At a time when Sri Lanka has been put on a trial like never before, developing mental toughness to brave the turbulent waters, has become critical, says Guy Regev Rosenberg. The Israeli-born ‘mind trainer’, Guy, is no stranger to Sri Lanka. With his family ties with the country running back to several generations, Guy continues to be awestruck by the ‘smiling nation’ despite adversity. “A mind is a muscle which needs to be oiled and the gift of a smile which Sri Lankans are born with itself is a key to fine tune it,” says the consultant. 

Drawing over 20 years of experiential journeying across the world where he explored a mixed-cultural approach as a solution for total mind control, today Guy offers his services to individuals and teams involved in high-pressure environments from industrious businessmen to ambitious stockbrokers, from air traffic controllers to competitive sportsmen and women. 

During Guy’s most recent visit to the island, Daily FT caught up with him to get insights into his customised approach in improving mental toughness and self-control of the mind. Following are excerpts:

“People largely ignore the things which damage them until the doctor says, ‘you got little time.’ It’s the same with your mind; you need to impose restrictions such as, ‘I’m not going to look at my phone the moment I wake up in the morning’ or ‘I’m not going to check my messages every five minutes’ and so on. If not, your mind will end up like an old computer unable to download anymore software!”

By Randima Attygalle

Your mobile phone keeps on beeping every 10 seconds with messages and news alerts. Every 10 minutes a new mail pops up on it. Every one hour or so, you go to Facebook to see who is partying. You don’t want to miss out on anything. Screens, devices and social media have already plagued our lives and they are here to stay. Forever. But it is our minds which will determine if we are to make ourselves slaves to them. As Lord Buddha said: ‘You have two choices: to control your mind or to let your mind control you.’

“It is a tough game of balancing, especially when people are so distracted with all kinds of digital trappings but our minds can be trained to be disciplined; to filter what we really need and discard the rest. A person can be sensitive and tough at the same time with correct training of the mind,” observes the mind-trainer Guy Regev Rosenberg. Tranquilisers and sleeping pills can actually be replaced with meditation and concentration techniques to get that ‘good night’s sleep’, says Guy who refers to age-old, time-tested techniques paradoxically: “The tool box is limited, yet endless.”

Crossing the paths of Sri Lankan monks in jungle hermits and temples was a turning point in his quest from knowledge says Guy who first visited the island 18 years ago. “Since then I have kept on coming back to this beautiful island,” he reflects

A journey of self-discovery

Achieving total mind control is never a straight path. Instead, its bends and curves make it a wholesome learning experience, says the practitioner. His own life story is an index to this. Being a backbencher in school academically and dropping out of school at 14, Guy was diagnosed with depression when he was 24. “Being even unable to get out of bed, I just felt like a total idiot. I was eating myself alive,” is how he recaps his depressed state. Coming from a well-known family of affluent merchants in Israel, Guy’s family found it hard to come to terms with his condition emotionally and socially. Fourth generation of tea importers, Rosenbergs shares a long history with Sri Lanka. Guy’s grandfather who had been a well-known importer of Ceylon Tea, was joined in by his father who had been collaborating with some of the leading local tea brands since the early 1980s.

Investing his energies in jogging which he found energising, Guy found himself slowly emancipating himself from his incapacitating condition. Soon after his vigorous physical activity, Guy would find himself meditating in his own way. This was the time he first came under a yoga guru. But the learning was short-lived. “I was literally thrown out of the class,” Guy recalls. Then 27, Guy’s life took a complete U-turn as he set on a journey of self-discovery and learning. 

Taking less traversed paths in the most desolate regions in the Himalayas to understand the meditative lifestyle of yogis, Guy would spend months cut off from the world. “They were not so receptive at the beginning, but my sheer determination to learn the authentic practice earned trust and acceptance from the mystics.” He would then journey to the ashrams of Rishikesh – the cradle of yoga practice, adapting his learning to align with new and more diverse teachings. 

The next decade saw Guy globetrotting in search of new knowledge. He would meet monks across different countries and continents. From the Shaolin temples of China to the Shinto Shrines in Japan, from the origins of Buddhism in India to the present day Buddhist practitioners in Sri Lanka, he gained extraordinary insights to the thought process and techniques of concentration, meditation and focus of the mind. Crossing the paths of Sri Lankan monks in jungle hermits and temples was a turning point in his quest from knowledge says Guy who first visited the island 18 years ago. “Since then I have kept on coming back to this beautiful island,” he reflects. As a Buddhist country, Sri Lanka is ready with the best background and the correct mindset for mind-training practices, adds Guy.

Some of Guy’s high profile clients include GT3 racing driver Bar Baruch, elite level judoka and sambo competitor Alice Schlesinger, professional basketball player Murphy Holloway and Sri Lankan racing star Dilantha Malagamuwa

Transcending religions

In his eventful journey in perfecting his ‘formulae’ for mind control, Guy had drawn inspiration from diverse people and places. “Very simple souls have left a lasting impression on me,” says the mind-trainer who alludes to the character of the Dalai Lama. “He is looked up to by powerful statesmen across the globe, such is his power. Yet, he remains one of the simplest souls.” Guy believes that meditation which is at the heart of mind-training transcends religions, although it is a concept closer to Buddhists and Hindus. “They have the advantage of being able to connect their religious knowledge with the technique, nevertheless, Christians and Muslims can also become strong practitioners of meditation,” says Guy. 

“All religious leaders – be it Lord Buddha, Prophet Mohammed or Jesus Christ, they had all been very meditative people in their own way and this can certainly inspire their followers. Whether you eat, run, play, operate a machine or play with your baby, you need to focus on the action you are doing right now. It doesn’t matter which religion you follow.”

Guy’s training is largely customised to suit each individual and offer many benefits that include improved concentration, handling of failure, overcoming fear and anxiety and most importantly, the control of physical attributes through a highly adept mind such as controlled heart rate. “What works for you may not work for another, so all my training is customised, having assessed the needs and capacity of each person.” Some of Guy’s high profile clients include GT3 racing driver Bar Baruch, elite level judoka and sambo competitor Alice Schlesinger, professional basketball player Murphy Holloway and Sri Lankan racing star Dilantha Malagamuwa. 

In his eventful journey in perfecting his ‘formulae’ for mind control, Guy had drawn inspiration from diverse people and places. “Very simple souls have left a lasting impression on me,” says the mind-trainer

Digital detoxification 

Digital detoxification has become essential for most of us today besieged with devices and all kinds of information. Unless we set our own limitations and make decisions for ourselves, the devices will do so for us, warns the mind-trainer. “People largely ignore the things which damage them until the doctor says, ‘you got little time.’ It’s the same with your mind; you need to impose restrictions such as, ‘I’m not going to look at my phone the moment I wake up in the morning’ or ‘I’m not going to check my messages every five minutes’ and so on. If not, your mind will end up like an old computer unable to download anymore software!” 

Excited to be spending more time in Sri Lanka with many collaborations in the pipeline, including his special program for ‘Indira Cancer Trust’ to improve the quality of life of those with cancer, Guy believes this is the best time for Sri Lankans to develop mental toughness through mind control. “Most of the Sri Lankans are very flexible people with the right attitude. And I think this challenging time in the country is the most suitable time for Sri Lanka to practice Buddha’s teachings.”

Pix by Lasantha Kumara

Racing with the mind