By Om Singh
Buddha said our body is precious. It is a vehicle for awakening, and we must take the utmost care of this sacred vehicle. This is where Ayurveda comes in. Ayurveda provides the means to take care of this divine-human body.
Ayurveda is based on healing the human body, mind and soul through herbs, natural medicines and daily practices. Ayurveda and Yoga perfectly complement each other for this journey.
Ayurveda is an ancient science that was discovered more than 5000 years ago somewhere in India.
Since then, Ayurveda has spread like wildfire and helped heal thousands of people, not only in India but all over the world. One of the things to know about Ayurveda is that even today it is considered a sacred self healing path.
The practices of Ayurveda, the natural medicines and the herbs are all considered to be sacred and used with deep respect and reverence.
To experience the power of this healing system, you can work one on one with an Ayurvedic Practitioner or enrol yourself in an Ayurveda retreat.
Ayurveda has many self healing benefits on many different levels.
Here are 6 benefits of Ayurveda to know about:
CLEANSING AND PURIFYING
We live in a time and age where most of our food is grown chemically, the air we breathe is toxic and polluted, and the water we drink is often contaminated with harmful substances.
Apart from the environmental toxicity our bodies are faced with, thoughts and emotions can also become toxic because of excessive stress on the nervous system.
With all the physical and emotional toxins within us, we fall sick, are unable to function and in need of deep healing. This is where Ayurveda and Mother Nature come in.
Ayurveda practices facilitate detoxification of the body from toxins on the physical level with practices such as panchakarma, bio purification practices, and so much more.
In panchakarma, a cleansing therapy designed to detoxify and rejuvenate the body, Ayurvedic physicians check the constitution of the three doshas in our bodies – Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. The three doshas indicate the balance of the 5 different elements in our body – earth, air, fire, water and ether/space. If any of these elements are imbalanced, it can lead to diseases. The physician checks the doshas and the current situation of the physical and emotional body of the person.
Depending on the diagnosis, the physician suggests the best panchakarma treatment for the person, which may include abhyanga (warm oil massage), swedana (herbal steam therapy), basti (herbal enemas), nasya (nasal oil administatraion) or virechana (vomiting).
Panchakarma is mainly done to rid the body of toxins on a cellular level and discard the undigested food that stays in the body and can lead to illness and disease.
The cleaner the body is from within, the clearer the mind starts to get from within. The cleansing and purification of the body that is possible with Ayurveda is one of the most precious gifts of Ayurveda to the world.
PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL HEALING
Working with the ancient science of Ayurveda leads to healing on all levels. When we begin to work with Ayurveda, the healing can start on the physical, emotional or spiritual levels first – this depends on the method of treatment.
For many people, physical ailments are often addressed first. Once the physical healing and cleansing have begun, the healing moves to deeper layers within our being where our mental body, emotional body and spiritual body starts to heal.
As the physical body starts to heal, we begin to become clearer in our minds, have more clarity in our day to day lives, and we feel free from the dense fog of toxins that we were living under before.
Many people have reported having profound changes in their lives after working with Ayurvedic treatments using herbs and natural medicines.
One of the things to know about Ayurveda is that many a time, a lot of suppressed emotions begins to surface when we begin the process of physical purification with Ayurveda.
Once we feel these suppressed emotions and release them from our bodies, we begin to heal emotionally as well.
Emotional healing leads to spiritual healing, and we start to feel alive and energetic again.
INCREASED AWARENESS
As mentioned previously, as we begin to heal emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually, our level of awareness starts to expand.
When our body is filled with toxins and undigested food, our energy becomes dense, and our level of awareness drops down.
With a dense awareness comes confusion and stress. However, with the help of Ayurveda and the healing, detoxification, cleansing and purification that comes with it, our bodies can feel lighter, and this naturally elevates the level of our awareness.
With increased and sharper awareness, we make better decisions in our day to day lives. Where we first reacted out of our habits and conditioning, we gradually tend to respond to a situation in a conscious manner.
For example, a situation in which we would have reacted with anger and agitation, we respond with patience and a deeper understanding of the situation.
With an increase in our level our awareness, we become more aware of our thoughts, emotions, our energy and the effect and power of our actions. With increased awareness, we start to become aware of our true selves and find a deeper meaning to life.
DEEPER CONNECTION
Going on a healing journey, whether it is an Ayurvedic retreat in India or anywhere in the world, will lead to a deeper sense of connection to all of life.
All of Ayurveda is based on Mother Nature and the natural world. Everything used in Ayurveda comes from natural plants, herbs, soil and other natural materials.
This is one of the main reasons Ayurveda promotes a sense of deeper connection to mother earth and all of life. Once we begin healing and cleansing with Ayurveda, we also feel more connected to ourselves and each other.
The clearer and cleaner we are within, the more connected we feel to the divine force that flows through all of life.
LIFESTYLE CHANGE
As we begin to heal and evolve spiritually with the guidance of Ayurveda, we naturally begin to make changes in our day-to-day – what we eat, what time we sleep, what we think about, and so much more. We slowly start to align ourselves with the energies of mother earth and the natural world.
Our lifestyle begins to take a healthier and holistic turn, structured more around taking care of our bodies and our mental, emotional, spiritual and physical health.
In other words, we start to become more aware of our bodies and do what is in the highest good for ourselves.
DE-STRESS – RELAX – REJUVENATION
Ayurvedic practices and therapies such as healing massages can be a fantastic and effective stress reliever. Massage helps regulate the blood in the body and gives the muscles of our body the energy movement that they need.
This helps in feeling profoundly relaxed and rejuvenated. Massages and bodywork have been known to produce deeply healing effects by moving the stagnant energy in our bodies which can cause stress and anxiety. This leaves us feeling relaxed, fresh and alive.
Other Ayurvedic therapies such as panchakarma treatment, shirodhara, basti and more ancient remedies are excellent methods for healing, relaxation and rejuvenation as well.
