Why 40 Days?

The number 40 appears across many faiths and belief systems.  Here is just a sample:

• Christ fasted 40 days and 40 nights. (Matthew 4:2, Mark 1:13, Luke 4:2)
• During Noah's time, it rain for 40 days and 40 nights. (Genesis 7:4)
• It took the Israelites 40 years to reach the promised land. 
• One of the prerequisites in Judaism for a man to study Kabbalah is that he is 40 years old.  
• The Israelites were challenged twice a day for 40 days before David defeated him (Samuel 17:16). 
• Jesus appears to his disciples after his death and stays with them for 40 days before ascending to heaven. (Acts 1:3)
• Lent consists of 40 days preceding Easter although it differs from East to West on the inclusion of Sundays in the count. 
• In Islam, Muhammad received his calling at age 40.  Believers have also been encouraged to devote themselves to God for 40 days to see wisdom come forth.
• In Hindu tradition some of the fasting periods consist of 40 days.

But when I heard a lecture given by a Kundalini Yoga instructor about the science behind how consciousness is changed after doing something consistently for 40 days, I was amazed.  He states that the iron in our blood is a recordable substance much like the old cassette tapes.  We make more than a million blood cells with every beat of our hearts and with that it records on the bone marrow of your body everything about who you are (and who you think you are or are not) then and there at that moment emotionally and physically.  That's why meditations are given in minutes (11 minute, 31 minute...).  It isn't about the minutes spent meditating but the approximate beats of the heart.  Your red blood cells live for about 112 days.  In 40 days there's a "tipping point" when the new blood cells start to overpower the old blood cells.  Now there will be a whole set of new blood cells that are carrying with them a brand new intention and attitude.  So that is why there are 40 day Sadhanas.(Sadhana means daily spiritual practice, or devotional in Christian terminology.)

Isn't that just cool?! Here is the link to the You Tube video if you want to hear it from him.

Instinctively I always felt that the popular "21 days to build a new habit" thing wasn't long enough.  It actually takes an average of 66 days so hopefully your first 40 day journey Closer to Christ is a good start to continue for a lifetime.

“Therefore when we do sadhana, what do we do? We challenge the weakness, the laziness and our self-destruction. We challenge everything which is going to destroy us tomorrow.” 
–Yogi Bhajan, 1/21/88

So, of course, if you can go beyond 40 days and keep up - endure, you will become the person you truly wish to be - with Christ's help, as always.

Sat Nam,
Samantha