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Ayurveda: The Ancient Medical Science of the Hindus
Ayurveda, you hear the word often enough now . . . your friends
who swear by its miraculous effect on their health (after they
have exhausted all other treatment modalities of course!); you
also come across the word "Ayurveda" almost all the
time on labels of bottled cosmetics, shampoos and elixirs; Model
turned Movie Star Christy Turlington sells with a sweet insistence
her Ayurvedic beauty and rejuvenation line of skin and body care
and Times magazine wonders If it is India's home spun Ayurveda
and its tradition of insistence on total well being - mind -
body -spirit that is responsible for the rapid turnover of Beauty
Queens?
And we Indians, can we forget our very own Shahnaz Hussian whose
simple Ayurvedic recipes in crass green plastic jars ----heralded
a revolution in Indian women reclaiming her right to be groomed and
exploded the "Beauty Parlour Culture" on middle class India.
And last but not the least Šour grannies, mothers and aunts
constantly reminding us to not drink cold water after coming in from
hot summer Sun; to not eat mango's without soaking them in water
and insisted upon rubbing hot ghee and Heeng on our bellies when
we were faking stomach aches to avoid going to School. Which of us
does not remember the warm blessing of a ginger and black pepper
Chai bought to us during a cold and cough, the soothing relief of
Rose and Khus sherbats in summer and the "khichri" or "pongal" when
we had fevers?
So Ayurveda lives on . . . in each one of us, in our families, in
our choices and in our collective memory.
So what is Ayurveda exactly? Literally translated from Sanskrit
it is composed of 2 words "Ayu" which means life and "Veda" which
denotes knowledge. So Ayurveda is the knowledge of healthy living
and is not confined only to the treatment of diseases A compendium
on life itself, in it's entirety, it's scope ranging from birth to
death, including disease, decay, aging, and wellness, lust and ambition,
rage and love. This is a major agenda indeed for any system of healing,
but can it be any less - especially if true healing has to take place?
Perhaps this is exactly why Ayurveda manages to get to the bottom
of the disease that distresses the mind or the emotion that ails
the body. Ayurveda is considered as one of the Upaveda's of Atharvaveda
and has thus it's origin from Vedas, the oldest recorded wisdom of
the Hindus. There is evidence which suggests that in ancient India
Ayurveda had spread to several other parts of the world in some form
or the other.
In Ayurveda, the mind -body question is not even up for debate -
it is a given, that mind and body are one and the same. What effects
the mind will effect the body and vice versa. So Ayurveda with it's
deep understanding of the cause of disease, the routes of disease
and the manifestation of diseases - is often always successful in
areas where traditional medicine fails or only offers symptomatic
management.
Ayurveda advocates a complete promotive, preventive and curative
system of medicine and include eight major clinical specialties of
medicine namely, (I) Medicine (Kayachikitsa), (2) Surgery (Salya
Tantra), (3) ENT (Salakya Tantra), (4) Paediatrics ( Kaumatabhritya),
(5) Psychiatry (Bhutvidya), (6) Toxicology (Agad Tantra), (7) Nutrition,
rejuvenation and geriatrics (Rasayan tantra), (8) Sexology and virilization
(Vajikarana). This shows what a developed science Ayurveda was in
ancient times.
The Britishers came down heavy on the imparting of Ayurvedic knowledge
and promoted British owned Pharmaceutical companies and modern medicne;
and soon, Ayurveda, instead of being main stream medicine of the
Hindus, like every thing else of the Hindus, was soon crushed, prevented
from developing. Ayurveda's importance diminished and faded away
as generations of Indians were beguiled and misinformed with the
quick fixes and rapid cures of modern medicine, requiring no dietary
restrictions or internal discipline what so ever.
A national brain washing by modern 'rational Maculay education" was
underway and medicine based upon Cartesian model of man as machine
- soul less and stripped of choices- treating the 'liver' and the
'gall bladder' not the person as a whole - came to stay. Medicine
was no longer about preventing disease, optimizing life, or to bring
back to balance, rejuvenate and if death were inevitable - preparing
for the final journey with dignity.
Modern medicine was all about a world full of hostile allergens,
bacteria, microbes out to get us. Ayurveda's premise that unless
and until the hosts inner immunity caves in - no allergy or infection
will manifest was quickly forgotten and so were the accompanying
behaviors which ensure optimum immunity, strong metabolism (agni),
and ability to resist and adapt to change of season and different
living and environmental conditions, etc. Plants and animals are
constantly altering and adapting their inner balance to be in equilibrium
with the changing outer environment.
The Hindu in modern India now had a pill, an antidote, an inoculation,
a guarantee! The message was loud and clear: Live as you want , eat
as your tongue dictates, sexually indulge per fantasy and generally
believe (and support) that the anti - death / anti - aging pill is
only a a maater of some more research and time.
Ayurveda is based on certain fundamental principles that pertain
to life (of man, plants and animals) on this earth. These fundamental
rules have not changed since the beginning of time itself. One is
often over awed by at the wisdom of the ancient Hindu scientists
who unfolded the secrets of nature after astute observation and re-examination
of evidence for centuries. So rest assured Ayurveda made no declaration's
in a hurry or even based its studies on 20 year controlled study
of mice! It's laboratory was the entire universe, it's ingredients
simply the basic building blocks of this universe itself: the great
5 elements (panch maha bhutas) - Space (Akash), Air (Vayu), Fire
(Tejas), Water (Aap) and Earth (prithvi). Shake up the 5 elements
and you have the recipe for creating this universe in all it's entirety
and variety.
Man is a part and parcel of this universe and can hardly be considered
in isolation. The pancha maha bhautik Sharira (body) along with manas
(mind) and atman (soul) constitutes you and I, the Purusha (the living,
breathing, feeling self) in constant interaction with the outer universe
(loka). The pancha maha bhautic body will one day become exactly
that: reduced to ashes and the atman in it's eternal quest to unite
with the parmatma (univerasl spirit / soul) will move up and down
in the karmic wheel taking on new bodies, discarding old ones; as
per its evolutionary agenda and consciousness.
The self of the person (Purusha) is a continuum of the universal
self while the physical body composed of pancha maha bhutas (five
great elements) originates from the pancha maha bhautik seed and
derives nourishment from food and drinks of the similar composition.
Hence equilibrium and non antagonism between the internal and external
milieu of man is essential for the maintenance of the living body.
Since the individual human being is the miniature replica of the
universe; the individual (purusha) and the universe (loka) stay in
constant interaction with each other and also derive and draw materials
from each other in order to maintain their normalcy and homoestasis.
This interaction and exchange continues in a normal way such as by
breathing the air, eating foods available in nature, etc. So long
as this interaction is wholsome and optimum, the man is in optimum
health. When this harmonious process breaks down, a disease state
starts. Hence in Ayurveda the main principle of treatment will be
to restore harmonious exchange between Purusha and Loka and restore
to normal the panchmahabhutas composing the purusha (mind and body)
with due processes.
Ayurveda is deeply concerned with the concept of true balance. This
balance entails not only a correct functioning of systems and organs,
psyche and spirit but also a balanced and creative relationship with
our fellow creatures, nature as a whole, between family members,
our climate, the civilization we live in, between our ideals and
customs, between truth and our selves, with God, etc Ayurvedic texts
flourish details on right behavior, right thinking, right action
and right response, right eating, right lifestyle, etc. A healthy
individual makes for a healthy society and a body that is balanced
holds a spirit that is free - free for spiritual advancement.
'Healthy' is termed as 'Swastha' in Ayurveda - one who stays in
his 'sva' (self). This 'sva' involves the total personality of man
comprising of consciousness (atman), body (sharira) and mind (manas). "sva'
also denotes prakriti, 'constitutional normalcy' which makes the
concept of sva different from person to person. This is quite different
from the world of ideal blood counts, ideal height -weight ratios,
ideal heart rate etc. Ayurveda regards each individual as unique,
a brand new painting with its own set of colors. So what may be normal
to one and constitute his or health may be quite abnormal to another.
In Ayurveda people do not come from a cookie cutter - so Ayurveda
provides the encouragement and tools for self analysis, understanding
one's native nature (prakruti) and departure from one's native nature
(Vikruti). Ayurveda recommends a return to nature, to what is simple
and intrinsic to man's life, and provides information to make responsible
choices which promote good physical and mental health.
Many Blessings
Pratichi Mathur
© 2000-2008 Pratichi Mathur -- All rights reserved.
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