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What is life after death… As long as the vayu (air and prana: or vital force) remains in the body, that is called life.
Death is when it leaves the body. Therefore, retain vayu.
Life and death in the prana?
Death is not total. This is the transmission of Vedic knowledges and yoga practice.
Life and death of the mind and body
The physical body dies, or the mind dies, but not the soul.
Death is not extinction; it is a process of disintegration.
The components of the body, the five tattwas: akasha – ether, vayu – air, agni – fire, apas – water, prithvi – earth; which are associated with the five prana vayus, disintegrate and go back to their original source.
Akasha (ether element) tattwa goes back to akasha, vayu to vayu (wind element), agni to agni (fire element), apas to apas (water element), prithvi to prithvi (earth element), and then the jivatma (the individual soul or self) moves out.
This jivatma, spirit, ego, astral body, or whatever you might like to call it, is something which survives death. The pranas also do not die, they move out of the body and return to their source. If death is to be averted the process unlinking all the three components i.e. prana, mind and soul, has to be stopped.
In this sloka, (couplet of Sanskrit verse), we are told to retain the vayu.
Vayu means air, but it does not refer only to the gross air and its chemical properties, it indicates pranic air.
The reason why we feel better after a yoga class is because we have changed our prana, or our energy body. We have moved energy (that may have been stuck in our shoulders or hips from a day of work) into different parts of our bodies, and in this way, cleared out any minor blockages that may have occurred throughout the day
What is Life?
Prana shakti is the primordial cosmic energy that governs all physical functions in our body.
Life force energy is Prana and shakti is associated with feminine and creative energy.
And one of three forms of Shakti is Prana shakti that energizes our body, mind and soul.
In the pranic body, pingala nadi channelizes prana shakti, but prana vayu moves throughout the whole body like waves of energy. It can be likened to an electromagnetic field where the energy is in constant motion.
Ida and pingala in the pranic body
The five types of Prana Vayu
The pranic body
There are five main vayu functions, known as apana, prana, samana, udana and vyana.
They are the different processes and manifestations of the one vayu, just as the various limbs of a man comprise the one body.
Pranic absorption takes place on a major scale in the thoracic region and is the function of prana vayu.
Elimination takes place largely through the urinary/excretory and reproductive organs and is powered by apana.
In between apana and prana, in the stomach region, is the area of assimilation, which is the function of samana.
Movement in the throat and facial expressions are due to udana and circulation is powered by vyana which pervades the whole body.
Those which affect elimination or outward movement are due to apana.
Assimilation, preservation, and continuation are the work of samana.
Ascension and refining are the work of udana, and pervasiveness is the property of vyana.
These actions occur within the various realms of existence.
The vayu, however, is specifically concerned with the pranic body or pranamaya kosha.
Pranic body and pranyama kosha
Pranamaya kosha is the vital life energy which organises the body parts and provides movement for mental and physical expression. It allows the invisible indweller, our True Self to be able to animate in the external world
Pancha kosha: the 5 sheaths of our body
In the Upanishads, prana vayu is also called the “in breath”, apana the “out breath”, samana “the middle breath”, and udana “the up breath”.
In other words, prana vayu is inhalation, apana exhalation, samana the time between inhalation and exhalation, and udana, the extension of samana.
According to the Maitri Upanishad (11:6), “Samana is the higher form of vyana and between them is the production of udana.
That which brings up or carries down what has been drunk or eaten is udana.
From a yogic point of view the most important is:
Vayu is samana related to sushumna nadi.
Prana vayu is related to ida,
Apana to pingala,
and ascension of kundalini to udana.
Samana vayu has to be developed. This takes place by suspending apana and prana within the region of samana.
Each vayu is interdependent and interconnected.
In the Chandogya Upanishad it is asked:
How are you body, senses and yourself (soul) supported?
On prana.
How prana is supported?
On apana.
And how is apana supported?
On vyana.
How is vyana supported?
On samana.
Because of these five main movements, five subsidiary or upapranas are produced.
These are known as koorma which stimulates blinking, krikara which generates hunger, thirst, sneezing and coughing, devadatta which induces sleep and yawning, naga which causes hiccups and belching, and dhananjaya which lingers immediately after death.
What is death?
Prana and life after death
From the time of conception up until four months,the fetus survives purely on the mother’s prana.
After four months it is said that prana enters the fetus and individual life begins. As the individual pranas begin to move, so the individual body functions become active. However, the child is only independent once it is born and starts breathing.
The moment prana completely leaves the body, consciousness departs, because prana and consciousness are the two poles of the one source, the Self.
The Prashnopanishad says, “This prana is born of the Self. Just as there can be a shadow when a man is there, so this prana is fixed on the Self…” (3.3)
At death, when the breath stops and the prana leaves, the magnetic force which held the body together deteriorates and along with it, so does the body. Therefore, the breath and prana are likened to a thread in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, verily by air, as by a thread, this world, the other world and all beings are held together.
Therefore, it is said, when an individual dies his limbs have been loosened because they are held together by air like a thread.”
When prana leaves the body there is no force to animate it. As long as prana is retained the body will not die.
What generates life?
Life is generated with inhalation, with exhalation there is loss of prana. When the breath is held, the prana does not move out or in, it becomes stabilized.
Prana is the basis of life and can be directly controlled through the breath.
The yogis who go underground for days together in a place where no air can penetrate, completely stop the breath.
These yogis concentrate on the prana as a point of light in the mid-eyebrow center. When their consciousness is completely absorbed in that light, the breath stops automatically.
Prana remains in the body, but there is no breathing process. There is no absorption of prana, no elimination, no function of prana and apana; only of vyana. The body functions are suspended as long as consciousness remains absorbed in the point of light. It is a state of suspended animation.
The moment the awareness starts to come back to the physical body, the breath starts and the yogi has to come out.
Through the breath, prana and consciousness are essentially linked; they can be separated by a scientific means which starts with the yogic technique of learning to retain the breath.
Prana is the tangible manifestation of the higher Self and Hatha yoga uses prana as the key to expand the awareness of consciousness and realize the Self.
Some systems of yoga aim at self-realization by purifying and concentrating the mind, others by purifying and channelizing the emotions, and some by purifying the intellect and developing wisdom.
There are so many ways of redirecting the vital life force from the lower to the higher centers.
Hatha yoga achieves it by a means which is most practical for everybody through the physical body and by working directly on the pranic movements.
Hypothyroidism treatment depends on personal case. It is caused due to low thyroid hormones in the bloodstream. This happens because the thyroid glands do not produce sufficient thyroid hormones. It is slowing the metabolism and can lead to various symptoms.
Thyroid gland: hypothyroidism
Symptoms of Hypothyroidism
Symptoms depend on of deficiency severity of thyroid hormones and vary according to a person. Hypothyroidism develop slowly over many years of time.
At the beginning key symptoms of low thyroid functions such as weight gain, fatigue … can be experienced.
After some time, gradually the metabolism starts to get low, and the other symptoms can be developed with time.
Fatigue
Weight gain
Increased sensitivity to cold
Dry skin
Puffy face
Weakness in the muscles, muscle ache, tenderness and stiffness
Pain, stiffness or swelling in the joints
Constipation
Hoarseness of voice
Thinning of hairs
Slow heart rate
Elevated levels of blood cholesterol
Enlarged thyroid glands (goiter)
Irregular or heavy menstrual periods
Depression
Impaired memory
Who are prone to develop hypothyroidism
Woman
During pregnancy or 6 month after delivery
After 60 years
Family history of thyroid disease
Suffering from an autoimmune disease such as celiac disease or type 1 diabetes mellitus
Undergone thyroid surgery
Home Remedies, lifestyle changes
Home remedies for hypothyroidism
For sure, home remedies are good to maintien and can help the treatment of hypothyroidism but are not enough.
All the home remedies and lifestyle indicated below will help to improve and balance thyroid functions but other rasayana are necessary to treat hypothyroidism.
A good balance of fruits, vegetables, dairy, whole grains and lean protein.
Reduce the amount of carbohydrate in your diet but completely avoiding carbohydrate is not recommended.
Reduce the amount of salt intake, ideally less than 2/3 grams per day. Rock salt is a better replacement to table salt, because it is rich in minerals.
Balanced and wholesome diet
Choose food fresh and not preserved, processed or canned.
Eat warm and freshly homemade meals with natural ingredients as much as you can.
Don’t use hydrogenated oils, vegetable oils, artificial colors and flavors or white flour. Instead use sesame oil for cooking, it helps to burn fat and nourishing deeply the tissues
Coconut oil is also good if you leave in a hot climate because coconut is coolant
Eat vegetables, fruits and whole grains.
They reduce effects of hypothyroidism and boost up immunity.
No soy products and soybeans.
They aggravate hypothyroidism symptoms because they contain goitrogenic compounds that interfere with levels of thyroid hormone.
Use essential oils and fatty acids like fish oils which are good sources of omega 3.
They promote production of thyroid hormones, immunity enhancers and also anti-inflammatory.
Use natural fats
They help maintaining hormonal balance : flaxseeds, walnuts, avocado, fish.
Avoid caffeine, sugar and starchy foods.
Starchy foods reduce metabolism and increase adverse effects of hypothyroidism.
Increase protein in your meal.
Proteins reduce production of thyroid hormones by regulating the thyroid functions. For that nuts, green vegetables, legumes, eggs and meat are rich in protein and help in combating hypothyroidism symptoms.
Consume food with selenium: eggs, legumes, tuna, turkey. Because selenium in the body is reduced in Hashimoto’s thyroiditis. Selenium supplements shows it role to balance thyroxine (T4) levels.
Forget sugar and processed foods. As already mentioned in many of my articles, it increase inflammation in the body and slows down the conversion of T4 into T3. Then it is wise to have a sugar free diet.
Avoid gluten because many people with thyroid disease also have celiac disease. In celiac disease gluten triggers an immune response in the small intestines. Once wheat and other gluten rich foods are removed from the diet, people with hypothyroidism and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis start feeling better.
Also, a low activity of thyroid can be due to low iodine in your diet. Have more of seafood, seaweeds, egg, shrimp, cheese and don’t use artificial iodine, always choose natural salt.
You can also include probiotics.
They can improve metabolism and the digestion. A bad digestion and low levels of good bacterias can reduce thyroid hormone production. Have more of buttermilk, yogurt, fermented vegetable pickles, kefir, saurekraut, miso.
An altered gastrointestinal motility is commonly seen with hypothyroidism and can cause diarrhea. Probiotics can bring helpful bacteria to balance the microbiote.
Use apple cider vinegar useful to reduce body weight, improve fat and carbohydrate metabolism and to balance alkaline-acid balance in the body. Apple cider also balance cholesterol, blood sugar and blood pressure. You can take 1 teaspoonful of apple cider vinegar and honey mixed in warm water will help in improving thyroid activity and control symptoms of hypothyroidism when consumed.
Regular exercise
Through a 30-minute exercise few thyroid-related symptoms like fatigue, loss of appetite and osteoporosis can be fought.
A level of high estrogen can cause hypothyroidism in women. Birth control pills, dairy products and consumption of large amount of meat may imbalance estrogen levels and deplete thyroid hormone production. These foods shall be avoided to maintain balance of thyroid hormones in the body.
Low thyroid hormones can affect absorption of vitamin B especially B-12 and B1 levels.
Vitamin B12 is helpful to prevent the tiredness related to thyroid disease.
To increase these vitamins you can add regularly in your diet : peas, beans, sesame seeds, cheese, eggs, asparagus.
Zinc regulate TSH as per some studies. Hypothyroidism patients should consume zinc rich foods: beans, nuts, crab, lobster, whole grains, breakfast cereals, and dairy products, avocados, blackberries, pomegranates, raspberries, guavas, cantaloupes, apricots, peaches, kiwifruit, and blueberries.
Diet is one of the most important thing but it will not cure hypothyroidism.
A combination of right nutrients and medication can help to restore thyroid function and minimize your symptoms.
Foods to avoid
There are foods that it is better to avoid in case of hypothyroidism
We call that food goitrogens because it can interfere with normal function of thyroid gland.
I will give you some common examples.
Avoid regularly:
vegetables like cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, kale, spinach.
Fruits and starchy plants like sweet potatoes, manioc, strawberries, peaches …
Nuts and seeds: millet, pine nuts, peanuts etc
Soy foods, tofu, tempeh etc
offee, green tea, alcohol
Foods that contain goitrogens have to be eaten with moderation and ideally cooked because they are rich in calories and with hypothyroidism you may easily gain weight.
Also, too much fiber can interfere with absorption of thyroid medicine.
25 grams and 38 grams respectively are the recommended doses of fiber for women and men respectively. But don’t stop entirely their consumption, it is found in healthy foods like fruits, vegetables, beans and whole grain breads and cereals.
Iron and calcium. Foods containing iron and calcium are safe to eat but using them with food not in supplement because these minerals interfere with absorption of thyroid hormone medicine. Talk with your doctor if it is the case.
Hypothyroidism, gain weight and depression
The lack of Vitamin B 12 and Vitamin D is found in cases of autoimmune hypothyroidism.
Missing Vitamin D is directly linked with depression. Because of lake of sun exposure and long winters. Levels has to be checked.
Obesity management
Metabolism is slow in hypothyroidism and lead to gain weight. Keep a track on you weight and keep balance.
You can use of Triphala Churna, and other gulgulu based medication that can be useful to address obesity and also help with depression indirectly.
Exercising every day is also indicated. No need to do long work out, 20 to 30 minutes of effcicient exercizes are enough.
Who suffer from hypothyroidism sleep less and so can increase stress, anxiety and depression. Herbs are very useful and can be prescribed like Ashwagandha, Sarpagandha, Brahmi, Tagara etc.
Plan your meal and eat with mindfulness, how fast you eat, where you eat…
Try to sleep for at least 7-8 hours every night. When you sleep less you are likely to gain fat, mainly around the belly
Practice Yoga and Meditation. Research works show that Yoga and meditation are helpful in maintaining healthy weight. Therefore, they need to be practiced regularly to be efficient and with expericend yoga teacher to show you how to practice efficiently.
This is only an approach above. There are many ways to handle hypothyroidism, depends on your life history, the symptoms you feel, the level of your thyroid hormones… That is why it is important to check with your doctor all these recommendations which cannot be perfect for your condition but for another one.
Important Yoga postures for Hypothyroidism
Below mentioned are some of the most beneficial yoga postures for those suffering from hypothyroidism
Sarvangasana (Shoulder Stand)
Sarvangasana pose
This inversion helps balance the entire body and mind, from circulatory, respiratory system to endocrine and nervous system. It stimulates thyroid glands, boost immune system and helps calm the mind and relieves emotional and mental stress.
Begin by lying flat on your back. Relax your body. You can place a blanket under the shoulders for cushioning. Slowly begin to raise the legs off the mat, followed by buttocks and spine. Bend the elbows and place the hands behind the rib cage to support your spine.
In the final position, the legs are vertical and together and the arms continue to provide stability.
Viparita Karani Asana (Inverted Pose)
viparita karani
This asana has similar benefits as Sarvangasana as it increases blood flow to the neck region and helps in regulating thyroid glands and balance functions of other endocrine glands. All inversions help release gravitational weight from all organs. This asana helps ease complications caused by hypoactive thyroid.
Begin by lying flat on your back. Raise your legs up till they are perpendicular to the floor. Now gently lift your hips and place your palms under your lower back (waist level). With the support of your palms, and elbows pressed to the floor- working as prop, keep lifting your torso till it is around 45 degrees to the floor.
In the final position, the legs are at 90 degrees to the floor and the body is maintained at a 45 degree angle. Alternatively, you can use a yoga block to support your lower back.
Janu Sirsasana (Seated Head to Knee Pose)
This forward bend helps calm the nervous system, reduce stress and anxiety as it helps increase flexibility in hip joints and give a deep stretch to hamstring muscles. It is also helpful for those suffering from insomnia.
Sit with legs extended and feet together. Bend the left leg and place sole of the foot against right inner thigh. The closer the left heel to the perineum the better. Inhale and place hands on the right knee. Exhale and slowly begin to bend forward, sliding the hands down the right leg. If possible, grab your right foot or toes.
Stay in the forward bend for a few exhalations. Repeat with the right leg bent and left leg straight.
Matsyasana (Fish Pose)
Matsyasana
It is usually performed as a counter pose to inversions like Sarvangasana, Halasana or Viparita Karani asana as it provides a reverse stretch to the neck.This pose not only exposes the throat area and stimulates the thorax, but also stimulates the spine, cervical muscles and expands rib cage and lung capacity.
To begin, lie in supine with your hands resting next to the body. If you can, fold your legs in Padmasana, if not keep your legs straight on the floor. Bend your hands and with the help of your forearms on the floor, lift your back, chest, neck and head off the mat. Bring the top of your head / crown to rest on the mat, giving your neck a deep stretch. If holding padmasana, wrap your fingers around the big toe and try and rest your elbow on the mat, next to your body.
Stay in this posture for a few deep breaths. You can also attempt this pose from a seated Padmasana position and let the elbows support you as you gently drop your head back to rest the crown on the mat. You can use a headstand pillow as a prop for cushioning.
Do not do if any neck pain or back pain. Use can use props and put them on the floor to maintain your head straight and behind your back to maintain the posture, avoid any over strains and injuries in the body. Best is to practice with a yoga teacher.
Halasana (Plough Pose)
You may find it easier to hold a Halasana when compared to Sarvangasana. It helps improve function of thyroid, parathyroid, adrenal and pituitary glands, thus improving overall function of endocrine system. It helps reduce menopause symptoms, stimulates reproductive organs and is therapeutic for insomnia, infertility, backache and headache.
From Sarvangasana, drop your legs back, behind the head. Allow the toes to touch the floor and slowly straighten your knees to increase the distance between the head and toes. This will help you achieve a chin lock or Jalandhara bandha which is highly beneficial for thyroid function. The hands can continue to support the back. If comfortable, you can extend the hands, place them on the floor and interlace your fingers.
In the final pose the body resembles the plough. Thus the name Halasana. Stay in the pose for few breaths and return to Sarvangasana before releasing the posture completely and rest in supine.
Marjariasana (Cat-Cow Stretch)
Bitilasana Marjaryasana
This vinyasa like flow for the back and neck helps release stress and improves body coordination. It is a combination of two asanas, Marjariasana (cat stretch) and Bitilasana (cow stretch) done with breath awareness to increase emotional balance. This pose helps stimulate abdominal region and organs like kidney and adrenal glands. It involves neck movement, which also works on the throat chakra.
Begin in table pose by placing your palms and knees on the floor. You can either place your insteps (flat) on the mat for stability through the practice or shift to balance on toes in cow stretch. First maintain a neutral spine and look straight. With the next inhalation, arch your back, allowing your belly button to sink closer to the floor and stretch your neck/head upward. As you exhale, drop your head and bring your chin closer to the chest as you simultaneously lift and round your spine outward and draw your navel towards your spine.
Repeat this fluid movement with breath awareness without using force to stretch the neck or forcing your chin to the chest. Keep your head and shoulders relaxed and let the movement be as natural as possible.
Surya Namaskar or Sun Salutation (fast-paced)
It is a popular sequence of yoga asanas done with breath awareness. It is a complete sadhna or yoga practice in itself and includes asana, pranayama, mantra and meditation techniques. 1 set comprises of 12 asanas. 1 cycle of sun salutation comprises of 2 such sets done for the right and left side.
Repeating these cycles help you lead an active and healthy life as it regulates and balances the solar energy of the body which flows through pingala nadi. It is performed in a steady rhythmic way which also reflects the biorhythms of the body, 24 hours of the day, and the 12 zodiac signs and this rhythmic process helps transform your mind and body completely.
You will experience a boost in immune system, improved digestion, increase in your lung capacity, and a balanced metabolism, reproductive and circulatory system. Regular practice helps in naturally balancing endocrine system and restoring hormonal balance, giving you a glowing skin, healthy bones, and a great mood to kick-start your day with positive energy.
Pranayama and Hypothyroidism
Apart from yoga asana, the practice of dynamic breathing exercises like Kapalbhati, Ujjayi Pranayama, Bhastrika and Nadi Shodhana Pranayama will help restore balance and regulate thyroid glands.
Ayurveda Understanding
No disease explained in Ayurveda can be directly correlated with hypothyroidism.
Hypothyroidism should be understood on the basis of vitiation of doshas, tissues and channels involved in pathogenesis of the disease and also its predominant symptoms as understood from Ayurveda perspective.
Agnimandya
« What we eat affects our emotions and can create a predisposition for psychological and physical disorders. Just wrong emotion can upset our digestion, so wrong digestion can upset our emotions” Sarah R Gray
As Master Vagbhata has said: Almost all the diseases are caused due to mandagni means low digestive fire, especially the abdominal diseases.
Mandagni also denotes weaker metabolism.
Hypothyroidism is also relatedto low metabolism, in fact a cause of it. It is a resultant of Hypothyroidism. Treating weak digestive fire in hypothyroidism and kindling the same might catch the disease by its horns. This will also disable the continuation of pathogenesis and worsening the symptoms of the disease. Balanced digestive capacity also means proper digestion, conversion, distribution and utilization of food and nutrients. This also reflects proper conversion of food into energy, the channels of nutrition getting open and clear as an impact of digestive and tissue fires and eventual nourishment of the tissues.
Dosha predominance
Symptoms of Hypothyroidism
Dosha predominance
Fatigue
Vata, Kapha
Weight gain
Kapha
Increased cold sensitivity
Kapha, Vata
Dry skin
Vata
Puffiness of the face
Kapha, Vata
Weakness in the muscles, muscle ache, tenderness, stiffness
Vata, Kapha
Pain, stiffness or swelling in the joints
Kapha, Vata
Constipation
Vata, Kapha
Hoarseness of the voice
Vata
Thinning of hairs
Vata
Slow heart rate
Kapha
Elevated blood cholesterol levels
Kapha
Enlarged thyroid glands (goiter)
Kapha, Vata
Irregular / heavy menstrual periods
Vata, Kapha
Depression
Kapha
Impaired memory
Kapha, Vata
Doshas predominance in Hypothtyroidism
How ayurveda treatment hypothyroidism
The aggravated vata subtype which is enveloping the other vata subtype should be addressed first.
Vata and its subtypes causing obstruction is said to be associated with ama and have to be treated first.
The goal is to destroy ama including fasting, sudation, medicines, gruels and food light to digest with ama digesting herbs.
Following this, we have to strengthen the weak samana vata. This includes administration of medicines to kindle the digestive fire, emesis (procedure indicated for the expulsion of Kapha Dosha), light diet and use of Rasayanas formulations (herbs coumpounds ) to rejuvenate the tissus.
Ama dissolving medicines and foods should also be given.
Depending of Kapha doshas conditions, kapha alleviating herbs, diet, emesis and purgation therapies to expel excessive kapha can be administered.
How to control anger and have a calm mind… it is the dream of everyone…
Anger is a part of normal healthy emotion but its manifestation and quantity need to be controlled.
As per Ayurveda describes this anger depends on:
Body type of the person
A Pitta body type person gets angry very quickly more than the other body constitution.
Pitta constitution is made of fire and water elements and anger is fire element.
A Vata body type person can get angry quickly (because one of Vata gunas is fastness) but he also calms down very fast because coolness is also a Vata quality.
A Kapha person gets anger very slowly because of Kapha guna but will not react immediately and may plan for a well-executed.
Ayurveda mentioned that anger produces disease such as:
high blood pressure
schizophrenia,
maniac disorders or people with lot of stress
depression
anxiety
body inflammation [musculo skeletal diseases…]
inside burning
and long term manifestations
Diet to control anger
Diet has to be balanced to avoid production of anger. Excess of non veg, excess of spicy foods, drugs abuse and excess of alcohol are part of rajasic foods and consuming these items out of balance lead to angriness.
Our period of time also contributes to get more or less angry: teenagers and elderly get angry more easily.
When we feel weak or tired we have more issues to control our emotion, angriness can come quickly in such condition.
Some medicines, in case of wrong dosage, can also lead to manic depressive psychosis or depression medicines and increase anger.
Dosha implication
Pitta gets aggravated by anger and much more if hidden inwards.
Anger-control has to be a part of effective personality management. It needs a constant practice followed by application.
Express your anger with control and intelligence
Remember that you are larger and important than your emotions.
If you rule your emotions, you live healthy. If your emotions rule you then your lifespan would be shorten and end in premature way. You have to choose !!
Medicine or therapy are essential to learn how to relieve stress or soothe the mind. Senses eradicates many physical ailments and this to avoid to throw your venom and hurt others.
The real thing is by getting angry over a person or situation you show how weak you are. You also allow the other person and situations to rule you. If you remember that you are susceptible to be conquered by someone else’s anger, you will learn to sense it even before it has shown its early signs within you.
Controlling anger is a art but also a respect of yourself and others. You can convert it in positive energy.
“Speak when you are angry and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret” Laurence J. Peter
You could also have avoided the damages incurred on your beautiful system as an effective of unmonitored anger, thereby keeping inflammation and arthritis at bay.
A long-standing angriness habitis dangerous.
Anger is thus constructive as well as destructive. It depends on what type of anger we are.
The extent of damage we undergo due to anger and the quality and quantity of inflammatory changes and diseases which get manifested due to anger depends on our choice of fight or flight response and how frequently we do it.
“You will not be punished for your anger, you will be punished by your anger” – Buddha
Types of anger
Pitta is mainly composed by fire element
There are 3 types of anger:
Aggressive anger because we can feel ashamed or are neglected
Defensive anger to fight or over reacting to defend ourself or to hide mistake
Frustrated anger developed with time. The person over a period of time may develop ideas or concepts out of reality
Most of the systemic diseases of the modern day are psycho-somatic in nature. We hardly find a sole physical disorder or a sole mental disorder. Body and mind are 2 sides of the same coin. A problem at the physical level might at a later time reflect on the mind and vice versa.
Anger is one of the most encountered emotions which has a serious destructive impact at a psycho-somatic level and is also a trigger for many health issues especially those of an inflammatory origin.
What are Pitta functions in the body?
Pitta is responsible for central and cellular metabolism
If pitta is balanced, these processes goes well smoothly and we are healthy.
An increased or decreased of Pitta can disrupt the heat regulation in the body and lead to depletion of tissues or blockages in the cells and body channels.
If the body is inefficient to throw the excess heat out, the heat stay inwards. Then the heat damages the body tissues and cause inflammation. When this inflammation intensifies, arthritis and other inflammatory diseases can manifest.
Other factors aggravate Pitta but Krodha [anger] is the main one.
Anger is the emotion which is a part of us and is expressed very often in varied proportions. Whenever anger occurs, Pitta is disturbed.
And if the anger become an habit, aches stay within us and give a permanent fuel for vitiation of Pitta.
The increased pitta creates an inflammatory background in the tissues and leads to inflammatory diseases: arthritis is one.
An increased pitta and anger leads to a cyclic pattern: the inflammatory reactions in the body which is getting worst as it become a chronic pattern with time.
So you have understand, but i repeat again: if we don’t control Pitta and anger at right time, it causes damages to the body cells and organs.
Anger is one of the most common human emotions.
If you are Pitta constitution, you will always have fire in you, it is a part of you. It’s like the fire is always there ready to burn more. Pitta is always seated on coals.
It can vary in proportions to person and in given situations.
We need fire to burn our foods, our emotions but it increased to different levels of manifestation and existence.
The fuels are available in and around us: at work, in family, with friends, with life situations we live which can be stressful. We have also to face a certain competition and lot more in today society.
For Pitta people a small amount of these is enough for the anger to take a big shape and for other it will take more time to provoke that anger to set in. Some people explodes and some bury anger deep within.
We boil at different degrees
“Anybody can become angry that is easy, but to be angry with the right person and to the right degree and at the right time and for the right purpose, and in the right way – that is not within everybody’s power and is not easy” – Aristotle
Anger is Dharaneeya Vega
Dharaneeya Vega means forcibly withholding the urges which are initiated by the body.
So anger or krodha should be checked from sprouting to the surface as and when it shows its signs within us.
The one who is controlling is anger is managing is mind very well. It is avoiding conflicting, to put more fire on the gas and finally a proof of intelligence to solve differently the tensions or conflicts.
This is also better for health because anger is a form of heat and we don’t want to get combust!
Studies and researches showeds that anger has bad effects on homeostasis and health in general. It needs to be controlled within us and to throw it out in reasonable way to do not hurt others and self. This is the principle of Ahimsa in Yoga.
For example inflammatory reaction can occurred in the joints and soft tissues of musculo skeletal system and causes arthritis and other inflammatory origin musculo skeletal diseases [rheumatoid arthritis, tendinitis, carpal tunnel syndrome, osteoarthritis, fibromyalgia, bone fractures…]
Ayurveda said that controlling anger is better than inversely. It is not because one time you could not control it that it will induce right away diseases. It is the amount of non-control anger day by day which will produce imbalances and with time diseases.
Anger is a negative emotion in many instances and has very important impact in our organs and mind…
Ayurvedic and yogic methods: how to control anger
Change your habits. angryness produce inflammation in the body
It might temporally drive us to do something energetically but on the other way it also compels us to commit bad words, bad behaviors, or violence in front of others.
By learning to control krodha (anger) we avoid the pitta explosion and so avoid many inflammatory processes and diseases in the body.
How we can control anger?
Be conscious of it and act to know how to control your anger
Practice Yoga, yoga philosophy and pranayama [Learn about a simple Pranayama technique here] to think better and clearly, linked your body and your mind and relief your frustration. Do practices to pacify Pitta.
Taking foods having sweet, bitter and astringent tastes, seasonal fruits not having sour taste, cold foods and comforts etc which are antagonistic to Pitta
Ayurvedic Pitta relieving treatments
Abhyanga (massage with herbal oils)
Virechana (therapeutic purgation),
Sarvanga dhara (stream pouring of medicated liquids like oils, milk etc over the body), Shirodhara (stream pouring of herbal oils over the head),
Shirovasti (oil pooling over the head),
Tikta vasti (enemas prepared out of medicines having bitter tastes),
Ksheera Vasti (enemas prepared with medicines alleviating pitta processed and prepared in milk) …
Pitta lifestyle to control anger:
Have a good sleep, minimun 7 hours per night, to regenerate & digest all emotions or frustration accumulated during the day.
Practice gratitude and happiness
Identify the causes of your anger
Ignore the causes or the triggers lead to body pain.
Go away from augmenting with people & situations as much as possible.
Convert anger : anger is an energy which will either hurt us or the other person. The better way is to throw off the fire of anger by transforming it into another form of positive or constructive energy. Get into activities like gardening, house cleaning etc.
Forgive and Forget : it is difficult but with time & conscious we can do it easily, it is highly effective.
Change your body-mind attitude
Change your habits when anger strikes you. Practice sports, yoga, mindfullness, walking into fresh air… Yoga is highly effective for emotions acceptance, transcending them and win over anger
Surrounding you with positive people
Think spiritual: going to temples, reading books or do spiritual practices: yoga nidra, restorative yoga … pranayama and meditation.
Have fun
Take a break: breaks are essential to keep our nerves relaxed, go for a weekend, meet friends, or share love time with family.
Practice your favorite hobby
Dancing classes, painting, writing articles or stories…
Join a Yoga class
Meditate: You can meditate in many ways, chanting hymns, counting the beads, focussing on a point or material as a target…
Breathing exercises: Inhale to your tummy to a count of four, slowly exhale through your mouth to a similar count. Do this 10-15 times. You can do it 3-4 times a day. Gradually work on increasing the count of inspiration and expiration. Learn about a simple Pranayama technique
Eat healthy – Lot of vegetables and fruits and a balanced diet will help
Other tips to control anger
Remember : ‘The other person is not bad, he or she is different’. Someone looks bad because we want that person to be like we want him or her to be. Learn to give space to everyone and enjoy your space.
Re-search happiness: happiness and happy moments are antagonistic to anger. Swear to keep yourself happy. Try finding all possible ways and methods of keeping yourself happy.
Write a diary: write a diary and keep account of how many or how less situations you are encountering on a daily basis where you are getting into the anger web. Also analyse if your anger was reasonable. Think if there were any other options of avoiding confronting the anger. Analyse the causes and triggers and see if you are going to them or they are coming to you.
See if minor things are disturbing you and not essentially a big stressor or anger-trigger that is making you angry. In such cases you are only habituated to anger. See how many things and situations were under your control and how many were out of your reach. All these things will help you to get better and win over your nerves. Try to work and better the conditions and also maintain a follow up record.
Ask for help or counselling sessions. Don’t back out from consulting experts and from taking counselling. There are people who can help you out of your anger.
Ayurvedic medicines, herbs and methods
Learn pranayama and yoga to transcend your emotions and control anger
Ayurvedic herbs useful to control anger:
Brahmi – Bacopa monnieri
Mandookaparni
KolaShankhapushpi
Raisins
…
Sciences has now proven since many years how much emotions are related to diseases. You cannot say now you don;t know. If you want to improve your patterns, live peaceful as much as possible, many tools you can try. Yoga and Pranayama, and sadhana are great tools to start your journey for a better and healthy self.
If you want to go deeper and need to learn how to practice to control your anger, book a free call with me.
Pranayama breathing is generally defined as breath control. Although this interpretation may seem correct in view of the practices involved, it does not convey the full meaning of the term.
Learn pranayama to improve your health and skills
The word pranayama is comprised of two roots: ‘prana’ plus ‘ayama‘.
Prana means ‘vital energy’ or ‘life force’. It is the force which exists in all things, whether animate or inanimate.
Although closely related to the air we breathe, it is more subtle than air or oxygen.
Therefore, pranayama should not be considered only as breathing exercises aimed at introducing extra oxygen into the lungs. Pranayama uses breathing to influence the flow of prana in the nadis or energy channels of the pranamaya koshas or energy body.
The word yama means ‘control’ and is used to denote various rules or codes of conduct.
However, this is not the word which is joined to prana to form pranayama; the correct word is ‘ayama’ which has far more implications.
Ayama is defined as ‘extension’ or ‘expansion’. Thus, the word pranayama means ‘extension or expansion of the dimension of prana’ .
The techniques of pranayama provide the method whereby the life force can be activated and regulated in order to go beyond one’s normal boundaries or limitations and attain a higher state of vibratory energy and awareness.
Four aspects of pranayama
In the pranayama practices there are for important aspects of breathing which are used.
These are:
1 . Pooraka or inhalation
2. Rechaka or exhalation
3 . Antar kumbhaka or internal breath retention
4. Bahir kumbhaka or external breath retention.
The different practices of pranayana involve various techniques which use these four aspects of breathing.
There is another mode of pranayama, which is called kevala kumbhaka or spontaneous breath retention. This is an advanced stage of pranayama which occurs during high states of meditation.
During this state, the fluctuation of prana ceases. At this time, the veil which prevents one from seeing the subtle aspect of existence is lifted and a higher vision of reality is attained.
The most important part of pranayama is actually kumbhaka or breath retention. However, in order to perform kumbhaka successfully, there must be a gradual development of control over the function of respiration.
Therefore, in the pranayama practices more emphasis is given to inhalation and exhalation at the beginning, in order to strengthen the lungs and balance the nervous and pranic systems in preparation for the practice of kumbhaka. These initial practices influence the flow of prana in the nadis, purifying, regulating and activating them, thereby inducing physical and mental stability.
The pranic body
The five bodies
Five koshas
According to yogic physiology, the human framework is comprised of five bodies or sheaths, which account for the different aspects or dimensions of human existence. These five sheaths are known as:
1. Annamaya kosha, the food or material body
2. Manomaya kosha, the mental body
3. Pranamaya kosha, the bioplasmic or vital energy body
4. Vijnanamaya kosha, the psychic or higher mental body
5. Anandamaya kosha, the transcendental or bliss body.
Although these five sheaths function together to form an integral whole.
The practices of pranayama work mainly with pranamaya kosha.
Pranamaya kosha is made up of five major pranas, which are collectively known as the pancha, or five pranas: prana, apana, samana, udana and vyana.
The pranas
The pranic body
Prana does not refer to cosmic prana, but rather to just one flow of energy, governing the thoracic area between the larynx and the top of the diaphragm. It is associated with the heart and organs of respiration together with the muscles and nerves that activate them. It is the force by which the breath is drawn inside.
Apana governs the abdomen, below the navel region, and provides energy for the large intestine, kidneys, anus and genitals. It is concerned with the expulsion of waste from the body and is the force which expels the breath.
Samana is located between the heart and the navel. It activates and controls the digestive system: the liver, intestines, pancreas and stomach, and their secretions. Samana is responsible for transformation. On a physical level this relates to the assimilation and distribution of nutrients. On an evolutionary level it relates to kundalini and expansion of consciousness.
Udana governs the neck and head, activating all the sensory receptors such as the eyes, tongue, nose and ears. U dana also harmonizes and activates the limbs and all their associated muscles, ligaments, nerves and joints. It is responsible for the erect posture of the body, sensory awareness, and the ability to respond to the outside world.
Vyana pervades the whole body, regulating and controlling all movement, and coordinating the other pranas. It acts as the reserve force for the other pranas.
Along with these five major pranas there are five minor pranas known as the upa-pranas : naga, koorma, krikara, devadatta and dhananjaya.
Naga is responsible for belching and hiccups.
Koorma opens the eyes and stimulates blinking.
Krikara generates hunger, thirst, sneezing and coughing.
Devadatta induces sleep, yawning.
Dhananjaya lingers after death and upon its departure, decay and decomposition of the body begins to happen.
Prana and lifestyle
Lifestyle has a profound impact on the pranamaya kosha and its pranas.
Physical activities such as exercise, work, sleep, intake of food and sexual relations all affect the distribution and flow of prana in the body.
Faculties of the mind such as emotion, thought, imagination affect the pranic body even more.
Irregularities in lifestyle, dietary indiscretions and stress deplete and obstruct the pranic flow. This results in what people experience as being “drained of energy”.
Depletion of energy in a particular prana leads to the devitalization of the organs and limbs it governs and ultimately to disease or metabolic dysfunction. The techniques of pranayama reverse this process, energizing and balancing the different pranas within pranamaya kosha .
Pranayama practices should be performed after asanas in an integrated yoga program.
Breath, health and pranayama
Practice of nadi shodhana pranayama
The breath is the most vital process of the body. It influences the activities of each and every cell and, most importantly, is intimately linked with the performance of the brain. Human beings breathe about 15 times per minute and 21600 times per day.
Respiration fuels the burning of oxygen and glucose, producing energy to power every muscular contraction, glandular secretion and mental process. The breath is intimately linked to all aspects of human experience.
Most people breathe incorrectly, using only a small part of their lung capacity. The breathing is then generally shallow, depriving the body of oxygen and prana essential to its good health.
The first five practices given in this section are preparatory techniques which introduce correct breathing habits. In addition, they help focus the awareness on the breathing process, which is otherwise normally ignored.
Practitioners develop sensitivity to the respiratory process and retrain the muscles of the pulmonary cavity, enhancing their vital capacity and preparing them for pranayama.
Rhythmic, deep and slow respiration stimulates and is stimulated by calm, content, states of mind.
Irregular breathing disrupts the rhythms of the brain and leads to physical, emotional and mental blocks. These, in turn, lead to inner conflict, an unbalanced personality, a disordered lifestyle and disease.
Pranayama establishes regular breathing patterns, breaking this negative cycle and reversing the debilitating process. It does so by giving us control of the breath and reestablishing the natural, relaxed rhythms of the body and mind.
Although breathing is mainly an unconscious process, conscious control of it may be taken at any time. Consequently, it forms a bridge between the conscious and unconscious areas of the mind. Through the practice of pranayama, the energy trapped in neurotic, unconscious mental patterns may be released for use in more creative and joyful activity.
Breathing and life span
In addition to influencing the quality of life, the length or quantity of life is also dictated by the rhythm of the respiration.
The ancient yogis and rishis studied nature in great detail. They noticed that animals with a slow breath rate such as pythons, elephants and tortoises have long life spans, whereas those with a fast breathing rate such as birds, dogs and rabbits live for only a few years.
From this observation they realized the importance of slow breathing for increasing the human lifespan. Those who breathe in short, quick gasps are likely to have a shorter life span than those who breathe slowly and deeply. On the physical level, this is because the respiration is directly related to the heart.
A slow breathing rate keeps the heart stronger and better nourished and contributes to a longer life. Deep breathing also increases the absorption of energy by pranamaya kosha, enhancing dynamisn1, vitality and general well-being.
Pranayama and the spiritual aspirant
Bhramari pranayama
Pranayama practices establish a healthy body by removing blockages in the pranamaya kosha, enabling increased absorption and retention of prana.
The spiritual seeker requires tranquillity of mind as an essential prelude to spiritual practice.
To this end, many pranayanma techniques use kumbhaka, breath retention, to establish control over the flow of prana, calming the mind and controlling the thought process. Once the mind has been stilled and prana flows freely in the nadis and chakras, the doorway to the evolution of consciousness opens, leading the aspirant into higher dimensions of spiritual experience.
In The Science of Pranayama, Swami Sivananda writes, “There is an intimate connection between the breath, nerve currents and control of the inner prana or vital forces. Prana becomes visible on the physical plane as motion and action, and on the mental plane as thought.
Pranayama is the means by which a yogi tries to realize within his individual body the whole cosmic nature, and attempts to attain perfection by attaining all the powers of the universe.”
General notes for the practitioner
In the traditional texts, there are innumerable rules and regulations pertaining to pranayama. The main points are to exercise moderation, balance and common sense with regard to inner and outer thinking and living. However, for those who seriously wish to take up the advanced practices of pranayama, the guidance of a guru or competent teacher is essential.
Contra-indications:
Pranayama should not be practiced during illness, although simple techniques such as breath awareness and abdominal breathing in shavasana may be performed. Carefully observe the contra-indications given for individual practices.
Time of practice:
The best time to practise pranayama is at dawn, when the body is fresh and the mind has very few impressions. If this is not possible, another good time is just after sunset.
Tranquillizing pranayamas may be performed before sleep. Try to practise regularly at the same time and place each day. Regularity in practice increases strength and willpower as well as acclimatizing the body and mind to the increased prank force. Do not be in a hurry, be slow and steady
Progression is essential.
Pranayama’s course
Bathing:
Take a bath or shower before commencing the practice, or at least wash the hands, face and feet. Do not take a bath for at least half an hour after the practice to allow the body temperature to normalize.
Clothes: Loose, comfortable clothing made of natural fibres should be worn during the practice. The body may be covered with a sheet or blanket when it is cold or to keep insects away.
Empty stomach: Practise before eating in the morning or wait at least three to four hours after meals before starting pranayama. Food in the stomach places pressure on the diaphragm and lungs, making full, deep respiration difficult.
Diet: A balanced diet of protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins and minerals is suitable for most pranayama practices. A combination of grains, pulses, fresh fruit and vegetables, with some milk products if necessary; is recommended. When commencing pranayama practice, constipation and a reduction in the quantity of urine may be experienced.
In the case of dry motions, stop taking salt and spices, and drink plenty of water. In the case of loose motions, stop the practices for a few days and go on a diet of rice and curd or yoghurt.
The more advanced stages of pranayama require a change in diet and a teacher should be consulted for guidance on this.
Place of practice:
Practice in a quiet, clean and pleasant room, which is well ventilated but not draughty. Generally, avoid practising in direct sunlight as the body will become over-heated, except at dawn when the soft rays of the early morning sun are beneficial. Practising in a draught or wind, in air-conditioning or under a fan may upset the body temperature and cause chills.
Breathing: Always breathe through the nose and not the mouth unless specifically instructed otherwise. Both nostrils must be clear and flowing freely. Mucous blockages may be removed through the practice of neti or kapalbhati. If the flow of breath in the nostrils is unequal, it may be balanced by practising padadhirasana as a breath balancing technique.
Sequence:
Pranayama should be performed after shatkarmas and asanas, and before meditation practice. Nadi shodhana pranayama should be practised in each pranayama session as its balancing and purifying effects form the basis for successful pranayama. Mter practising pranayama, one may lie down in shavasana for a few minutes.
Sitting position: A comfortable, sustainable meditation posture is necessary to enable efficient breathing and body steadiness during the practice. Siddha/siddha yoni asana or padmasana are the best postures for pranayama. The body should be as relaxed as possible throughout the practice with the spine, neck and head erect. Sit on a folded blanket or cloth of natural fibre to ensure the maximum conduction of energy during the practice. Those who cannot sit in a meditation posture may sit against a wall with the legs outstretched or in a chair which has a straight back.
Avoid strain:
With all pranayama practices, it is important to remember that the instruction not to strain, not to try to increase your capacity too fast, applies just as it does to asana practice. If one is advised to practise a pranayama technique until it is mastered, and it can be practised without any strain or dicomfort, it is wise to follow that instruction before moving on to a more advanced practice or ratio. Furthermore, breath retention should only be practised for as long as is comfortable.
The lungs are very delicate organs and any misuse can easily cause them injury. Not only the physical body, but also the mental and emotional aspects of the personality and need time to adjust. Never strain in any way.
Side effects:
Various symptoms may manifest in normally healthy people. These are caused by the process of purification and the expulsion of toxins. Sensations of itching, tingling, heat or cold, and feelings of lightness or heaviness may occur.
Such experiences are generally temporary, but if they persist, check with a competent teacher. Energy levels may increase or fluctuate; interests may change. If such changes cause difficulty in lifestyle, decrease or stop the practice until a competent teacher or guru gives guidance.
I cannot explain here all the health and scientifically proven benefits of pranayama. And what pranayama is practiced to improve or cure diseases. That will be the subject of another article.
I am always here to help you in your practice, ask me your questions or book a one-one with me if you want to learn, make your health the priority. and if you want to develop your skills.
Be safe, be love and nice.
Nadi shodana practiced by a saddhu in Varanasi – India
Ghee is the one to add to your kitchen for its health benefits
The health benefits of ghee is not any more to prove. Among the four types of oily material, ghee is the best one in Ayurveda, because of its power to assimilate effectively the properties of the ingredients added to it without losing its own properties.
Ghee contains 4 important fats
Ghee is one of what we call the Maha Snehas: the four main fats.
Ayurveda describs four types of fats suitable for human consumption.
Ghee – made of cow, or goat, or buffalo … Cow ghee is considered as the best (Ashtanga Hrudaya Sutrasthana 16th chapter).
Oil – Sesame oil, Mustard oil, Coconut oil, etc.
Animal fat
Bone marrow of animals.
Cow ghee is sweet in taste and hence liked by many people. Like every week, I prepare my ghee for the week, look at this beautiful color!
I can tell you that my intestines appreciate it and since I consume it I have no more problems of digestion and transit…
The benefits of ghee :
1kg of unsalted butter and you make 4 pots of ghee
Beneficial for our intestines: participates in rebalancing the intestinal mucosa, particularly interesting property for small sensitive bellies with intestinal inflammation.
Because we extract fat soluble active principles to make use of therapeutic values of ghee.
Ghee is able to:
Enhance the shelf life of the preparation
To enhance the medicine absorption.
To make the preparation more palatable.
Regulatory action on our transit:
On those with a slow transit, it acts as a support with a slight action of “soft laxative”, anti-inflammatory action will come to calm an inflammatory state, and strengthen the tissues of the intestinal wall
Personally, ghee has helped me enormously with unavoidable revelation of active properties
The incorporation of ghee in our cooking increases the absorption of the active properties of these ingredients.
Ghee is thus considered an excellent carrier of the active properties of the herbs, spices and plants used.
A global digestive support
According to Ayurvedic teachings, ghee has a regulating action on our digestive fire (also called “Agni”) on the three “doshas”: it helps to calm Pitta (whose digestive fire tends to be in excess), while it soothes Vata (whose digestive fire tends to be the opposite), while being relatively neutral for Kapha.
Ghee also has a supportive effect on our digestive system, which indirectly increases our ability to assimilate micronutrients from our food (what our body will “retain” from the digestive process).
As it no longer contains casein or lactose, milk intolerant people digest it extremely well. Interesting content of fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E and K
Vitamin A is important for our eyes: a regular consumption of ghee will contribute to the good functioning of our retina, will facilitate the adaptation of our eyes to the darkness, and will contribute to prevent ocular imbalances (glaucoma, cataract and other degenerations…).
Vitamins D and K are precious for our nervous system and our bones.
Vitamin E has a very powerful anti-oxidant action, and therefore helps to fight and slow down oxidative processes (physiologically normal, like our aging.
Contributes to support our immune system
its actions will be reinforced within the framework of adapted holistic habits (healthy diet, emotional management, etc…)
Beneficial for our brain clarity
According to Ayurvedic teachings, ghee is extremely interesting for people with “excess Vata” which often manifests itself (emotionally/psychologically) by a cerebral hyperstimulation: sleep disorders, mental dispersion/difficulty to concentrate and to carry out a project.
A daily consumption on the medium and long term, would thus help to stabilize our mental, and to anchor the people concerned.
Promotes the vitality of our body
The best ally for our cooking
All fats (oil, butter, margarine) have a “smoke point”: which designates the limit from which we can cook (heat) with a given fat… before its molecular structure is modified (under the action of heat), and becomes harmful.
Of all the quality oils and fats, ghee is the most stable fat.
Its chemical structure allows a very high smoke point (250°C), making ghee the most interesting fat for cooking our food.
It can also be used in pastries instead of butter (which should never be cooked).
we keeps it for a long time.
Water content of a food makes it fragile to conservation, and can make it turn (initiate the oxidation process).
The absence of water in ghee (due to its manufacturing process) allows a long conservation, without fear of seeing it go rancid.
There is no need to keep it in the refrigerator (its properties would even be diminished!): it keeps wonderfully, for several months, at room temperature, in an airtight jar.
A little more, if we use it on our toast: it will be easier to spread on our slices of bread.
Its good little taste: ghee has a subtle nutty flavor, with a soft and smooth texture.
It goes equally well with salty and sweet foods.
The different uses of ghee
Karnapoorana: ear drops
Nasya :Nose drops
Massage (Shata Dhauta Ghrita for reducing internal bleeding and burning sensation,
Jatyadi Ghrita: to heal wounds faster
Hair care
Enema
How we make ghee?
Slowly melt butter and remove the white foam
Cow’s milk collected from a healthy cow treated with love and like a mother. Free of hormones, bad feeding and other awful conditions that we can see in industrial animal factory.
Cow’s milk is boiled to ensure that the milk is free from bacteria and is safe for consumption.
Once the milk has cooled down, a spoonful of curd is added to it and stirred gently. Store this mix in a warm place overnight. Once the curd is set, place it in a cool place before the churning process. The curd thus formed is churned using a wooden churner. During this process, the curd separates into butter and buttermilk. This butter which gets collected at the top of the vessel is collected and heated in a pan over medium flame. The butter has to boil till the entire water content evaporates and there is a visible layer of solids at the bottom of the pan. This ghee is filtered and stored in a dry, air-tight container.
Traditional Method 1
The milk is boiled first
Then cooled,
Set it to curdle
Then churned to extract butter
Butter is heated to get ghee.
Traditional Method 2
The milk is boiled first
The cream part is separated and collected.
Then churned to extract butter.
The day before ghee preparation, the butter is added with a tablespoon of curd for fermentation.
The next day, the fermented butter is heated to get ghee.
Western method of preparation of clarified butter (ghee)
In the first method, the curd is prepared first with fermentation, then butter, then ghee.
In the second method, the fermentation to the milk cream is done just a day before.
Ghee prepared with fermentation process is less Kapha increasing. Hence, contributes less to cholesterol. It is also easier and light to digest.
Effect of Ghee on Doshas and body tissues
Ghee is sweet, soft, cold in potency, slightly coating, brings about oleation, effective in flatulence, psychiatric disorders, epilepsy, abdominal colic and fullness and fever. It mitigates Vata and Pitta. Ghee improves digestive fire, memory, intelligence, voice, lustre, skin softness, immunity, strength, lifespan, eye strength. It acts as an aphrodisiac, relieves sins, poverty, toxicity and evil spirits. In conditions involving Vata vitiation, Ghee is to be drunk.
Due to its cold property, ghee mitigates Pitta, due to oiliness it mitigates Vataand due to processing with other medicinal herbs, it mitigates Kapha. Among all the medicines to mitigate aggravated Vata and Pitta, ghee is best. Upon consuming ghee routinely, ghee wins over Pitta due to sweet, cold and mildness, which are against the qualities of Pitta. Drinking ghee relieves the colic pain of Pitta origin. Ghee suits to those, aspiring intelligence and good memory power. Ghee is a great antitoxic substance.
itimproves digestive power. In the disorders occurring due to suppression of hunger, ghee should be taken at the beginning and at the end of meals.
Oil is heavier to digest when compared to ghee.
When Pitta alone is involved in a disease process, then ghee should not be administered, especially so in Ama condition.
Bottling and storage
Bottling and storage are very important, care should be taken to increase the shelf life of the Ghee.
Bottles should be cleaned properly, dried and sterilized in order to prevent rancidity.
Usually, glass bottles are used. Nowadays plastic containers are also used for easy handling. Plastic containers should be selected in such a way that it should not react or change the quality of Ghee.
It took me a long time to understand what meditation was for and how to learn to meditate … and finally meditation is easy. I had decided that it was not for me because I liked to move all the time, my life was a headlong rush to channel my frustrations brought by daily life (work, stress, fatigue, bad breathing…).
It was a way for me to fill my inner emptiness since in our societies you always have to take care of yourself. Emptiness is scary… So I was not yet ready to respect myself, to love and cherish my body and my soul.
After a few years, time that made me understand, health misadventures, I evolved and realized that I needed a break for my well-being and respect for my body.
It was my body that spoke. So rather than continuing on the path of acting at all costs, forgetting myself and my joy, I started yoga and meditation.
I admit that these 2 practices allowed me to observe myself better: to become aware of my behavior in life. I realized that I had taken habits that made me unhappy, that went against my joy and my balance, I had indoctrinated myself…. and above all I had forgotten to breathe.
These breaks that I give myself today balance me, I control my emotions much better, my ideas are clear and I no longer experience the unexpected as a source of stress or anxiety. I welcome the situations that come my way.
The stress of work, fatigue, bad breathing, eating on the go…it’s over!
So meditation for what and how long
I am my own observer. Meditation and yoga allow me to readjust myself to the hassle of life. I no longer experience them as stress, I welcome them because life is that, it’s a more or less pleasant flow of information that happens to you. Will stressing or being unhappy change anything in the situation that arises? No, then you have to welcome it, very often these worries are not that serious…and as they say tomorrow is another day. Then isn’t life short enough?…so let’s live there instead of making ourselves unhappy!!!
Ah this damn thought: but when? I don’t have time, my schedule is overloaded…
The exercises that I propose to you are designed to fit into any schedule…even a busy one. We are all running after time. That a meditation lasts 5, 10 or 15 minutes or more is as useful for our well-being as meditations of long duration.
At what time of the day?
Meditation gives access to self-control and transcendence of emotions
Morning meditation
The ideal is to practice early in the morning between 4:30 and 6:30 and before breakfast. The mind is not yet cluttered, one is relaxed, the air is clean and the world is still asleep. It’s a good time without phone and email. There is also a sense of calm. But according to our will, meditation can be done at any time of the day!
Midday meditation
It can allow you to take a break after morning professional obligations, to take a moment for yourself.
To share this moment of meditation with a colleague
If the evening is busy and even more so if you have children or invite friends
I will help you to start meditation and give you tools to start your practice.
Evening meditation
It’s the end of the day, professional obligations have disappeared, you are more relaxed and have more time to spend. You are more likely to do it correctly and adjust it to your needs.
The benefits of meditation:
As I was telling you for me, meditation has allowed me to tackle the difficulties of life with more
improve our communication with ourselves and others
we see more clearly in our actions, our behavior
focused more we are aware of what we are we are more objective with regard to awkward situations…
and we end up realizing that we have to let joy flow into our lives
it’s giving yourself time for yourself, becoming aware of yourself, of your feelings, decluttering your mind and cultivating your inner being.
So you try?
Meditation generates benefits in the background, it can be practiced without particular difficulty and above all without taking up considerable time in your daily life.
Nor should you be told that with each meditation you do you will have the answers to your questions…no, she is like a sister, a friend who helps you to put things into perspective, to see the situation with hindsight and realize with the time finally that the answer is in you…
How to start meditation?
Have an inquisitive mindset, it’s discovery…new experiences. At first we can feel frustrated because we are so conditioned to live at a frantic pace that doing nothing is banished from our lives.
Meditation is not a competition…forget the race for results by telling yourself: “I absolutely have to meditate, that I stay focused, it irritates me I can’t stop thinking…I can’t control anything…. In short, see…these are moments that we experience as a beginner….but meditation is not a race for professional objectives, on the contrary it totally accepts imperfection, it even values it!!! And between you and me… let’s forget our conditionings of modern society and accept each other.
How to prepare yourself to meditate?
Meditation is the time when you respect yourself by taking care of yourself
COMFORT IS the KEY
Put your phone on silent or off to avoid its vibration…and in another room to avoid thinking about it.
You won’t be able to avoid all the noises obviously, if you hear something, just integrate that noise into a conscious approach, while being aware of that sound and without anxiety.
FEEL COMFORTABLE !!! FOR THE QUALITY OF YOUR MEDITATION
Create your little corner of meditation just for you. This will help keep this ritual enjoyable. It must be as comfortable as it is warm. This is your oasis…
Always have a meditation blanket or shawl and socks on your feet due to your immobility
POSTURES AND ACCESSORIES
The back :
Stand up straight without any tension or rigidity.
To keep your back straight, imagine that your head is held up by a wire attached to the ceiling. The head is as if connected to the sky. The buttocks and pelvis are well placed on a horizontal plane. This invisible line thus connects the earth and the sky through our body.
We often forget the fact that our body influences our mind. Slumped, our mind is not as clear as if we were standing up straight. If your body is comfortable, your mind will be too. They are both linked and work together.
If your mind is restless, your body will be uncomfortable.
And you lack of comfort, you won’t be able to calm your mind either. If you feel uncomfortable repositioning yourself, living a meditation alone or in a badly positioned group is a source of stress and brings no benefit!
If you feel tension in the back, you can use a wedge to place under the beginning of the buttocks or simply a cushion.
You don’t want to sit on the floor: use a meditation bench
Legs:
You can sit on the ground cross-legged or use a chair if your knees are painful (this will be just as beneficial for meditation. No muscle tension should settle permanently.
You can also meditate in a lying position by placing a cushion under your knees to limit the lumbar arch to the floor and under your head if necessary, but you risk to fall asleep.
If meditation posture is to difficult to maintien, prefer to sit on a chair.
The eyes
They are preferably half-closed and the gaze is directed downwards 1m50 in front of you, if you prefer closed them. The head remains straight in line with the body. Thus, the gaze is calm and peaceful
The mouth
Slightly open to avoid tension in the jaws
Hands
Relaxed shoulders, relaxed arms to rest your hands on your knees
You are solid as a mountain, regardless of the thoughts and emotions that pass through you. You are present there.
The difficulties or rather the opportunities that you may encounter…
Some people will seek complete silence because they tell themselves that concentrating is easier! But nowadays, finding silence is rather difficult and rare. We most often live in towns and even in the countryside, there is always a tractor passing by…the noise of a mower…Unless we find ourselves at an altitude of 3000m…but again nothing is guaranteed. So see the noise as an opportunity because it is a way to “zap” our ideas which tend to remain fixed.
Meditating in silence and alone is the best way to find ourselves, to get used to ourselves without being disturbed by the distractions of life.
Exercice: acclimate yourself to silence
Even 5 min of meditation is a good starts for your mental and physical health balance
Today, rare are the times when you find yourself alone and in silence…or even never. So, it’s time to give it a try. For the first few times, allow yourself 5 minutes of silence without outside disturbance.
1- Find a time when no one is home
IT’S YOUR TIME
2- Put your laptop on silent or in airplane mode (silent mode is reduced to vibrate mode and suddenly even if it vibrates you will lose silence and tranquility.
Turn off the music.
3- Motionless, take a walk around yourself observing your interior, be aware of your attitude and gestures, then walk quietly towards a place in the room that attracts you…your library, your kitchen, and look at the objects arranged. Look, touch, move them while remaining aware of what you are doing.
4- Now how do you feel about this silence: are you uncomfortable? Don’t dwell on the thoughts that cross your mind, let them pass. There it is simply a matter of feeling and not analyzing
5- Your feelings can evolve between the beginning and the end of this moment for you. You may even appreciate this moment of pause, this moment of mindfulness.
The questions you ask yourself when you meditate
My thoughts spring up, my brain is a real factory of thoughts…
It’s inevitable, perfectly normal and human. We think back to work, to a friend, to a situation, to a deadline to meet… in short, worries.
Thoughts come and go for no reason. You think without having decided, about something that has nothing to do with the present situation: you imagine yourself making a phone call, or something else… How difficult it is to stay in touch with what is is here. You left your body. It doesn’t matter: you are gone and come back to your posture and breathing in the present moment. It doesn’t matter if you come back 1 time, 10 times, 1 thousand times per session… Just come back.
And be kind to yourself, meditation is not a struggle or gymnastics against our thoughts. When you realize that you are no longer in connection with your body, in the here and now, bring your attention back gently, without judgment using your breath. Often, we try to abstract our thoughts at all costs. We struggle on our cushion with violence, even anger in front of our mind which does as it pleases. Abandon this approach. True peace is being open to whatever arises. “No matter how many thoughts arise, let them come.” This attitude is key.
It depends on the person, some concentrate their mind more easily and naturally than others, who conversely rehash. It doesn’t matter ! Adapt, and accept that. By being kind, patient with yourself and with practice, it will become natural to stop paying attention to it. Integrate the meditations when your mind is confused and restless, it’s time to reconnect and calm our mental dispersion through mindfulness.
Find your body:
There are thoughts and also noises, getting used to the various sources of stimuli (heartbeat or car noise…). We must integrate these noises into our meditation and not let them discourage us. They are part of life…and meditation. When you hear a sound during meditation, focus your intention on the experience of hearing. Try not to have any inner dialogue on the subject. The reality is a simple, no-frills experience. When you hear a sound, pay attention to the process of hearing.
Our mind is playful, it tests our patience by letting thoughts arise. Our mind responds because it is not used to this practice. It’s like starting a new sport… at first we don’t necessarily take pleasure… we change our habits… Meditation is not intellectual, it confuses us because we are used to analyzing each situation and its simplicity of practice disturbs us. It is enough just to be there… without history.
This involves finding full and complete attention to our sensory perceptions. Just be mindful of what you are feeling without expecting what you should be feeling. The important thing is not to feel what we would like or to reject what we don’t like, but to enter into a relationship with what is when it happens. You may feel ants in your legs, itching, readjust yourself, this is the best time to respond to your body’s messages.
Menopause is not a disease, it is a natural process
Menopause, perimenopause and post menopause are stages in a woman’s life when her periods stop. This is the end of the childbearing years.
Perimenopause is the first stage of this process and can begin eight to ten years before menopause. Menopause is when a woman has no more periods for at least 12 months. This period may vary depending on hereditary factors, nature, body constitution, mental status, stress levels, working condition, countries.
It is also depending on present lifestyle, medicinal therapies undergone …,
Menopause is a normal process, it is not a disease and usually occurs in the late 40s and early 50s. Early cases happen at 35-36, and become more common these days or later cases at an age of 50-52 years is also reported in some countries.
Post menopause is the stage that follows menopause.
The drop in estrogen levels associated with menopause can cause annoying and persistent hot flashes.
It can also make women feel like they are in a constant state of PMS (premenstrual syndrome). Unfortunately, these emotional changes are an integral part of menopause. Some of the emotional changes experienced by women in perimenopause or menopause may include irritability, feelings of sadness, lack of motivation, anxiety, aggression, difficulty concentrating, fatigue, mood swings, etc.
They may also experience physiological changes such as weight gain, hair loss, aches and pains, etc.
Ayurvedic insight is useful for women undergoing menopausal symptoms and help minimize the unpleasant experiences and emotions associated with them.
Perimenopause: ayurvedic view
Menopause and symptoms
In Ayurveda perimenopause period is termed as Rajonivritti kala. Raja means Menstruation, nivritti means retirement or cessation and kala means time period.
As sais above, the ovaries gradually reduce their estrogen hormone production, and one or several following symptoms can occur:
Irregular menstruation
Prolonged bleeding or scanty menstruation
Back ache – non specific kind
Headache – partial head ache or head ache of interfering agent
Body ache
Neuritis or numbness in body parts
Fatigue, excessive tiredness
Nausea
Anorexia (tastelessness)
Excess sweating
Inferiority or constant grief
Mood elevation
Nervousness
Intestinal problems
Acid peptic disorders
Excess or decreased appetite
Abdominal discomfort
Stress and strain
Loss of sleep, disturbed sleep
Hot flushes
Breast tenderness
Worse premenstrual syndrome
Lower sex drive
Vaginal dryness; discomfort during sex due to friction
Urine leakage when coughing or sneezing
Urinary urgency (an urgent need to urinate more frequently)
Do you need a treatment for Perimenopause?
The most important is to be aware of this conditions when it happens because if the symptoms are mild it can be managed with lifestyle changes like regular oil massage for stress and body ache. Then treatment is not required.
In severe symptoms such as heavy bleeding with clots, severe stress, depression, excessive sweating, …, treatment is useful.
Which lifestyle, exercises and hobbies
It is important to keep your activities to engaged your body and mind. It is very important for physical and mental health.
Too much hot yoga will exacerbate symptoms. Practice a hatha, yin, or restorative yoga instead.
These use gentle and mindful movements to keep you grounded, connect you to your body, and relax the mind. It will work effectively on your conditions with a qualified yoga teacher.
3 Yoga Poses for Perimenopausal Women
Salamba Sarvangasana: helps relieve stress, mild depression, and menopausal symptoms.
Salamba Sarvangasana for perimenopauseVariation of Salamba Sarvangasana for perimenopause
Marichyasana: helps with emotional calming during time of intense hormonal shifts.
Marichyasana for perimenopause
Janu sirsasana: help manage perimenopausal symptoms like mild depression, hot flashes, and anxiety.
Variation of Janu SirsasanaJanu Sirsasana
Oil massage:
After Menopause, depleted calcium and bone strength are common symptoms like osteo arthritis. This is very important to do daily oil massage with Maha Narayana tailam or Ksheerabala taila especially if you feel headache, body ache, sleeping problems, arthritis and joint pains.
Favour green leafy vegetables, cabbage, soya food, lady finger, beans, almonds, sesame seeds, flax seed,garlic, basil which are good supplement in calcium.
Beans, cereals, pumpkin seed, carrot, dates, sesame seed, chickpeas, peanuts, pecans, walnuts, pistachios, roasted almonds, roasted cashews, or sunflower seeds, raisins, peaches, or prunes, spinach, bread are excellent to bring iron in your diet.
Iron is needed to make myoglobin, the protein that provides oxygen to the muscles. Helps to manage fatigue, restless leg syndrome, cognition and anemia, difficulty regulating your body temperature, headaches
A variety of fruits and vegetables.
Include a teaspoon of ghee in diet for a healthy gut, it also promotes memory and concentration.
Which Foods to avoid
Avoid high amounts of fried, oily, salty foods, as well as sugar. If you are suffering from hot flashes, avoid excess spicy foods and coffee.
Your family
Family members: husband, children and so on should take special care towards your health and your mind set up.
Family members should know that, the hormonal imbalance causes changes in the body and mind of the woman. Conversations and discussions should carry enough care toward her.
Ayurvedic treatment
So, the goal is to pacify Dosha imbalances. Between 40-50 years, both pitta and vata are aggravated. So measures should be taken to pacify both Vata and Pitta dosha.
Medicines to improve strength and immunity:Ashwagandhaisused in the treatment of fatigue, stress, mood disorders etc.
Medicines to treat vaginal dryness, frequent urination and urinary tract infections: Yoni picchu for vaginal dryness : put a sterile medicated cotton swab, dipped in oil or ghee, is placed the vagina. Ask your practionner to know which oil to use. Usually you can use sesame oil, almond oil, coconut or olive oil and others depending on your constitution.
Rejuvenation – anti aging therapy: Shatavari rasayana can be use depending on your conditions.
Your home remedies for perimenopause symptoms:
To restore mild deficiency caused during menopause
· 50 grams of cumin seeds and 50 grams of fenugreek powder
· Fried them in 50 grams of ghee.
· Add to it 50 grams of organic jaggery or brown sugar well powdered.
· Make a round ball of 10gram each.
Daily 1-2 balls should be taken along with lukewarm milk.
To restore the vitality and energy and prevents fatigue and other symptoms commonly found during menopause
5 grams of ground nut, cashew nut, sesame seeds, jaggery or honey and ginger well powdered or pounded well.
Taken it with warm water, early in the morning.
It is easy to learn how to get rid of physical symptoms and how to manage physical and mental stresses caused by this transition.
I repeat but if you prevent and manage at the first stages, with efforts, healthy habits, healthy and nutritious food during menopause, the practice of yoga, meditation and pranayama, you will live normal life.
Ayurveda Medicine keys are : prevention, care, good food and healthy habits and work your mind.
Discovering the self brings to perfect happiness. All fears are overcome when Self-knowledge is acquired
Knowledge of God is not as commonly discussed in India as knowledge of the true Self.
Self-knowledge reveals knowledge of the true nature of the Absolute and of Supreme Deity.
Realizing our true Self, or Atman according to Vedanta philosophy
Ordinarily we use the word ‘self’ in the sense of ego, but the term ‘self-knowledge’ does not mean mere knowledge of the ego.
The ego in us is the doer, the thinker and the perceiver. That which performs all the functions of body and mind is generally known as the “I” or ego; but it is only the reflection of the Absolute Brahman, which is the source of all intelligence.
The ego is the image of that divine spark within us which gives it vitality and makes it do all mental and physical work. So when we speak of knowledge of the Self, we mean not just knowledge of the lower animal Self or ego, but also of the higher Self. The higher Self is identical with the Absolute which is at the base of the phenomenal universe.
Absolute Substance or Brahman is beyond space and time, therefore it is formless and immutable. When it manifests as an individualized, self-aware entity, it is known as the ego.
It also appears as an object of consciousness, so it is called matter; the Absolute Being, however, is neither matter nor the same as the ego. It forms the background of our ego; therefore, it is our true Self.
When we realized this, we knew God and the relationship that the phenomenal universe has with him. And the best method to become aware of this Absolute Being is to realize our true Self, or Atman, as it is called in Sanskrit.
Some people think that self-annihilation is the ideal of Vedanta philosophy, but it is not. The true Self, according to Vedanta, can never be destroyed.
If self-annihilation were the ideal then the Self would be subject to change and destruction, it cannot be the same as the Absolute Being.
How then is it possible for anyone to think of his annihilation?
Vedanta philosophy, on the contrary, teaches that the true Self is absolutely indestructible and immutable.
The destruction of the Self is just as impossible as the destruction of the Absolute. Therefore, self-annihilation cannot be the highest goal and ideal of life. Only self-knowledge helps us to realize absolute Truth and achieve perfection. It is considered the highest wisdom.
When Socrates asked the Oracle of Delphi “What is the highest knowledge?” the answer came, “Know thyself.”
By the word “self” here is meant not only the ego, but the true Self. The same knowledge of the real Self has been glorified in India since the earliest Vedic period.
Self-knowledge as the highest ideal of life
Self Knowledge is the way to happiness
Vedanta, the rationalist part of the Vedas, describes self-knowledge as the highest ideal of life. If we want to know God, we must first know our true Self; we must ask ourselves who and what we really are, where we come from and what we become after death?
These questions are of vital importance. Ordinary people cannot solve such problems, their minds are too busy with the affairs of the phenomenal world.
Buta serious seeker of Truth, who is dissatisfied with the knowledge of material objects, wishes to go beneath the surface of phenomenal appearances and stop until the ultimate goal, the reality which underlies all phenomena, be discovered.
His goal is to find the right solution to these problems by knowing the true nature of his ego as well as the universe. He may begin with the objective world, but gradually, as he advances step by step and goes deeper and deeper in his search for Truth, he eventually returns to his own Self.
Because the true Self is the center of the universe. The phenomenal world, which consists of objects of sense perception, can be compared to a great circle whose circumference is found in gross material forms and whose innermost center is Atman, the true Self.
The nature of this true Self, according to Vedanta, is infinite.
It is neither limited in time nor conditioned by spatial relations. The scriptures describe God as the center of the universe, but Vedanta says that the Self or Atman is also the center of the universe, and the true Self is one with Divinity.
The moment we realize the Divine Self within us, we understand that the domain of the same Atman extends to the sun, the moon, the stars and even the most distant planets, whose light puts hundreds and thousands of years to reach us.
Wherever there is existence, whether on the physical or mental plane, there is also the manifestation of this Divine Self.
That by which we know the existence of the external world, by which we are aware of our body, our senses and our mental powers, is our true Self. It is not far from us, but it is beyond the reach of the mind and intellect.
The Self is beyond all vibration
The Self is described in the fourth verse of the Isha Upanishad thus: “It (the Self) is beyond all vibration, it moves without moving…”
Our senses have never reached it, it has transcended them all. Although immobile, it transcends the mind and the senses. It is the source of all mental activities, sensory powers and the various forces of nature. “Modern science tells us that the whole world is the product of matter and material forces. Matter, again, is nothing but a certain state of motion or vibration of a substance whose true nature is unknown and unknowable. A particle in the universe is in constant motion or vibration.
What we call heat or light, sound or taste, smell, touch or any old sensory object, is nothing but a state of vibration of the same unknown substance.
William Crookes says: “At thirty-two vibrations per second it is shown that we have the first beginning of audible sound, and that sound ceases to be audible when it reaches something less than thirty-three thousand vibrations per second. second.
The vibrations of heat and light rays are almost inconceivably faster. They are expressed in no less than fifteen digits, while the vibrations in a single second of the newly discovered radium are expressed in more than nine thousand millions of millions.”
The whole world consists of the vibration of atoms, or the tiniest particles of material substance, but above and beyond all that vibration there is Absolute Reality, the true Self, which is the source of knowledge, intelligence and consciousness
. Self that we know that there is such a thing as vibration
Who knows that the world is vibration
Do yoga do increase your perceptions
“Motion produces only motion” is one of the laws of nature which has been confirmed by the modern scientists. Movement cannot produce knowledge.
Knowledge is something which is not the effect of movement or vibration, but it is what enlightens our mind and makes us see and understand that it is there is such a thing as motion or vibration .
Therefore, the Upanishad says, “That which is not vibrating is our true Self.”
Search within and see that which is not vibrating, but who is the Knower of all vibrations and actions.
“It goes faster than the mind.” “We know that the mind is the fastest thing in the world.
Thought travels faster than electricity or any other current that exists on the physical plane. William Crookes explains that “thought vibrations that come from the brain can really take place where it becomes impossible to estimate the vibrations that are caused by the subtlest forces of physical nature.”
Further, he adds, “If we can somehow realize the concept of ‘a force capable of creating thousands of trillions of vibrations in a second, and if we add to this idea that the speed of these vibrations thunders by their rapidity, we see quite easily that thought can put a belt around the earth in an infinitesimal fraction of time.
“We can exchange messages wirelessly between here and another part of the world, but thought transfer is faster than that.
What is faster than the mind is the true Self.
Our true Self can go faster than the stream of thought and even where the mind cannot reach. He is still traveling.
The Self or Atman forms the background of the mind, so the Self is faster and faster than the activity of the mind.
The mind cannot go anywhere without depending on the Self, knowing it. It remains absolutely inactive when separated from the Self.
“The senses never reached him, he transcended them all.”
The senses cannot reveal it; the powers of the senses cannot express the true nature of the Self, because they are limited by time and space. Whereas the knower of time and space must necessarily be beyond the reach of the senses.
When we see the sun, the very sight depends on self-awareness, that is, we must be aware that we are seeing something, and the consciousness must depend on our true Self.
The sun will not be seen if our mind and eyes are separated and cut off from the Self, the source of knowledge, intelligence and consciousness. Based on this source of consciousness and intelligence, our mind functions, our senses perform their functions, and the body moves.
“It (the Self) moves and it does not move; it is far and also near. He is inside and also outside of it all. “
When the body moves, the source of intelligence, or our true Self, appears to be moving, but in reality does not move.
All of life is a mystery.
We strive to find an explanation by studying nature, but nature confuses us further, science does not help us, it takes us up to a certain point and leaves us there without showing anything beyond it, without telling us what to do and where to go of our relative knowledge.
When properly analyzed, it appears as a partial expression of absolute knowledge, which is the true nature of the true Self.
Relative knowledge, however, will not help us solve the riddles of the universe.If we wish to know the ultimate Truth of the world, we must go beyond nature and seek the explanation in the realm of the Absolute
Nature is called in Sanskrit Maya
It deceives us, yet we live in nature , and our body, our senses and our spirit are part of nature.
The more we study nature, the more we are deceived; we are not arriving at a definitive solution. Scientists have come to certain conclusions in which nothing is concluded. Science tells us that the ultimate goal of everything is unknown and unknowable.
Here the Vedanta comes and advises its students to study not only nature but our Self or Atman.
Then all confusion will be removed and Absolute Truth will be attained.
Nature shows us that the Self moves when the body is in motion, but in reality the Self is still. Nature makes us feel that the Self is very far from us, but it is the closest thing we have, closer than that body and mind that we consider closest; our true Self, however, is actually the closest of all. “He dwells in faith just like his soul or his inner nature, but he is outside of everything.”
How is it possible ?
If he lives inside, how can he live outside?
Space exists inside and out. Take the space in this room, which is confined by its walls.
This space appears as inside the room; but what are the walls, are they separated from the space?
No. They exist in and through space.
The space of the walls limits the space that is inside the room; but does it actually limit? No. It’s outside too. Can we limit infinite space?
Never. Likewise, if we try to limit our Self by our mind, we fail, because the mind is not big enough and strong enough to keep the Self out.
The powers of the senses cannot limit it, the physical forms can never divide it, because each of them exists in relation to the Self.
The Self or Atman, when properly realized, appears boundless and infinite.
We say we are finite beings, but in reality we are not finite.
“He who realizes all beings in the Self, and the Self in everything animate and inanimate, (objects of the universe), never hates anything or any being.”
Hatred proceeds from an imperfect relative knowledge, which makes us perceive objects as separate from each other.
But when we see our true Self in others, how can we hate the other without hating our own Self?
It would be impossible for the Self to hate itself.
As it is impossible to hate our true Self, it would be impossible to hate the Self of any being.
This is one of the results of self-knowledge, where self-knowledge is that there can be no feeling of hatred.
When hatred is gone, jealousy and all other selfish feelings, which we call wicked, disappear.
What’s left?
Love is unity
Ordinary love, which opposes hatred, vanishes; but Divine love begins to reign in the heart. True love means the expression of unity. As love of the body makes us feline with the body, love of the true Self makes us feel one with the true Self.
And if we see this Self in others, we cannot help but love them as we love our Self.
We now understand the meaning of “Love your neighbor as yourself”. It is not an extraordinary teaching. Vedanta has always taught this truth.
Christ was the only one who also taught in this way, but they do not know that this is the very basis of Vedanta ethics.
Love means the expression of unity in thought, word and deed.
“Where all beings have become one with the Self, what illusion, what pain can there be for one who has once achieved this oneness?”
Self-knowledge leads to the realization of oneness with all beings.
When all beings appear as parts of one universal Self, there is no illusion, fear or sorrow, for there can be no other thing besides the Self or Atman to grieve for. or from which we can suffer.
Grief and fear arise as long as there is a sense of duality or multiplicity. Isha Upanishad, verse 7.
If all objects of fear and grief become one with the all-pervading Divine Self, then fear and grief must disappear.
But as long as we think of other beings that exist outside of our Self, we cannot avoid the grief and suffering that arise because of them.
In absolute unity, however, there cannot remain fear, grief, suffering, separation, or self-delusion. This is another risk of self-knowledge. Some people may think that Vedanta teaches us to be selfish, but that is far from true.
The lower self dies, the self disappears, and with its disappearance all egoism is destroyed.
The word “Self” should not be taken for the lower self or selfishness.
Atman means, the higher Self, which is our divine nature.
This Atman (the Self), which is the center of the universe, is omnipresent.
Wherever our mind goes, the Atman goes.
Itis the source of the light of intelligence ; he is pure, spotless, sinless.
Here the Vedanta teaches that we are not soaring in sin and iniquity, but that our Atman or true Self is sinless.
By this, he is not encouraging to commit sinful acts, but he is telling us thatthe moment one acquires Self-knowledge, from that moment one ceases to do anything wrong..
The Atman is in the body, but it has no body. It is formless, that is, beyond gross and subtle forms. There are forms we can only see through the most powerful microscope, even these tiniest forms do not affect the Self.
He is beyond all forms, but at the same time he can appear in any form, and all forms that exist.
Atman is beyond any nerve activity or brain function.
Materialists hold that when the brain and nerve centers vibrate, self-consciousness is produced. But the Vedanta contradicts their statement by saying, “Beyond the reach of the nerve centers and untouched by the powers of the brain.”unaffected by changes in the body; there may be variations in the color or shape of the physical body, or the body may be diseased or have a mutilated part, but that disease or mutilation will not produce any change in the true Self or Atman.
Therefore, self-knowledge frees from nervousness and other physical ailments. The word “Kavi” means poet, and also means the seer of things. Self is described as the greatest poet in the universe, it is one of the most beautiful expressions and attributes one can give to one’s Divinity.
He is the poet. His poetry is the universe.
He is also described as the greatest entertainer. His art we see in sunrise and sunset. The sun, moon and stars are none other than the infinite space paintings by the artist Almighty.
The true Self or Atman is above good and evil, beyond virtue and vice.
How can he be above good and evil?
Good and evil, however, are two relative terms.
Evil exists in relation to good, and we cannot separate one from the other.
If we want to take the good, we should also take the bad.
Thus, with virtue and vice, one cannot exist without being linked to the other.
The Absolute Self is above all relativity and therefore it is above good and evil, above virtue and vice. “There is no other seer but this Atman, no other knower.
The vast majority of mankind do not know this great truth. Preachers do not teach it, because they themselves do notand
If God is the Knower of all, then the Knower in us is part of God.
Vedanta tells us to realize first the individual knower then the Knower of the universe will be known. The Atman or the true Self is never the object of knowledge, but is always the subject.
The cosmic or universal Knower is the same one whom people worship as God. Thus by the light of Vedanta we can see God near of our souls; but in the scriptures of the special religions it is made aloof. It is driven far from our reach.
Vedanta draws it nearer than anything we possess. Though this Atman permeates all, yet it is beyond of everything; he dwells in all things
The Attributes Generally Given to God
It is never about phenomenal conditions. descends the changes of nature, but it permeates nature. It is its own cause, the cause and the effect are identical there. Our Atman has no cause yet it is the cause of everything, and at the same time it is beyond the law of cause and effect.
The Self has existed by itself since the beginningless past and will continue to exist through eternity.
“All relative knowledge is only a partial expression of that wisdom which constitutes the nature of the Atman. Now we see that the attributes which people generally give to God, such as.
He is omniscient, omnipotent, omnipresent, eternal, infinite, are also given by Vedanta to the true Self. The true Self is the soul of our souls. Self-knowledge reveals that the attributes of God are also the attributes of the Atman.
“Those who do not realize this Self, dwell in the darkness of ignorance and pass through the misery and sufferings that exist in this darkness. Isha Upanishad.
They are always fearful and unhappy.
They fear death and all that threatensexistence, and they make their life miserable by attaching themselves to a particular form of manifestation which they are afraid of.
losing earthlyfind them, and they consider that this earthly life has no other higher purpose or ideal. The life of these people is nothing but a continuous chain of fear and unhappiness.
Those who are rich fear losing their wealth; those who have a reputation and a high position are afraid of losing them. While every man or woman suffers from the fear of sickness and death. Do you believe that these people will ever experience true happiness on this earth? No.
Only those who have become absolutely free from fear are truly happy.
Perfect Happiness: when Self-Knowledge is Acquired
Self-knowledge dispels the darkness of ignorance and sets us free from fear, sorrow, misery,…
Perfect happiness comes and all fear is overcome when Self-knowledge is acquired. For this reason, each of us must make constant efforts to acquire it in this life.
The light of Self-knowledge dispels the darkness of ignorance and sets us free from fear, sorrow, misery, birth and death, and from bondage, imperfection and weakness. illusion. And which proceed from ignorance.
This ignorance is also the mother of selfishness.
It has the power to veil the divine and absolute Atman and make us identify our true Self with the material body. So when we are forced by the inscrutable power of ignorance (Avidya) to forget our true Self, to regard ourselves as the sons or daughters of mortals, we become finite and subject to limitations as understood by the term “selfishness”.
Self-knowledge destroys ignorance and makes one absolutely altruistic. Blessed is who lives in the sunshine of Self-knowledge, having risen above the clouds of fear and selfishness that gather in the night of ignorance.
What is this world?
It is produced by ignorance and bound by fear.
Self-knowledge destroys all worldliness, brings spiritual strength and makes one fearless, as God is fearless.
The moment we realize that God dwells within us, how can we be afraid?
How can we be afraid of death when we know that death simply means passing from one body to another, and our true Self or Atman is immutable?
Those who do not possess the knowledge of the Self are miserable and will explode again and again on this plane of ignorance until they have learned to realize their true Self.
Self-knowledge is the only source of happiness.
This will lead to perfection and freedom.
You may seek freedom, but how can you get it when you have become a slave to fear and earthly conditions?
You are part of the Divinity.
Feel it, realize it, and all those tics will disappear and you will be free.
Alignment of this freedom through knowledge of the Self will bring you the realization of your oneness with Divinity.
Then you will be able to say: “This light which is seen in the sun is in me, and what is in me is in the sun.
I am Lord of body, senses and spirit, and all phenomenal objects, the light of the universe, through me shine the sun, the moon, the stars and the lightning.
I have realized my true Self.
I’m the true Self of the universe and therefore I am a with the Absolute.”
Balanced diet and lifestyle are the key to avoid or decrease female issues. Women cross different periods with age and are more prone to wide range of health issues due to changes in her body.
Health and lifestyle, especially during fertile period of woman will have impact on her pregnancy and progeny.
So maintaining healthy lifestyle and diet for a woman is utmost important for now, future and her family.
The management of Vata dosha is really important because imbalances of vata dosha is the main cause for various health issues in women.
The causes of Vata imbalances
Wrong habits to avoid:
Excessive physical strain activities such as exercises for long hours,
Wrong Yoga postures,
High heel footwear,
Travelling for many hours on daily basis
No break from all the day
Aways moving
Delaying sleeping time with smartphone engagement
Skipping meals,
Having very little amount of foods for weight management,
Habitual suppression natural urges such as hunger, thirst, urination, defecation continuously
In short time many complaints will occur such as body ache, headache, bloating, nausea menstrual pains, back pain, anxiety, heavy bleeding, constipation, etc…
Psychological factors
Change your lifestyle, stop to run and take a break to relax your nervous system!
Stress, anxiety, fear, depression, phobia, emotional volatility and more lead to physical and mental health disorders.
All those emotions will have impact on physical health in long run mainly due to vata dosha imbalances.
Wrong food habits to avoid:
Dry fish, dry food in general, raw food, highly spicy food, cold refrigerated water and food items, sour, junk food, canned foods, uncooked, spoiled, contaminated, previous night left over food, repeatedly re cooked food, skipping meals, untimely taken food, alcohol, packed food, industrial prepared food…
All of that are our worst enemies to maintain good health…without speaking about all the food additives and preservatives you find in artificial and not fresh food
Lifestyle changes during menstruation
During menstruation
Avoid heavy food difficult to digest. (meat, junk foods, oily, junk food restaurants…) and prefer diet including wheat, barley, guard, green gram, mung bean…easy to digest.
Avoid spicy
Avoid excess salt consumption during this period
Don’t drink cold water or other refrigerated food items, it increase vata and can cause painful periods.
Drink warm water and take warm food along the day
Avoid sour, salty food this can increase the flow in those who have heavy menstrual bleeding.
Avoid excess walking, travelling, talking, standing or other physical strain which cause imbalance in vata dosha which in its normal state helps easy menstrual flow.
Avoid stressed mind full of thoughts.
Ideal food during Pregnancy
Lifestyle and diet during pregancy
Choose food easily digestible, freshly prepared, wholesome and delicious
Include ghee, milk with turmeric or saffron, leafy vegetables, sweet potatoes, banana, pomegranate, custard apple, walnuts, almonds, avocado, fennel, cumin, coconut water, …
Avoid raw papaya, raw pineapple, castor oil, raw meat, caffeine, liquor, excess asafoetida, uncooked, spoilt, canned, junk food and left over food.
Avoid heavy thinks, travelling, climbing stairs or hill, standing on height, staying near places of loud noise, stay in peace.
During menopause
During this period, cessation of menstruation is there and cause imbalances in all three doshas.
You could feel various symptoms so it is the period where utmost care of health has to be taken to form balance in doshas.
Treatment should be done according to the presenting symptoms and dosha involved.
For vata symptoms can be mood swings, fear, constipation, insomnia, anxiety, body aches and more then should avoid intake of dry, cold food items and activities such as excess exercise, travelling and stay grounded as much as possible.
For pitta dosha dominance symptoms cen be hot flushes, anger, burning sensation, excess bleeding, … Such person should take coolant, bitter, sweet taste food ( guard, green gram, barley, sugarcane juice, coconut water etc). Avoid spicy, salt, sour food, pickles, chilies etc
In kapha symptoms like obesity, depression, indigestion, …then avoid taking excess sweet, oily food, heavy, raw food, junk food, day sleep …
General Therapies To Improve Women Health
Oil massage (Abyanga)
Oilation is really important to maintain balance
Daily body oil massage before warm bath balances vata dosha
Improves skin health
Moisturizes the skin, removes dryness, improve complexion
Lubricates joints, relaxes muscles thereby reduce body aches and joint pain
Regular exercise (Vyayama)
Controls body weight
Reduces excess body fat
Maintains bone and muscle health
Relieves stress, anxiety, fear, depression
Maintaining normal movement of vata dosha (Vatanulomana)
Drinking warm water maintains normal movement of vata also improves digestion processes and maintains appetite
Drink water soaked overnight with raisins, early morning in empty stomach.
It will brings back vata movement in normal direction. It acts as mild laxative to ease bowel movement.
Helps to relieve stress, anxiety, and stabilize emotional flows
Improve attitude facing life
Bring positive mind with regularity
Improves disease tolerance capacity of body.
Maintains physical and mental dosha in balance
Maintains normal digestive strength.
Strenghten muscles, bones and mind
…
Medicines for women health
Medicines mainly used for Women Health with the with the supervision of a physician and according to your life history
Shatavari Gulam: used in almost all the gynecological complaints, PCOD, menstrual pain, irregular menstrual cycles, heavy menstrual bleeding, urinary tract infections, … Ashwagandha Churna: for anxiety, leucoderma, depression, insomnia, weight gain, weight loss, immunity, muscle strength, body building, anti-oxidants, sexual stimulant.
References
As per the research conducted by Department of Psychology H.N.B Garhwal Central University Garhwal Uttarakhand, India on stress among employed women and housewives and its management have concluded stress management techniques such as meditation, yoga, hypnosis, guided imagery, muscle relaxation, mindfulness breathing etc. have shown improvement in positive coping skills.
As per the research conducted on effect of massage therapy during pregnancy and labor, concluded that massage therapy is effective during pregnancy and labor. There was reduced depression, anxiety, decreased leg and back pain in pregnant women who underwent massage therapy and on labor pain women experienced significantly less pain, and their labors were on average 3 h shorter with less need for medication.
Menstrual cycle and food habits: The evidence indicates that women eat more food per day during the 10 days after they ovulate than during the 10 days before
Menopause and exercise: A research study concluded that 12-weeks of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise may result in small improvements in sleep quality, insomnia and depression in midlife, sedentary women.
Herbal medicine are generally prepared according to five basic methods of extraction: the fresh juice of the plant (svarasa); the crushed pulp or paste of the plant (kalka); decoction (kvatha); hot infusion (yhant); and cold infusion (hima). Juice is the strongest; cold infusion the weakest. The rest fall into a descending order of strength.
Fresh Juice (Svarasa)
Fresh juice: powerful health benefits of veggie and fruits juice
The fresh juice of an herb is obtained by taking the fresh plant, crushing or pounding it, then straining the liquid through a cloth.
A juicer may also be used for this purpose. This method is not used that often because it relies mainly on freshly picked herbs. Easily available herbs–aloe vera, ginger, lemon, lime, onions, parsley … are also used in the above process, but the effects are best for wild or home grown herbs.
For dry herbs, a weaker juice preparation is made by taking the crushed dry herb or powder, adding twice the weight of the herb in water, allowing to set for 24 hours, and then straining the liquid for a juice substitution.
Herbal Paste (Kalka)
Paste: another method for using plant or seeds
The paste of an herb is obtained by crushing the fresh plant but only to the point where it becomes a soft mass. It can be done with dried herbs, with the addition of enough water to create a workable paste.
Such pastes can be made with honey, ghee or oil, usually in double the amount of the herbs. Various raw sugars can also be used in equal amounts to the herbs. Liquid substances work better with dry herbs, dry substances with fresh herbs.
This mode of preparation is often used externally for plasters and poultices to promote the healing of wounds and sores. (Please see section on Herbs for External Usage.) It may also be used as a basis for infusions and decoctions, an herbal paste being prepared first and then cooked. All herbs can be used in this manner.
Decoction (Kvatha)
Herbal medicine decoction method, easy and so beneficial fo health
Herbs are usually administered in the form of a decoction or a hot infusion. The difference is that a decoction involves boiling the herbs over a low flame. A hot infusion involves cooking them below the boiling point, or steeping them, bringing them to a boil and then removing them from the heat.
The general rule for decoctions: one part dry herbs to six teen parts water; about half an ounce of herbs per cup or 8 ounces of water. Herbs are then boiled over a low flame until the water is reduced to one quarter of its original amount (for example, four cups would be boiled down to one); the herbs are then strained and the liquid is used as a prepared decoction. This process takes several hours or more and produces a stronger decoction than that usually used in western herbalism.
A moderate decoction, requiring less time, can be made by boiling the herbs until half the water is left. A weak decoction takes even less time to prepare since three-quarters of the water is left. The lesser strength of these preparations can be balanced by taking or giving larger dosages.
The resultant strong tea is then administered usually with otiher vehicles like honey or hot water (see section on anupanas and section on dosages).
In Ayurveda the herbs are only boiled once and then discarded. Some herbalists of other traditions boil them two or three times. This is possible, particularly when the first decoction is of weak or moderate strength.
The decoction method is most suitable for roots, stems, bark and fruit as harder portions of the plant require longer cooking to release their essence.
Hot Infusion (Phant)
For infusions the ratio of herbs to water is one to eight. For example, one ounce herbs per eight ounce cup of water. In the hot infusion, the herbs are added to boiling water and allowed to set for a period of up to twelve hours. This again is longer than the required time used in western herbalism. Usually thirty minutes of steeping is the minimum required for an infusion.
The herbs are then strained and the liquid used. Infusion is better for more delicate plant parts; leaves and flowers, or more herbaceous (non-woody) plants. It is also better for aromatic herbs, like most spices, because boiling destroys and dissipates the aromatic oil. However, many of these herbs can be cooked below the boiling point over a low flame for a long period of time. This may be necessary in formulas that combine root herbs with flowers or leaves; otherwise the more delicate herbs can beadded at a later stage of the decoction.
Cold Infusion (Hima)
Cold infusion requires letting the herbs stand in cold water. Usually more time is required for this than for a hot infusion–at least an hour.
It is also best to let the herbs stand overnight. This method is necessary for delicate and aromatic herbs, particularly those with cooling energy or refrigerant properties. Cold infusion is best for cooling therapy and reducing high Pitta conditions.
Such herbs as hibiscus, jasmine, mint and sandalwood are prepared in this manner. The infusion method is usually best for powders, as they release their properties more quickly than raw herbs. Cold infusion is better for anti-Pitta action; otherwise hot infusion is usually best.
Additionnal methods of herbals
Milk Decoctions
Organic milk decoction
Decoctions can be done with milk as well as water. The classical method was to take one part herbs, eight parts of milk and thirty-two parts water. The mixture was boiled over a low flame until all the water evaporated. For example, one ounce of herbs was used with one cup of milk and four cups of water.
However, it is also true that smaller amounts of water can be used with certain herbs cooked directly in the milk. This simpler, direct milk decoction can be done with powders.
Milk augments the tonic and nutritive effects of herbs, like ashwagandha or shatavari. It possesses demulcent properties and combines well with herbs (e.g. comfrey root or slippery elm), for soothing the mucous membranes.
With cooling effects, it helps to stop bleeding and reduces inflammation. It can also help to harmonize or work as an antidote in the presence of hot, pungent herbs. Milk may be used as a sedative and it can be combined with certain herbs like gotu kola or nutmeg to promote sleep.
Vessels to Use
According to Ayurveda, the best kind of vessel or pot to use for herbal preparations is an earthen pot. Earthenware combines naturally with herbs the same way plants are intrinsically a part of the soil.
Ayurveda is not, however, opposed to the use of certain metallic vessels, if their properties are understood.
To reduce Kapha, herbs can be prepared in a copper pot because copper has a scraping and reducing action. For Pitta conditions, a pot of brass or silver may be used; these metals are cooling. For Vata, iron may be used as it is heavy and grounding. Aluminum should never be used because it will be absorbed in the body as a poison.
Preparing the herbs over a flame, rather than electrical heat, also helps increase their potency and renders them more assimilable to our Agni; wood heat is best.
