
Gravity has a powerful influence not only on inanimate matter but also on biological systems. It governs plant growth and balance in animals. Balance is so crucial that gait (the degree of side-to-side movement during walking) is a reliable indicator of a mental decline in elderly people. But gravity also creates the pressure that slows the biological clock: in space, the body grows old much faster. Even bacteria get more virulent in free space. But surprisingly, gravitational changes also regulate our mood. Roller coaster rides are popular because they manipulate the feeling of gravity. Gravity is simulated by an upward vertical motion. The incline leads to a feeling of heaviness, and at the top, it gives way to lightness. The transition from a contracted feeling to weightlessness is a sense of expansion. Enjoying this transition is present in infancy. Children the world over enjoy swings and rocking in a cradle. Even adults enjoy rocking chairs, free falls during parachute and bungee jumping.
The mind forms emotional connections analog to the hold of gravity. As gravity constricts the body, it also affects our sense of time by adjusting temporal (emotional) gravity. Emotional gravity is a constricted feeling in the mind. The brainstem adjusts our mood to the temporal gravity of the environment. Although gravitational changes affect the body and the fluctuations of time affect the mind, both generate an emotional roller-coaster.
People hold onto relationships as gravity holds onto matter. Our attachments, i.e., temporal or emotional gravity, intimately regulate our mood. Throughout history and in all cultures, the transitions from emotional gravity (tension) to emotional release (feeling of spaciousness) have been recognized as pleasurable. The expanding and energizing surprise of the new is an elementary need. It is no accident that we simulate this transition in so many ways. Even crying in difficulty or after a tragedy is such a process. Children’s stories from ancient times to the present depict this transition from the emotional tension to release. The hero suffers and, the greater his suffering is, the more enjoyable his glorification afterward. Adventure, horror, cliffhangers, and suspense operate on the same principle. We suffer through every averse predicament and emotional tension, and the payoff at the end gives us the emotional release. This is also the secret to the success of the twenty-four-hour news channels.
Therefore the environment intimately regulates our mood by controlling emotional gravity. The child curiously moves forward in a new situation with excitement (this represents the energy of the original) or pulls back in worry or fear (representing temporal gravity, the need for safety). Elegant and ingenious studies in psychology clearly demonstrate the effect of the environment on mood and behavior. Lack of temporal gravity is formed by low-entropy conditions (order, beauty) and produces the feeling of satisfaction, happiness, well-being, relaxation, and excitement of the new. Interest and the body position are open, trusting. The excited dog smelling around is in search of the novel. Enclosed monkeys are willing to pull a lever to take a peek at the outside world: the new.
Although the new is an elementary need, overwhelming and fast-paced information such as flickering light, strongly delineated patterns, or repeating mechanical noises lead to temporal gravity, which provokes stress and increases brain frequencies. The temporal tightness of emotional gravity constricts the mind, forming similar emotions, such as anger, negligence, fear, paranoia, running, freezing, and adherence to the past. Even the language describes fear and guilt as demanding and heavy. This is why meditation is such a powerful practice for those who experience stress in their daily lives, including most people. If you feel stressed, you should serve yourself beauty and joy. Even taking a deep breath should expand a constricted soul and mind.
The Book on Amazon Contact me Mailing list
|