AYURVEDA

The word Ayurveda is translated in at least three different ways:

“Knowledge of life”
“Science of longevity”
Or
“Art of living”
In fact it is all of these and more besides. Ayurveda originated within the tradition of the Vedas, India’s oldest ancient books of wisdom, which were ‘discovered’ by seers known as Rishis, enlightened experimenters who worked within the laboratories of their own awareness’s. Though Ayurveda evolved as a medical system, medicine is a small proportion of the voluminous tapestry of its knowledge.

Ayurveda aims to train individuals to avoid disease, the Ayurvedic paradigm shows us how mind, body and spirit interactions can be predicted, balanced and improved to enable us to live gracefully, harmoniously and vigorously.

True health is a state of persistent well-being, not a temporary tranquillity. The literal meaning of svastha, the Sanskrit word for ‘healthy’ is to be “established within yourself.’

BODY MIND SPIRIT

Each of us has the capacity for health maintenance and self-healing that we can activate if we learn how to let them flow. Ayurveda focuses its attention on the flow of life, on the canal systems provided by Nature to route our intake and output on every level of existence. These channels in the human body are innumerable. Some of these channels, such as the digestive tract are visible to the naked eye while others are not confined by obvious physical walls. These channels deal with the intake of nutrients, elimination of waste and the mind.

HEALTH, DISEASE AND THE THREE DOSHAS

Ayurveda seers sought to create the ultimate conditions to attune the mind body soul to the universal consciousness so that the consciousness begins to direct the organisms’ functions.

Although few of us can hope to attain such subtlety of awareness, we can strive to maximise the manifestation of consciousness within ourselves within ourselves, in all its various forms.

Ayurveda studies the physical body directly, by examination and seeking to learn how to manipulate its tissues and wastes and also it studies the body indirectly by investigating the forces that control it.

THE THREE DOSHAS

Ayurveda, with its Tridosha or three humors system, is able to provide a complete understanding of the cause of health in terms of metabolic balance. Disease is simply understood as an imbalance between the nerve energy (Vata), catabolic fire energy (pita) and anabolic nutritive energy (Kapha).

Different foods, geographic locations, seasons, times of the day, etc. each have a predominant dosha associated with them. When a certain dosha increases in the environment it will tend to increase the same dosha in our physiology, and illness will occur when the doshas get out of balance.

The purpose of Ayurvedic treatment is to restore the balance and thus good health.

Imbalance of the Tridoshas leads not only to impaired health, but also to an impaired mental condition, because the mind's health is dependent on the body's health.

Vedic texts associate Vata with cold, lightness, dryness and movement; Pitha with heat, light, sharpness and acidity; Kapha with cold, heaviness, oiliness and slowness.

Ayurvedic treatments are person specific rather than disorder specific. The age of the patient, the climate in which she lives, her cultural and social surroundings, and her bodily constitution, need to be taken into account before offering a prognosis.

PREVENTION OF DISEASE

Ayurveda tells us that ‘diseases are generated at the junction of the seasons’. Whenever our environment (internal or external) changes our systems must change with it, and every time we adapt poorly we expose ourselves to the possibility of disease.

Regular seasonal purifications, which form one segment of preventative medicine, are prescribed to everyone in Ayurveda to help protect against potential ailments at the seasons joints. Each season of the year has a purification regimen appropriate to the Doshas predominate at that time. Excess Kapha will be expelled in spring, summer is the Pitha ejecting time and autumn is the time to reduce Vata. Monsoon is traditionally the time to undergo Panchakarma therapies.

Panchakarma therapy forms the fundamental basis of Ayurvedic therapy and is a significant component of Ayurvedic treatment.

Panchakarma is a curative treatment that works in the principles of sodhana chilies (purification procedure). The Panchakarma therapy of Ayurveda comprises of five types of advanced treatment for elimination of vitiated Doshas (toxic materials) from the body. By controlling diet and with proper rejuvenation the health of the body can be restored.

Monsoon season in Kerala is the perfect time to undergo Ayurvedic treatments.

Panchkarma treatments will eliminate all toxins from the body and enhance immunity and vitality. It rejuvenates the senses and the vital organs and heals every part of the body. To reduce stress, instil new energy and provide total relaxation.

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