Ayurveda – “the Science of Life”

Ayurveda is the natural healing system of India. Its origin goes back to ancient times (approximately 4000 BC). The same great Vedic seers that produced India’s original systems of yoga, meditation and vedic astrology, established Ayurveda as well. Thus, Ayurveda and Jyotish (Vedic Astrology) are vedic sister sciences.

Jyotish has a great ability to offer insight into one’s state of health at a particular time and can also indicate the general tendency of a person for good or ill health.

This is why, in my work as a certified Ayurvedic practitioner I often choose to integrate Ayuurveda with Jyotish, using both sciences to arrive at a diagnostic and to determine the appropriate remedies for a patient.

Ayurveda is Sanskrit for “the knowledge of life or daily living” or “the science of life”.

As a holistic medical system, it deals with health in all its aspects: physical health, mental balance, spiritual well-being, environmental considerations, dietary and lifestyle habits, daily routines and the impact of seasons on lifestyle.

In Ayurveda, health is not defined as merely the absence of disease, but as a state of overall well-being and balance between body, mind, soul and spirit.

A balanced body, a sound mind and a strong soul and spirit foster good health and impart a natural strength and resistance to diseases. The natural intelligence of a healthy body can easily deal with potential disease-causing influences at any time. Making a person strong and balanced in body, mind and spirit is the goal of Ayurvedic healing.

According to Ayurveda, we each have a unique constitution. The first step of an Ayurvedic consultation is finding out the constitution of the patient. Next comes identifying the existing imbalances and its causes. The final step is formulating a plan of dietary and lifestyle adjustments that would allow for balance to be restored.

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Ayurveda uses gentle and natural remedies and processes to restore balance. The healing process is a gradual one, but ensures lasting effects. While Allopathic medicine puts a lot of emphasis on treating the symptoms of the disease, Ayurveda is concerned with its root cause. According to Ayurveda, the root cause of all disease is to be found in the improper functioning of the digestive tract. If our body is a tree, the digestive system constitutes the roots of the tree. Even what appears to be just a mild affliction to the digestive process, can, if left untreated over a longer time, lead to serious illness in some other part of the body, a part that may have been congenitally weak.

However, it is important to emphasize that Ayurveda is complimentary to traditional medical practices and does not replace medical diagnosis and treatment.

As a certified Ayurvedic lifestyle counselor, my aim is to help you, my patient, understand your unique constitution with its blessings and challenges, get in touch with the innate intelligence of your own body and become more attuned to your environment.

Through simple dietary changes and lifestyle modifications, lifelong imbalances can be corrected and you can come to appreciate the full meaning of the word “wellbeing”.