What is Ayurveda?
Ayurveda is a preventative medicine lifestyle. You are the microcosm of the macrocosm of the universe!
It is 5,000 years old and comes from India. Ayurveda can be translated as knowledge or wisdom of life. It is based on the elements of; air, water, fire, earth, and space. It’s main focus is on digestion and Ayurveda texts state that all dis-ease begins with poor digestion. Modern research is now starting to prove and publish some of the scientific aspects from Ayurveda. (which I think is totally rad.)
Through Ayurveda I’ve been able to balance my hormones as well as deal with my anxiety and depression. It has also helped me with my addictions. It is a self-healing modality. I am going to share a few basic things about Ayurveda with you which have helped me.
One reason I love Ayurveda is because it is not a fad diet. It is a unique system designed to work through intuition and unique individual needs. The system for Ayurvedic eating is intuitive and has been proven over and over again for thousands of years. It also takes into account the whole process and all aspects of you. It’s not just what you eat, it is also when and how you eat. Also food which heals me may not be right for you based on your personal facts. (gender, past, age, where your from, current challenges, etc.) Ayurveda is holistic and it is the sister science of yoga. I believe Ayurveda and yoga help you live what you believe verses telling you what to believe. They are both life practices not simply exercise and diet.
Tongue scraping is probably the easiest new habit you can adopt from Ayurveda. Tongue scrapers are inexpensive and the habit takes less than a minute daily. I think this is very doable. According to Ayurveda your organs cleanse at night and deposit crap from your organs onto your tongue. If you brush your tongue the white, yellow or grey stuff goes right back in. You have to use a metal scraper to actually get the gunk off and out. When I started tongue scarping it increased my sense of taste.
Here is a video if you want to watch me do it.
Ayurveda has a bunch of unique practices for taking care of the sense organs. The understanding is your senses give you information about reality, they are how you perceive what is going on around you through your smell, touch, sight, taste and sound. If these precious body tools become dull your perception of reality can also be dulled. What! I know crazy stuff.
According to Ayurveda there are 3 main causes to disease:
Disrespecting the senses.
Making negligent choices.
Living out of rhythm.
Ayurveda is focused on living in rhythm with nature and your body. For example, going to bed after the sun and getting up before dawn is strongly suggested. Taking care of your spirit as well as your body is talked about in Ayurveda. Also meditation, working out and getting out in nature are all valued in Ayurveda.
Seasonal and local foods are usually the best. Organic foods are encouraged. Eating leftovers over 48 hours old, canned foods and frozen foods is less than optimal according to Ayurveda because there is little to no prana. Prana is considered life force energy - nutrients, vitamins, and enzymes when it comes to food. Generally, cooked foods and one pot meals are easier to digest. I could say more about food and I’ve probably already upset you. There is great information on what foods not to combine in the stomach because they slow digestion. I look up food or Ayurveda questions on this website: https://www.banyanbotanicals.com/
There are a few concepts in Ayurveda you may hear a lot if you continue to explore Ayurveda. One is like increases like and the opposite balances. For example, if you are cold, put on some layers. If your skin is dry, eat more oily foods or do oil massage. If you are getting angry and feeling like a perfectionist in your thoughts drinking coffee or alcohol will only agitate the situation.
Ayurveda is vast and it does become more complex as you continue to learn about yourself and your unique constitution. Constitution is how Ayurveda helps classify what is going on in your body. There are three doshas; vata, pitta, and kapha. They are all mixed with different elements. It is fun to take a dosha quiz to find out what it says AND it is only as accurate as a computer with intuition can be.
Another concept taught is energy moves from subtle to gross. When your dis-ease is still just a discomfort, like indigestion it is subtle. When it becomes IBS it is more gross. Or if you stay up late at night all the time, which is a subtle negative habit of being out of rhythm with nature, you could eventually have an autoimmune disorder. This works with thoughts too, they are subtle. Negative thoughts repeated often in your mind, can become anxiety or depression. This is where a yoga practice helps a lot because you begin to see your mind and separate it from you spirit.
What we resist persists. I love this about Ayurveda because we know people can’t change everything over night. The approach is to slowly add more positive habits and let the less healthy ones fade away. If you say, “I’m going to quit X.” Then you will continue to think about X until it drives you nuts and you continue to do it. It’s better to distract yourself with a healthy new habit.
There are a few magical things Ayurveda suggests and I already mentioned tongue scraping.
Triphala is the magical herb of digestion. Get some, take it daily.
CCF Tea is cumin, coriander and fennel seeds in water to make tea. It is great for digestion. You can have it with ginger, honey or fenugreek as well.
Ghee is used in most Ayurveda recipes because it is nourishing and a good carrier oil.
Chyavanprash is a jam with so many healthy things I’ll let you read more about it.
Ashwaganda is great for balancing hormones, sound sleep and a host of other things.
Oil self-massage can help many things including circulation, immune system, lymphatic system, low self-esteem, low confidence, poor body-image and more.
Tulsi or it is called holy basil, is said to be an elixir of life.
“Daily consumption of tulsi is said to prevent disease, promote general health, wellbeing and longevity and assist in dealing with the stresses of daily life.”
Overall Ayurveda encourages you to have rituals around your habits to make them sacred. Ayurveda encourages you to live in rhythm and fulfill your dharma (purpose). Ayurveda invites you to do dinacharya which is daily practices of self-care.
By eating and living in rhythm with nature I was able to ease my anxiety and stress. I am now a more grounded, centered, and confidant woman. Ayurveda helped me quit smoking and drinking along with other addictions I had. I was not able to shift alone however, it is worth noting it takes community support and accountability to change addictions. I was able to calm my menstruation moods and lessen the pain of periods. I got my hormones balanced enough to have a baby with the help of Ayurveda and the prescribed herbs.
Ayurveda can help you heal anything. The less serious the quicker Ayurveda will work. It could be a mental or physical challenge and there is an Ayurveda remedy for it. If you have cancer or something more terminal or serious it is best to meet with a practitioner to get their personalized advice on what you could do. I am not a doctor, I’m just a gal passionate about yoga lifestyle which is Ayurveda. I’ve seen it heal diseases.
If any of this interests you I have a ton of videos on youtube as well as resources on my website. I have online courses if you want help applying the wisdom of Ayurveda and yoga to your life. Digestion Reboot is a longer cleanse I offer which helps you with digestion, elimination and self-care. I designed it to help folks start to learn about their body and how to care for it according to Ayurveda.
If you would like to learn more listen to my mentor’s podcast on What is Ayurveda.
I’m here. Let me know if you need assistance on your journey!
In service with love,
Neve