https://www.amazon.in/Wellness-Sense-Practical-Emotional-Ayurvedic/dp/9351772624
Wellness Sense is a extremely well written book and derives upon Om Swami's learnings and experience with
1) Ayurveda
2) Yoga
3) Tantra
I present some snippets/notes that can evoke reader's interest and tell him what the book covers/summarizes:
In one line – The more you are in harmony with nature, the more peaceful and healthy you will be.
Bliss is a natural state of your mind. Health is the natural state of the body.
When components like Dosha, Dhatu, Pancha Bhootas are in equilibrium, you are healthy.
Physical and mental wellness:
Yogis/Rishis classified wellness into physical and mental aspects.
Physical aspects are mainly covered by Ayurveda. This includes
1) Pancha Bhootas – Five elements of nature – Earth, Water, Air, Fire and Space.
2) Sapta Dhatus – Rasa (Taste in food, fluid from food), Rakta (Blood), Mamsa (Muscle), Meda (Fat), Asthi (Bones), Majja (Marrow), Shukra (Semen).
3) Tri Dosha – Vata, Pitta and Kapha
4) Chatus Agni – Sama, Tikshna, Manda, Vishama Agni.
Mental aspects are mainly covered by Yoga.
1) Pancha Kosha – Annamaya, Pranamaya, Monomaya, Vignanamaya, Anandamaya Kosha – Static body, Kinetic elements in body like energy flow etc, Mind, Intellect and Bliss.
2) Tri Guna – Sattva, Rajas, Tamas – Goodness, Passion, Ignorance.
3) Tri Kaya – Stula sharira, Shukshma sharira and Karana Sharira – Physical body, Phychological body (energy flows, blood flows etc) and Psychic body (mind), Soul.
4) Dasa Vayu – 5 of them are pimary – Prana Vayu, Apana, Udana, Samana, Vyana – Air, Downwards (bowel movements), Upwards (voice), Stomach or metabolic energy and Circulatory energy.
Tri Dosha:
Ayurveda is not one solution fits all.
It tries to classify the imbalance based on symptoms as Vata Dosha or Kapha or Pitta or a combination of these. That means the person has an imbalance in that bucket (Vata, Pitta or Kapha) and hence has to be re balanced to gain health.
Vata – Wind + Space. Controls the kinetic aspects of the body.
Pitta – Fire + Water. Controls the enzymes, hormones and metabolic activities. It also affects the mental health and can lead to anger/aggression.
Kapha – Earth + Water. Heaviness in body and mind.
One aspect that leads to confusion is though it is called 'Dosha' or fault, its also indicative of the nature of the body of the person. So, person can be of Vata, Pitta or Kapha nature or a combination of them.
So, as a person, you can be of Vata, Pitta or Kapha nature (humour is the term used in book) and every individual can have a different nature (Hence, one person's medicine can be another person's poison).
When the person is having an illness, he can have an imbalance of Vata, Pitta or Kapha (Doshas or illness) based on his natural constitution or his equilibrium state w.r.t Vata, Pitta and Kapha nature.
Physical and mental constituitions:
Based on the nature of the individual as Vata, Pitta and Kapha, author explains the physical attributes in terms of body frame, joints/muscles, temperature, weight, hair, forehead, eyes, lips, skin, hands, voice, perspiration, Appetite, sleep pattern, etc.
Author explains the mental attributes of these natures or humours. He also explains the tri gunas – Sattva, Rajas and Tamas indicating goodness, passion and ignorance. He also explains chatus Agni – 4 digestive fires.
We are what we eat:
Food we eat has to be both aligned with our nature (Vata, Pitta and Kapha) and food we eat should be as Sattvic as possible. We should carefully choose Rajasic foods as these induce passions. We should try avoiding Tamasic foods.
Scientifically, Most Sattvic foods are alkaline in nature and hence we should choose alkaline foods.
Alkaline foods are anti oxidants and removes free radicals in the body whereas tamasic foods promote free radicals.
Food heals:
Six tastes – Eat in moderation all six tastes and the thresholds are specific to the individual – Sweet, Sour, Salty, Pungent, Bitter and Astringent.
Four stages of food is taste (rasa), potency (virya), maturity (vipaka), effect (prabhava). Interesting thing is lime/lemon which is acidic in the tasting stage is alkaline in the vipaka stage and hence is considered alkaline.
Eating sense:
How we eat is as important as what we eat.
Eat with gratitude.
Eat like a lion (analogy to eating it with a calm mind and relishing the food).
Do not eat like dog (too fast) or like cow (too slow).
Five aspects of eating sense: mindfulness, water (no water 0.5 hour before food and 1 hour after food), Quantity (80% full), Gratitude, Time (leave 2 hours gap between dinner and sleep etc).
What to eat:
Eat Alkaline food.
In Ayurveda there are 5 terms related to the nutrients – fat (sneha), protein (snigdha), tasty (rasya), agreeable (hridya) and carbohydrates (madhura).
Acidic foods – amla – poison.
Alkaline foods – kshara.
Note the alkalinity is in the vipaka stage (I.e after digestion). So, lime, dairy products are vipaka kshara in nature.
Scientifically, pH between 7 to 8 is optimal for body.
The 3 primary organs that maintain acid alkali balance are – lungs, kidney and skin.
So deep breathing is effective, eating healthy alkaline food helps kidneys process uric acid effectively, a glowing skin can be permanently achieved only by eating right.
Imbalance leads to acidosis or alkalosis.
Life cycle of a disease:
Disease is a force and not matter. Disease is what disrupts health equilibrium – physical, mental, emotional or spiritual.
Primary seat of inner spring of vitality is called purusha, when it leaves, we are dead.
5 causes of disease at the root or inner being:
Unwholesome thoughts and actions.
Unwholesome diet.
Time. (Change of seasons etc).
Ageing.
Fate.
Four killers that we should avoid:
Ama – Toxins.
Indigestion.
Excess Sugar.
Excess Stress.
Mental Afflictions:
Vritti refers to mental tendency or temperament.
We should avoid these five mental afflictions:
Fear, Anger (Reactive or toxic), Hatred, Jealousy, Greed.
Physical Cleansing:
Colon therapy (Enema), Conch cleaning (Shankh Prakshalan), Oesophageal cleansing (Kunjala or dhauti).
Respiratory cleansing – Simple deep breathing, alternate breathing (Nadi shodhana, anulom vilom), Bellows Breathing (bhastrika), Sinus cleansing (through neti lota or thread neti).
Fasting and Pancha Karma
Fasting - Light fasting, fruits and vegetables fasting, liquid fasting, complete fasting.
Pancha Karma – 3 days preparatory treatment (snehana) and 1-2 days main treatment (svedhana).
Emission therapy (Vamana), Purgation therapy (Virechana) and Enema (Vasti or basti).
Nasal therapy (nasyama) - medicated nasal drops is administered.
Shiro – dhara – Warm medicated oil is poured on head in unbroken flow for 45 minutes.
Mental detoxification:
Visualization for physical health.
Erasing phychic imprints through yogic method or intellectual method.
Witness meditation – for mental health (similar to Aana Paana).
Mindfulness – journal for emotional health.
Summary:
Eat wholesome foods - alkaline.
Avoid processed and canned foods.
Half a lemon in glass of water everyday.
Avoid fried foods.
Chew well, eat in moderation, 80% full rule, give time between dinner and sleep, eat fresh fruits and veggies.
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