MH 108
for many years, i read all my favorite books while laying in a hot bathtub, often 1-2 hours per night. i used a 150watt full spectrum light bulb and the bathroom shut out the normal noises of the house and i was found sleeping in the bathtub on more than one occasion...so in fact, you could say i was relaxing my body as much as possible whilein the act of reading. maybe the authors first paragraph on our brain, explains i was doing a good thing:
v.
the use of the brain
let us now consider instances where the brain alone is used, and the other parts of the body have nothing to do but keep quiet and let the brain do its work. take thinking, for instance. most of us think with the throat so contracted that it is surprising there is room enough to let the breath through, the tongue held firmly, and the jaw muscles set as if suffering from an acute attack of lockjaw. each has his own favorite tension in the act of meditation, although we are most generous in the force given to the jaw and throat. the same superfluous tension may be observed in one engaged in silent reading; and the force of the strain increases in proportion to the interest or profundity of the matter read. it is certainly clear, without a knowledge of anatomy or physiology, that for pure, unadulterated thinking, only the brain is needed; and if vital force is given to other parts of the body to hold them in unnatural contraction; we not only expend it extravagantly, but we rob the brain of its own. when, for purely mental work, all the activity is given to the brain, and the body left free and passive, the concentration is better, conclusions are reached with more satisfaction, and the reaction, after the work is over, is healthy and refreshing.
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maybe in fact, all colleges world wide should make the sleeping book required reading before you spend 4+ years in college not knowing how to properly "use" your mind/body.
mh