The Beginners Guide to The Science of Ayurveda

Ayurveda is an ancient science of healing that originated in India more than 5000 years ago. In Sanskrit, the word Ayurveda means “The Science of Life.” It is motherly to all healing systems. It emerges from the ancient Vedic culture and was taught for many thousands of years in an oral tradition from spiritual masters to their disciples. The wisdom of this healing system transcended to the spiritual masters in a deep meditative state.  

Focus

As per Ayurveda, human beings are a part of nature, therefore nature helps us to heal. Ayurveda places a great emphasis on prevention and encourages the maintenance of health through increasing awareness and mindfulness while choosing right diet, lifestyle and the use of herbs to create balance.

Constitution and Balance

The constitution is the basic nature (Prakruti) of an individual. The constitution is determined at conception by a number of factors and remains the same throughout one’s life. The unique combination of physical, mental, and emotional characteristics comprises an individual’s constitution. Each person has a specific pattern of energy, which is very similar to a unique fingerprint of that individual.

Due to the effect of various factors, internal as well as external, this balance gets disturbed which is called an imbalance or vikruti.  For example, diet and food choices, seasons and weather, physical trauma, work, and family relationships, emotional and physical stressors disturb the balanced state. Once these factors are understood, one can take appropriate steps to minimize their effects or eliminate the causes of imbalance and re-establish one’s original constitution.

 A balanced state of energies is health and imbalance in these energies is the cause for disease.