Ayurveda, The Science of Life!

Ayurveda promotes this concept:

“Let you food be your medicine, and let your medicine be your food!”

According to Ayurveda, the single most cause for good or bad health is whatever your dietary lifestyle is, or is not.

This page on Ayurveda is offered as a service to those who seek a dietary lifestyle that works well for them, and which is also an alternative medical healing modality that has universal applications. The real efficacy of Ayurveda is that it caters for each unique and individual human being, with unique and individual physical constitutions, which is entirely addressed by this remarkable medical science from India. Furthermore, I understand that Ayurveda is extremely proficient in diagnosing the causation of a medical condition, in most cases.

I further intend to make a list here, on this page, of those Ayurveda doctors, most of whom have the BAMS degree from India, (Batchelor of Ayurvedic Medicine and Surgery), yet many in the West are very well trained as Ayurvedic Practitioners. This list will act as a kind of registry for those wishing to engage the services of an Ayurveda doctor/practitioner, anywhere in the world.

I, therefore, request any Ayurveda doctor and practitioner to contact me via the Contact page of this website, if they wish to be listed here free of any charge, for consideration to be added to the list. In this way, I can help in the dissemination of Ayurvedic knowledge and help develop more awareness of this ancient and remarkable healing medical modality.

The subject of Ayurveda is so vast, that I am unable to present all that Ayurveda is and all that it can address, so I will be presenting book titles below that will be much more helpful in your Ayurveda research. If anyone has a book title they can recommend, please let me know. Thank you.

Ayurveda – The Science of Life, from India

(My intention is to provide sufficient general information, that may inspire you to do your own research, and obtain all the information that will satisfy your curiosity)

I began the Ayurveda Dietary Lifestyle in 2003, at the age of 58, and in February, 2008 I became a vegetarian in India, then in 2017 I became a vegan in Israel. Ayurveda is extremely adaptive, and caters for all diets, whether it is carnivorous, or herbivorous, vegan or vegetarian.

The question is, whatever your diet, are you feeding yourself with knowledge of what you eat, and what effect your food has on your body and mind? Unfortunately, most do not, and this is a major reason why people get sick. This page provides a basic introduction into the world of the Ayurveda Dietary Lifestyle, but first let me start with my story;

In 2003 I was experiencing chronic constipation, whereby I could not have a bowel movement, and it was really bad. I have little faith in Western Medicine, which means that I did not have faith drug laxatives, because they do not address the cause, I opted for colonic irrigation treatments, otherwise known as Colon Irrigation, or Hydro-therapy.

Some months later, I had a consultation with a visiting Ayurveda physician, Dr. Partap Chauhan, from Jiva Ayurveda Institute in Faridabad, India. He was attending the annual conference of the National Ayurveda Medical Association of America, NAMA. He told me that I was not that ill, and he explained that I had a constitutional (dosha) imbalance and that he would arrange for herbs to be sent to me from India. About two weeks later, the herbs arrived, and I started to take the powders and tablets. Within a few weeks I began to feel better, my bowels began to work on their own, and I had color in my face again. A few more weeks and I felt more normal. My bowel movements continued to improve, and after two months there was no constipation at all. I was cured with natural herbs. I felt wonderful, and this piqued my curiosity about this natural medical system that I did not know existed.

I decided to read about, and educate myself on Ayurveda, and at the same time I decided to adopt the Ayurveda Dietary lifestyle, which meant that I was to cook my own food. I purchased Ayurvedic cookbooks and started upon a path that I have maintained since 2003.

However, before Ayurveda, I tried a number of different dietary systems. One such system or dietary plan, was to eat raw food, and it did not take long for me to realize that I was upsetting my digestive track again, and I ceased that system immediately. I tried the Macrobiotic Dietary system from Japan, I tried the protein system, the carbohydrate system. You name it, and I tried it. Even though I tried quite a few different dietary systems, it was only when I started with Ayurveda did my digestion become balanced again, as it resonated with me very well indeed, and I have stayed with Ayurveda ever since. It works for me! I do believe it works for most people, because it is the only dietary system that caters for individual constitutions (doshas)!

There are more instances whereby Ayurveda provided the cure for relatively common conditions, that my Western/Allopathic doctor did not know how to treat without the use of pharmaceutical drugs.

The fact that I learned to become a good Ayurveda cook is rather amazing, because prior to 2003 I could not ‘boil water!’

What is Ayurveda?

Ayurveda is a Sanskrit word that means, ‘The Science of Life, and appeared in India about 6,000 years ago, in India.

This is because so many people are not able to digest their food very well, which is the cause of many of the diseases and illnesses – incomplete, inadequate digestion! This is the consequence of people having little, or no idea what constitutes a healthy meal for their individual body type, or physical constitution, they eat inappropriate foods, cooked in an inappropriate manner, or raw food which is inappropriate for certain body types, and/or poor food combinations, such as eating fruit and vegetables at the same time, or drinking ice-cold fluids during the meal. This is because most people believe that all healthy food is good for all people, a ‘one size fits all,’ philosophy, and which could not be further from the truth.

Furthermore, Ayurveda says that, as a result of poor digestion ama (toxins) is produced by the body, and which is the main cause of disease. Ama is a nasty mucous type of substance that can be foul smelling, and which lodges in the body, including the joints, organs or vascular system, and anywhere it can. Ama blocks the energy channels, restricts the smooth functioning of the bodily systems, and illness results. Ayurveda treats specific illnesses with herbal medicines, which are not drugs, and without such side effects. Together with the use of herbs, Ayurveda counsels an appropriate dietary lifestyle, which helps correct digestion, and balances the body so that the ama may also be eliminated. Ayurveda acknowledges that the food we eat, if appropriate is also our medicine, indeed, Ayurveda agrees with Hippocrates, and says,

“let your food be your medicine, and your medicine be your food.”

Included in the Ayurveda Dietary Lifestyle are all the spices, individually, and in synergistic combinations, that are cooked in an appropriate manner (including sequences of actions, when different spices are added at different times), and which help to balance the food, so that a minimum of ama is created, if at all. This type of food is not necessarily highly spiced or spicy hot, as there is a remarkable balance that offers all types of people and their individual constitutions the type of food that is enjoyable to eat, while remaining entirely life supporting and appropriate for their individual constitution (dosha).

Cooking, therefore, accommodates the three doshas or physical constitutions, such as; the Vata person, the Pitta person, the Kapha person, and what is known as tridoshic cooking, whereby the food is suitable for all three doshas/constitutions. We are all combinations of these three doshas, with one being usually dominant. When one knows his or her type of physical constitution and eats accordingly, I can say from my own experience, magic happens. At this point I also want to state that when an individual has been eating an inappropriate diet for many years, the consequential damage is usually the cause of diseases and physical conditions that appear later in life, giving the erroneous impression that age is the cause, as I mentioned before. However, this is not always the case. Some people are particularly sensitive to inappropriate foods and food combinations, and they become ill at a young age.

There are other medical areas that Ayurveda covers, namely, mind/psychology, geriatrics, pediatrics, surgery, general diseases, in which every illness is considered being ‘out of balance,’ of one or more of the three ‘Doshas’ or constitutions (Vata, Pitta, Kapha), and which dietary lifestyle has a direct correlation. The general purpose of Ayurveda, therefore, is to help the person get back into balance. In addition, there is a well-developed philosophy of preventative measures that are offered, thus helping everyone to maintain their homeostasis. One of the methods to do this is called ‘panchakarma,’ (the five actions), which are usually offered in residence somewhere, although people can do it as an ‘out-patient,’ or even at home, which I have done. Panchakarma is a complete cleansing process that helps the individual to clean out their body, down to their cells of their body. That is how complete it is.

My Ayurveda ‘bible’ is the book entitled, ‘The Complete Book of Ayurvedic Home Remedies,’ by Vasant Lad, B.A.M.S, M.A.Sc., who has the Ayurvedic institute in Asheville, North Carolina, USA. He is also connected to an Ayurvedic clinic in Pune, India, I believe. When the Ayurveda Institute was located in Albuquerque, New Mexico, USA, I used to attend the Friday evening lectures, where I also saw the Indian movie, Mahabharatta, which was an all-night event. There was an excellent shop where I could buy CD’s of Gyatri Mantra, Merkandeya Mantra, and much of the paraphernalia that people use in their spiritual quest of Consciousness. I was even able to obtain the ingredients for Agnihotra.

Ayurveda is based upon the understanding and usage, in balance, of the five elements; space (ether), air, fire, water, earth, which are found in all matter, including our human bodies. It is also based upon the six tastes; sweet, sour, salty, bitter, pungent astringent.

Another consideration is whether any particular food is heavy or light, cooling or heating (this has nothing to do with temperature of the food, rather, it is the effect on the body within the digestive tract), dry or moist/unctuous, amongst other considerations.

Then comes an understanding of one’s body type, or constitution, which is made up of three doshas, constitution, or body types, which are; Vata, Pitta, Kapha, and which lay the foundation of the effective dietary lifestyle, by governing our psycho-biological functioning as human beings. The objective is to maintain a balance between these three doshas, which we all have in varying degrees, and which results in our constitution being quite unique. In other words, like I mentioned above, we all have a combination of Vata, Pitta and Kapha in different and distinct ratios of composition. Even though we each have all three doshas, one is usually more dominant. However, there are those who have two doshas of equal prominence, and in rare cases all three are equal.

Here is a description of each Dosha;

Vata

Vata comprises the elements of ether & air, and is the energy of movement, and is influenced by the subtle energy that governs biological movement, which we can call prana, or life force, which is the basic essence of Vata. This life-force supports intelligence that is communicated between cells, and thus, maintains the correct life functioning (homeostasis) of our physical biology. Vata governs movement or mobility, which influences and regulates all the activity within the body and of the mind, including our nervous system. When Vata is in balance, one is more creative, happy, flexible, with the feeling of being light (rather than heavy). Out of balance Vata produces feelings of fear, anxiety, nervousness, and possibly physical spasms, including a tendency to constipation. Vata has a tendency towards dryness, airiness, cooling, with short spurts of energy, a short-term memory, and is quite inspirational. It is also the factor that moves both pitta and kapha. Without Vata nothing moves. In this way, when Vata is out of balance it adversely affects the other two doshas. Eating food which is like Vata, for example: dry food (like dry crackers, or food that has a significant drying tendency), too much air (like popcorn, which is also dry), food that creates too much cooling, then Vata becomes imbalanced. Vata prospers with food that is moist, warm/cooked, and spiced to provide warming within the digestive track (not necessarily spicy hot)

Pitta

The elements of Pitta are fire & water, the key word for Pitta is ‘fire,’ because this is the underlying principle of pitta. In this way Pitta governs the energy of metabolism, heating, body temperature, biochemical changes, digestion, absorption, and assimilation of digested food. Pitta governs appetite and vitality, and when a pitta person is hungry, they usually have to eat immediately, or become quite irritable. Pitta promotes intelligence and understanding, and the ability to learn, and thus they are usually dynamic, with good, long-term memories. When out of balance, Pitta can be fiery, contentious, frustrated, and even display jealous tendencies.

Therefore, it is unwise for a pitta person to eat highly spiced food, providing more heat, that pitta has in good supply. A pitta diet would provide more cooling food (not temperature). That is food which creates cooling in the digestive track. Different foods create heat or cooling. For instance, carrots are heating, so, too many carrots would not be so wise, unless the carrots were cooked with appropriate spices/herbs, like coriander, to tone down the heating element.

Kapha

The key words for Kapha are water and earth, the two elements that underscore the quality of Kapha. In this way, Kapha provides us with the liquid and moisture that is required by each cell of our bodies to exist. Kapha is the lubricant, it is unctuous, and thus lubricates the joints, skin, heals wounds, and supports our immune system. Kapha provides endurance, strength and stability, and is heavy, slow, cool, unctuous/oily, and sweet. On a psychological level, Kapha, when in balance, supports love, calmness and forgiveness. When out of balance, there is a tendency towards attachment, greed, lust and envy.

It would, therefore, be unwise for a Kapha person to eat too much oily food, too much dairy food. Kapha can eat popcorn (dry, airy) with impunity, as an example.

To help you discover your body type, constitution or doshas, I include a Dosha (constitution) Test questionnaire below, that I have drawn up, for you to complete. However, it is far better to go to an Ayurvedic doctor or practitioner who will be able to take your three pulses, observe your body, and note the answers to various questions posed. Such a practitioner will be able to ascertain your dosha far more accurately than by completing a questionnaire.  It is such a subjective exercise, and, more often than not, an Ayurveda practitioner will be more accurate, most of the time. Please remember that the questionnaire poses generalized questions, and such questions do not necessarily indicate such a state or condition. If a particular dosha with which you were born (prakruti) is deranged (out of balance), the distortion is known as vikruti, and answering the questions may be more challenging.  It is helpful to answer the Dosha Test twice, first, provide the answers according to how you were in your youth, and then repeat the test with answers according to how you observe yourself in the present time. This will give you some idea as to what your prakruti (natural state) was, and what your vikruti (distorted state) may be, currently. Consequently, you will know what to do in order to return to your natural state.

If in doubt, consult an Ayurvedic professional. We are combinations of all three doshas, and so the indicators can be from all three doshas, but, which one is dominant, which is second, and third? Perhaps two are the same, and in some cases all three doshas are equal.

Here, below, is a Dosha/Constitution test, comprising 35 questions that will require you to be extremely subjective about yourself. You will have the opportunity to ascertain what Dosha/Constitution you are. You will find out, if you can answer the questions accurately, which Dosha is dominant, or if they are of equal prominence, which is rare and is quite excellent. Copy, paste and print out the form, check/tick where appropriate, and each check/tick equals 1 point. Assign each point to the appropriate dosha/constitution; Vata, Pitta, Kapha. The resultant score will help you understand what your dominant dosha may be. I suggest you do this at least twice to ascertain consistency in your answers.

Furthermore, I also strongly suggest that you contact an Ayurveda doctor or Ayurveda Practitioner, who will be able to take your 3 pulses, read your tongue, ears, hands, nails, your general demeanour, and will ask you many questions. Most consultations last for about 1 hour. This will provide you with much more accurate information about your present state of health, and what you can do about it. In the usA there are several professional Ayurveda associations, not least of which is NAMA (National Ayurveda Medical Association), where you can probably find a suitable and local, qualified Ayurveda practitioner. In other parts of the world, including than India, you can search for an Ayurveda practitioner on the internet.

Dosha Test