Ayurveda

December 9^th, 2011

During the recent Gandhi and Globalization course at Navdanya we were fortunate to get a little insight on Ayurveda. Ayurveda is a term that I have heard loosely used in the United States and heavily advertised here in India, but I honestly had no idea what the term meant. My first guess is that it had something to do with natural cures, but who knows what “Natural” means anymore? And before I sound like a bigger hippie than most of you already think I am, let me just disclaim that I think Ayurveda is an interesting way to look at re-examining our lifestyles and not something I am ready to take on full force.

What caught my attention during the Ayurveda lecture is the actual definition of Ayurvedic practices. Ayurveda is a recognized health practice in India, but has not been adopted by much of the West because Ayurvedic medicines take time rather than the quick fix pills we are used to. Instead of using pills and chemicals to get rid of a disease, Ayurveda looks at the cause and how the human body can fight off illness with its own strengths. For example, if you have a headache, rather than taking an aspirin, Ayurvedic practices try to determine the cause of the headache. That may mean working less, getting more sleep, or stop staring at a computer screen. Ayurvedic practices change habits or use medicines that help the body fight illness.

That being said, Ayurvedic practices see that the modern human beings have lost the sense of how to live. If you imagine wild animals they are never overweight, underweight, or walking around with Kleenexes stuffed up their sleeves... they know how to live. Animals have a sense of connection with the sun cycles and when to eat and when to sleep. Ayurvedic practices say that human beings have the same schedule, but modern lifestyles have caused us to move far away from this schedule leading to many of the illness and diseases we see in the Western world today.

The following is the natural cycle human beings should be on according to Ayurvedic practices. Unfortunately, I can never see myself actually adhering to this schedule unless I am left alone on a desert island for the rest of my life:

6am-10am (time to eat a light breakfast and be active (mentally and/or physically))

10am-2pm (time to eat main meal)

2pm-6pm (continue with activity)

6pm-10pm (time to wind down and eat a light meal)

10pm-2am (rest)

2am-6am (The air is charged with vital energy during the union of day and night and this is the easiest time to get up. This is the time for meditation and yoga)

And of course we get more than four hours of sleep, these are just the time spans these activities are suggested. Sorry I didn't take better notes. I also won't get into the Constitution types and doshas because I am still trying to understand them myself. But, if you happen to be interested, I definitely suggest picking up a book on Ayurveda and figuring out your Constitution type, which will then have more specific recommendations as to what your body and mind need. I just picked up an Ayurvedic Cookbook if anyone is interested in plundering through it with me when I return. And on the topic of food, the lecturer recommended the three meals rather than a bunch of small meals throughout the day because everytime we eat our digestive system has to start working. With three meals throughout the day our digestive systems get a chance to rest and rejuvenate for the next tasty morsel!

This is far too much for an Ayurvedic meal, but doesn't it look tasty?!  It sure was; coked for us by a Tibetan Culinary School in Dehradun during the Gandhi and Globalization course.