the nostrils widen[ Thale Nadugipa Nagu in Kannada]
5. APAHASITHA : Roaring laughter in which the eyes become wet with tears and the head and shoulders shake[ Koral Nadugipa Nagu in Kannada]
6. ATIHASITHA: Hysterical laughter accompanied by copious tears and a loss of physical control [Mai Chalisuva Nagu in Kannada].

Laughing at one’s own self and poking fun at one self is considered to be the highest form of laughter. The former Chief Justice of America, Justice Earl Warren, was very much associated with this dignified type of humour. It appears that early in his professional career, Warren contested for the post of District Attorney in California. Along with other candidates contesting, he was invited to a “Candidates Night”. The speakers were introduced alphabetically and Warren noticed, somewhat to his dismay, that as each candidate finished outlining his qualifications and experience for the post, he left the hall and walked out taking his supporters with him. “By the time I took the rostrum” Warren recalled later “except for the President and the Secretary on the dais, only one person remained in the audience. Being grateful to that lonely listener, I gave my talk, then stepped down to thank the man who had stayed to hear me. But as I reached for his hand, he spoke up quickly “Sorry to disappoint you Mr. Warren. My name is Young and I am also a candidate for the District Attorney’s post”




B.M.N. Murthy




ARITCLE NO. 495--LAUGHTER, THE BEST MEDICNE
Created: Thursday, March 26, 2009 5:25 PM