On this 8th National Ayurveda Day, celebrated on November 10 on the festival of Dhanteras, a time for cleansing and renewal, we honour the ancient science of Ayurveda. Ayurveda comes from the words
Ayu (life) and
veda (knowledge), meaning the science that gives us the knowledge of life. Senior Ayurvedic Physician at Ananda, Dr Naresh Perumbduri answers essential questions on this healing science.
What are the main principles at the heart of Ayurveda? There are two major objectives for seeking an Ayurvedic treatment.
- To enhance the health markers in healthy individual, so that they can lead a healthy system viz. musculo-skeletal, neuro-muscular, digestive, endocrine, reproductive health etc.- To treat the manifested physical or mental condition through lifestyle modification, herbal formulations, Panchakarma procedures, rejuvenation (rasayana) therapies etc. These are to avoid any further complications or reoccurrence of the same.
How is one’s health assessed by an Ayurvedic Physician?
Ayurveda analyses a person’s body to discover underlying symptoms, therefore there is a detailed Parikshan (test) to conclude the suitable duration for complete cure. Categorized as Ashtasathana (8-fold examination) and Dasavidha Parikshan (10-fold examination), the tests are done through the 3-methods of diagnosis - Observation (Darshan), Touch (Sparshan) and Questioning (Prashan).
At Ananda the Ayurvedic physicians have designed a comprehensive methodology to execute the traditional Parikshan to arrive at the real underlying cause for physical and mental suffering.
What is the minimum time required to be able to experience the benefits of Ayurveda?
- The minimum time required to experience Ayurveda for a holistic detox is 10-12 days, however if the person has very specific clinical health goals to treat a manifested condition, then the minimum duration changes as per the doctor’s advice.
- To experience Ayurveda detox or Panchakarma therapies, the minimum suggested duration is 21 days. An intense detox with clinical goals involves different phases like Purva karma (preparatory) phase, shodhana (detox) phase and samsarjana (recovery) phase. Each phase has a set of unique therapies, dietary guidelines; activity schedule etc. - To treat any inflammatory condition requires a minimum of 14 days. Based on the intensity of the inflammatory condition the suggested duration may vary, because the treatment involves elements of Ayurveda Shodhana (detox) therapies along with shamana (pacifying) therapies to reduce the inflammation and avoid the reoccurrence of the condition.
- To boost the immunity/rejuvenation, would require minimum 10 to 28 days based on the age, health status, lifestyle, family history etc.
The suggested duration for an optimum result changes person to person, nevertheless, a 14-day duration is a good start.
Is there a specific time of year considered the best for an Ayurveda detox?
All Ayurveda therapies can be experienced throughout the year. However, if an individual wishes to balance the vitiated doshas through Panchakarma modalities, then specific time of the year is important.
Panchakarma is an Ayurvedic modality of Bio-Purificatory therapies. Panchakarma is not only a cleansing process, but it also supports the internal mechanism of the body by improving physiological process and mental abilities. Ayurveda recommends that a healthy person should undergo Panchakarma at least once a year while the frequency can vary for a person suffering with illness.
Ayurveda also talks about Swastha Panchakarma, which means a healthy individual undergoing special cleansing procedure to prevent physical and emotional imbalance, it is advised that one should undergo Seasonal Bio-purification as changes in season influences the accumulation of doshas and this results in illness in the following seasons. These influences are best treated by Panchakarma procedures.
Cleansing therapies are advised after evaluating the status for each bio-energetic forces or dosha e.g, an aggravated kapha dosha hampers the Agni (digestive fire), causing metabolic disturbances. Hence, vamana karma (emesis therapy) is prescribed in spring season.
Ayurveda has specifically advised an ideal season to balance each dosha (formed by the 5 elements).
- Ideal time to balance Kapha (earth and water) is spring season.
- For Vata (air and space) Monsoon is ideal season.
- For Pitta (fire and water) autumn is ideal season to balance.
Do you have to be vegetarian to fully feel the benefits of an Ayurvedic diet?
Though Ayurveda in general recommends a vegetarian diet, the physician takes these decisions after considering an individual’s digestive capacity, physical work, age and place of residence.
Dietary guidelines also change based on the therapies which the individual is undergoing, the phase of the program, and doshic imbalance of the person. For example, in Panchakarma program, during I & II phases (preparatory & detox) we firmly recommend a vegetarian diet to provide the necessary rest to the digestive fire and support detoxification, however in phase III (samsarjana), for some cases, Ayurveda might recommend light animal-based broth preparations.