Ayurvedic Education

Way back in September I wrote about Changing with the Seasons and it turns out that all my winter lifestyle changes are pretty sound Ayurvedic advice.

"Ayurveda is an ancient art of healing has been practiced continuously for over 5,000 years. The principles of many natural healing systems now familiar in the West, such as Homeopathy and Polarity Therapy, have their roots in Ayurveda. Ayurvedic practices restore the balance and harmony of the individual, resulting in self-healing, good health and longevity." - Ayurveda.com

I've been aware of Ayurveda for a long time, and I had a whole section of Ayurvedic education during my teacher training, but it's not something I really maintain a good working knowledge of. I'm going to try, today, to do some research and fill you in on what I find (the rest of the week). I'm really into Ayurveda lately as Fall/Winter is the season of Vata (one of the 3 basic energies of life).

Vata is my primary dosha - I also have a slight bit of Pitta going on, and it seems that Kapha almost doesn't exist in me. Vata is also one of the easiest things to throw off balance which brings dry skin, nervousness, anxiety, and even mental illness. When everything is in balance Vata brings creativity and a laissez faire attitude.

Starting today I'm going to try a routine of abhyanga every morning. I read about it in Yoga Journal and it sounds perfect for me. It's basically a little self massage with warm oil that you do each morning before you shower. Check out the How To - Here. I've got my organic sesame oil and I'm ready to give it a shot.

During winter everyone needs to focus more on grounding, warming, soothing, and resting - hence the brilliance of my winter hibernation mode and the moist warmth of the warm oil massage. I'm going to try a restorative or Yin yoga practice today also. I've been feeling really "off" lately even before I got sick, so I'm hoping I can start to harness some kapha vibes to balance out against all the vata swirling about in the form of cold, wind, and dryness.

I promise I'll  go into some real information about the Three Doshas and Ayurveda tomorrow - like what are Vata, Pitta, and Kapha??

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