History of Laughter Yoga
In March 1995 Dr. Madan Kataria, a family physician from Mumbai, India, decided to write an article called "Laughter - the best medicine" for his monthly health magazine "My Family Doctor". His desk research led him to discover an overwhelming body of scientific literature that described in great length the proven benefits of laughter on the human mind and body. In particular he was very impressed by American journalist Norman Cousins' book "Anatomy of an Illness" and the research work undertaken by Dr. Berk from Loma Linda University. Profoundly inspired and being a man of action rather than an academic, he immediately decided to field-test the impact of laughter on himself.
At 7 am the next morning he went to his local public park and somehow managed to motivate four people to start a "Laughter Club" with him. This small group quickly grew to over 50 participants within a few days.
In the beginning, everybody stood in a circle while one person would come to the center and crack a joke or tell a humorous anecdote. Everybody enjoyed the fun and felt nice for the rest of the day. After about 2 weeks however the stock of good jokes ran out and the "bad", hurtful, sexist jokes came up. Two women were offended and complained. It became clear that an alternative to jokes had to be found if this "Laughter Club" was to survive.
Dr. Kataria re-read all of the scientific research he had on laughter and found the answer he was looking for: the human mind doesn't know how to make a distinction between fake and genuine laughter. Either way it produces happy chemistry. The concept of laughing for no reason was born. His wife Madhuri Kataria brought in her experience as a Yoga Teacher and suggested gentle breathing and other yoga exercises be included in the routine to deepen its impact. The resulting Laughter Yoga technique is a blend of yogic deep breathing, stretching, simulated laughter exercises and cultivated child-like playfulness.
The unique concept of Laughter Yoga and Laughter Club is the brain child of Dr. Madan Kataria, a physician from Mumbai, India. Any one can laugh in a group for 15-20 minutes without depending upon great sense of humor, jokes or comedy. Laughter Yoga combines simple laughter exercises (simulated laughter) and gentle yoga breathing, which turns into real laughter when practiced in a group.
Laughter Yoga is supported by powerful tools derived from the Western psycho analytical methods as well as Eastern spiritual laws. It will help you to stay in high spirits when life throws up challenges. It will enhance your ability to laugh and smile when dealing with negative emotions, situations and negative or difficult people.
These powerful tools include: how does the human mind work? What is the meaning and purpose of life? Understanding laws of the universe which govern our life? Understanding negative emotions like anger, fear, anxiety, greed, guilt, sadness, lust and attachments. And cultivating positive attitudes like appreciation, forgiveness, service and devotion.
To promote laughter club around the world we are organizing Laughter workshops, laughter seminars, laughter yoga leader training, laughter yoga teacher's training, and laughter yoga spiritual retreat and laughter yoga holidays.
At present there are more than 5000 laughter clubs in over 53 countries world wide and Laughter Clubs have been covered by prestigious television channels like BBC, CNN. ABC (USA), NHK (Japan), Channel 7 & 9 (Australia), ZDF Germany and newspapers, magazines like TIME Magazine, National Geographic, New York Times, London Times, and LA Times, the Guardian, Wall Street Journals and many others.
In A Nutshell Simple, Gentle
Laughter Yoga is physically-oriented technique that uses a perfect blend of playful, empowering and otherwise "tension-releasing" simple laughter exercises, interspersed with gentle breathing and stretching exercises, rhythmic clapping and chanting of Ho Ho Ha Ha Ha in unison. This is done as a way to improve health, increase well-being, and promote peace in the world through personal transformation. In Laughter Yoga you use laughter as a tool, not an emotion.
These exercises last about 20 to 30 minutes and are adapted to suit the needs, abilities and motivations of the group participating.
A Breakthrough
Dr Madan Kataria was the first one to discover and make use of the fact that anyone can laugh for 15-20 minutes without depending upon a sense of humor or comedy. No joke: as of July 2005 there were over 5000 Laughter Clubs worldwide, counting 250,000+ members.
Powerful
Because it does not rely on the mind at all, Laughter Yoga helps you to easily distance yourself from your fears, sadness, worries, self-defined limitations, etc. As a result you do not need to be happy, have a sense of humor, or even have a reason in order to laugh. Laughter Yoga bases itself on the philosophy of "acting happiness". We "simulate to stimulate". In time fake laughter becomes genuine and flows out like a fountain. Universal Laughter Yoga crosses all barriers: age, gender, language, culture, physical abilities, race, religion, political beliefs, etc. Laughter is part of the universal human vocabulary. All members of the human species understand it.
Therapeutic
The therapeutic value of Laughter has been thoroughly and scientifically researched in the past 40 years, and its physical benefits proven beyond the shadow of a doubt.
The first scientific research on Laughter Yoga was done in 2003-2004 in Graz University, Austria, by Psychologist Dr Ilona Papousek. We are currently awaiting their official publication in English.
Dr. Lee Berk (World expert in the field of Psycho-Neuro-Immunology) and his research team at Loma Linda University, School Of Public Health, in California have recently started a major and multi-study research project specifically on Laughter Yoga. The aim of this scientific research is to qualify and quantify the impact of laughing for no reason on the human body as well as stress levels. Interim results are expected in the course of 2006.
Thank you for allowing me to share with you my thoughts on motivational speaking and Laughter Yoga.
Cordially Yours,
Doug Dvorak
dougdvorak.com dougdvorak.com
847.359.6969
Doug Dvorak is the CEO of Dvorak Marketing Group, Inc., a worldwide organization that assists clients with productivity training and customer service and sales excellence management workshops. Doug has earned an international reputation for his powerful educational methods and motivational techniques. His background in sales, leadership, management, and customer loyalty has allowed him to become one of world?s most sought-after consultants, lecturers and teachers. This vast experience has helped him shape and determine his philosophies on success in business, which he now shares annually with thousands of individuals through keynote presentations, syndicated writing, television, seminars, books, and tapes. If you would like Doug to address your organization with a dynamic and educational presentation, or if you would like to host a workshop, please contact Doug at 847-359-6969 or dougdvorak.com dougdvorak.com
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