While taking Ayurveda Medicine...

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   Through the many different herbal ingredients and the compounds each of them hold, a synthesis on a wide range is happening in between the inner and the outer nature. Breast milk of the mother provides everything for the baby; nutrients and immunity. In a similar manner, herbal medicines are the breast milk of Mother Nature and taking of herbal medicines not only cure diseases; but strengthen immunity as well. Just like a baby establishes its separateness and individuality through birth on one way and at the same time keep complete dependence on mother as well, human being psychologically is very much free from the laws of nature and at the same time physically almost completely bound to. 

   During the years of 2008 and 2009, some parts of the south Indian states suffered from an epidemic of Chikungunya. Almost everybody in each house got affected by it, wherever the disease spread. It started with a fever with severe joint pain which made people completely bed ridden for an average span of two weeks, and the complete recovery from joint pains took months and in some cases more than a year. A fascinating fact noted by the Ayurveda physicians practicing in these areas was a striking distinction in immunity against this disease in between people who are used to Ayurveda medicines and not. When the old age group suffered the worst from the disease and some of them even died, most of the old people who are regular users of Ayurveda medicines didn’t get affected; even when all others in the family succumbed to the illness! Even the ones, who got affected, got recovered within three or four days!!!

   In the common understanding, the unpleasant taste and smell of some Ayurveda medicines are counted as a draw back of the system. To a great extent, this is a view from the angle of the ‘modern world’ which is finding everything natural as unhygienic, raw and unpolished. The modern civilization is actually separating human being from the nature and alienating him. Now a days, people are forced to believe that everything natural is having some faults and inadequacies and human knowledge and intelligence is correcting these faults and bringing everything in the form of perfect finished products! Nature is becoming evaluated more and more unintelligent, untouchable and unhygienic! This feel of being different from the unity of nature and the strong will to tame it, is to be understood exactly similar to the role of a Cancer cell in the body.

   Modern knowledge enabled us to differentiate and name the compounds in our food items. Now we know and speak about the calorie value, vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, proteins and all. To some extent, this modern knowledge made us a little too proud and feel like we know everything about food. Here, a very important fact we forget about is that none of our basic food materials are discovered with the help of Modern Science! And in the making of a dish also, Science is having nothing to do. Many people take vitamin supplements on a daily basis, because they know well about the necessity of vitamins, what they do in the body and what will happen if they are not sufficiently supplied. With the same logic, nobody has until now anyway started using Oxygen cylinders! It is believed that proteins in the diet provide the protein necessities of the body. But elephants are not eating any protein rich diet! We should be aware that there are many factors unknown as well, which are having significant roles in nutrition, growth, disease, ageing, etc. Younger ages, physically every living being grow, middle age is marked by almost no notable growth and deterioration and the old age makes everything loose the strength and bulk causing shrinking. Nutrition is certainly having a role in these changes. But it cannot answer all about it. Irrespective of what one eats, some are bulky and some are thin; considering different forms of life, some are big and some are small, some live short and some long, naturally.

   All animals recognise their food without any doubt; but humans comparatively not. The most satisfying food of a person is found out by self. Necessities or negativity in the body-mind finds its positive from the nature in natural ways. And there can be no better match existing. The good and bad aspects of personality will be reflected in the food; or the natural necessities of the body-mind and the evils represented by greed and artificial appetites will be mixed together. The inner knowledge which is staying in the depths of consciousness is what is helping to find out the right food and there cannot be any knowledge superior to that. The greed in human being makes him unsatisfied with the natural tastes. Artificial food and tastes made him loose the links with the natural insticts which lead him to his real food and natural medicine. We have lost a sense which was reading the inner nature and outer nature which sensed the necessities of the inner world and found their positives outside; in the form of food and medicines.

   The ultimate source of Ayurveda principles is this inner knowledge. When a herbal formulation is taken in, counsciousness in the physical body differentiates what it needs to manage the imbalance and accepts just that part. This is just like the assimilation of the nutrients from the food and rejection of the rest. Chemicals and extracts of active principles from herbs seems going unnoticed or not recognised by  consciousness. The 'knowledge' part of the self thus becomes a mere witness or may not even recognising the tresspassing of such elements. Even when it is noticing, it is completely helpless. A peice of plastic lying abandoned in the nature and chemical or nuclear waste left are similar in this aspect. Nature stands helpless there. Everything is cyclic and interconnected in nature. But these products of artificial intelligence stay out of the network of nature, the range of Universal Harmony or Cosmic Truth. In another perspective, it is a denial of the intelligence in the subtle level and the blind imposing of human intellect which is actually the intellect of a certain scientist or lab. This is nothing less than a kind of dictatorship over the laws of nature and universe!

   Compared with all other living beings, human being is having a very wide range of menu; possibly the widest. And while all other living beings live within particular geometrical limits and climatic zones, we live spread almost all around the globe with entirely different lifestyles and food. Adaptability of human life with a very wide range of nature is evident in this aspect. Necessities of the body or mind are not stubbornly fixed. Or else, food and body-mind influence each other and they find a certain balance and rhythm in each individual. To a great extent, this balance becomes complete in itself. This makes each individual feel his or her food, the best in the whole world!

   On the other side, apart from all the known essential ingredients, we have to assume many other principles also existing in the nature which could influence health and healing in positive and negative ways. And furthermore, life is not a simple phenomena which could be defined completely in a chemical or biochemical plane. In this context, herbal medicines should be assumed balancing some necessities which are caused by the limitation of our individual ranges of food. Life is always motivated by the search of pleasure and that makes us search for more and more pleasing food categories and stick on to the individual favorites. In parallel, this is causing the avoidance of unpleasant items and that leads to imbalances which lead to weakness, loss of immunity and diseases. Ironically; the avoided tastes visit us in the form of medicines and ‘Pathya’ or diet suggested and the favorites get restricted as ‘Apathya’, the 'don'ts', generally in Ayurveda treatment!!!

   Ayurveda recognizes six different basic tastes as; Sweet, Sour, Salty, Bitter, Pungent and Astringent. Each taste in the nature or on our dining table is a mix of these basic tastes. Depending on what is dominating, we categorize them as sweet or sour. In Ayurvedic view, generally all carbohydrates, proteins and fats and oils come under the sweet category. Each taste category should be understood as consisting of infinite ranges within themselves. We know that the sweetness of each single fruit, each variety and piece to piece differ from one another and the same it is with each variant of honey or sugar. Ayurveda advices to include all tastes in the food to stay healthy; in such a way that the former ones mentioned can have dominance over the later ones. And the regular use of the same tastes is advised unhealthy also. So, the wider the range of tastes included in the diet, the stronger the immunity will be. Our hesitation to unpleasant tastes and the craving for pleasing tastes thus lead us to ill health. Among all living forms on Earth, human being is the most vulnerable to diseases and the domestic animals and plants cultivated and nurtured by him take the immediate next positions. The most pleasure oriented, thus simply becomes the most susceptible to diseases. Ayurveda medicines provide a wide range of tastes which are not complimented in the normal diet. This is a highly significant point which needs our attention. Loss of the placental connection with the Mother Nature is the most basic reason for health problems we suffer. Ayurveda re-establishes this connection through its pharmacology.

   Many people believe that the modern versions of Ayurveda medicines like coated tablets and capsules which mask the unpleasant taste and odor is a highly positive step which is bringing more acceptance for Ayurveda. Actually it should be understood only as a compromise. When Ayurveda explains what each taste is doing, it is certainly the sense of taste which is meant functioning. In Ayurveda texts itself we see discussions on this point like, whether the taste or the material behind and its properties, more important. In ‘Ashtaanga Hrudaya’, the author Vaagbhata concludes emphasizing the importance of the material over the taste and other qualities, reasoning that all qualities stay depending on the material base. This may be interpreted as an attempt to draw attention towards the material base in a situation where the taste and other qualities were given too much importance. In our times this is just the opposite. We live in a much materialistic world where material is the most important aspect and reality.

   Taste is an expression or property through which it communicate with life. Through the language of smells, tastes and other sensations consciousness reads the outer nature.  Healing works out not only through the physical level, but through the mental level also. So we should realize that the taste of Ayurveda medicines is equally important as the taste of food and drinks. Whatever higher the nutritive value a certain food may have, if it is not tasty or bad tasting, becomes unacceptable and not satisfying. This is because taste is also an essential factor, concerning food. In other words, it is not only the physical body, which is eating, but mind too. The material part of food is eaten by the body; while the tastes, flavour, colours and presentation are eaten by mind. In case of diseases also there is a role of mind. The material part of the medicines is thus for the physical body and the tastes are there for mind. It may not be pleasing, because the pleausre of each individual is defined by his or her natural necessities and the exaggerated and artificial appetites together. Beauty should be seen, music should be heard and tastes must be tasted for experience and then only its meaning is fulfilled. Charaka explains this point as; “there is no sensation without direct contact”. And according to Charaka, there is no action happening without either a union or separation also. So, the part of medicinal action from the plane of 'Rasam'  or taste cannot be accessed without direct contact or experience.

   Basically, in Ayurveda concept, the root cause of diseases lies within ourselves; our doings and whatever we receive in to our body-mind. To cure also, Ayurveda teaches to have faith and confidence within ourselves, to correct the lifestyle, strengthen the power of healing and develop the immunity. The modern world makes us believe that nature is giving diseases and cure is available with medical systems, doctors and medicines which could be simply purchased.


© Dr. Sajan Kumar Somarajan 2011



Contact:

Dr. Sajan Kumar Somarajan
Pappelweg 33
63741-Aschaffenburg
E- Mail: vedayurkerala@gmail.com
Web: www.ayurvaidya.de