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Ayurveda Newsletter

Newsletter  

Spring 2006

Fall 2005 

Dear Friends,

Detoxify and Rejuvenate- That is Panchakarma. A wonderful discovery made by the great seers. In this newsletter I will be introducing you to Panchakarma treatments.

Panchakarma is an old age Ayurvedic method for detoxification and rejuvenation. These are beautiful relaxing therapies offered in an appropriate series, to maintain health and address specific health concerns.

It is a therapy for prevention, cleansing, rejuvenation, detoxification and cure. For maintaining health and rejuvenation it is done at the change of every season and for a particular ailment it can be done for periods of a day, week to over a month.
 
Benefits from Panchakarma are many. It boosts the immune system, removes the impurities, eliminates toxins and improves digestion. It reduces fatigue and anxiety, stress and pain. It improves vitality and is helpful in chronic disorders. It calms not just the body but also the mind thus providing profound tranquility and serenity.  The best analogy in terms of our daily lives is that of an automobile tune up. Every 3000 miles or so it is recommended that we get a tune up for the automobile. This lengthens the life of the vehicle and also improves its performance. Panchakarma or PK for short, does just the same and more for this human vehicle and is recommended every 3000 miles J or at the change of seasons to maintain health.

Panchakarma itself means five therapies. These five therapies include Vaman or emesis, Nasya or Nasal administration of herbs or oils, Rakta Mokshan or blood purification, Virechan or purgation and Basti or Medicated enemas. These five therapies are used to cleanse the body of accumulated toxins and to rejuvenate every cell of the body. But which therapy is to be used and with what herbs is determined by the Vaidya only after a careful examination of the prakruti, vikruti and the overall health condition of the individual. We will discuss these therapies in details in our next few newsletters.

But before a Panchakarma regimen, Purvakarma is performed; Purvakarma is a group of therapies that are done in advance of a Panchakarma to prepare the body. Purvakarma includes Snehan (deep massage) and Svedan (Steam therapy).

Meanwhile, at Ayurbliss Panchakarma therapies for health include a five-day session or a la carte’ treatments advised according to the personal need by the practitioner.

The most popular a la carte’ treatments are Abhyanga (Snehan) or Ayurvedic Bodywork and Shirodhara.

We are now offering “Abhyanga and Shirodhara” at “Ayurbliss”.

Welcome Suzanna Marquez, our new therapist, who will be providing the authentic Ayurvedic Treatment- “Abhyanga”. Abhyanga involves application of herbalized oil to the entire body. It is soothing and relaxing to the nervous system, and it also acts to mobilize accumulated toxins in the skin, helping in their elimination. It helps balance all the three doshas. We have an introductory price of $60 for an Abhyanga session lasting one hour.

 “Shirodhara- Oil Drip on the Forehead Treatment” Is another therapy we are now offering at Ayurbliss^TM.

Shirodhara calms your nerves creating unimaginable relaxation. A wonderful treatment for stress, anxiety, insomnia, nervous disorders, migraines, lower backache, kidney problems, skin problems and constipation. Shirodhara is priced at $80 for a session lasting an hour.

 (Testimonial: Shirodhara provided relaxation and a deep sense of peace and calm – a perfect way to start my next birth year- M.J)

 Rucha’s Articles:

Look out for the articles-  “Irritable Bowel Syndrome” and “Multiple Sclerosis”- in the next few issues of the LA Yoga Magazine.

Presentation: 

It is a great pleasure to announce that Rucha will be a presenter at the upcoming NAMA Conference 2005 that will be held at Las Vegas, NV. Oct 20^th - Oct 23^rd. Please look up on the NAMA website www.ayurveda-nama.org for the schedule. She will be presenting a workshop on “Assessment and Management of Acute and Chronic Vata Disorders” and will also be a part of a Panel Discussion on “Women’s Health”.

Upcoming Events:     

    1) Ayurvedic Baby Massage Workshop

 September 18^th 2005

2) Ayurveda Skin Care Workshop

    October 9^th 2005

3) NAMA Conference

    October 20^th to Oct 23^rd 2005

Thanks for the opportunity to be of service. We would love to have your feedback at info@ayurbliss.com.

Namaste’

Rucha Kelkar

April 2005

Dear Friends,

Spring is back!  A renewal time for all aspects of life, Spring is a reawakening of the whole planet! Fresh flowers and chirping birds, the beautiful dawn and the gorgeous dusk, spring is back in full color.In our Spring 2005 Newsletter we are going to focus on one of the pillars of good health, Agni or Digestive Fire. Agni of an individual determines to a great extent his health and vitality. 

“Adyate vidhivat bhuktamatti bhoktaramanyatha

ayushyam swasthyadam purvamanyathaivetarat smrutam” 

Food eaten in the right way is digested well by the person who eats it and brings health and long life. Contrary to this, food eaten in the incorrect way eats up the person itself (in the form of ailments) and is unhealthy and gives a short life span. 

In Ayurveda food is nourishment and what one eats matters vitally. In Ayurveda Digestion is the key to health, Agni the Digestive fire not only digests food but it also digests our experiences of life. Bad digestion is the source of all diseases. 

What are the characteristics of “Food eaten in the right way”?

1)      Mental State: Never eat when you are mentally disturbed. Never force-feed anyone if they do not feel like eating.

2)      Quality: Eat freshly cooked food, using fresh ingredients whenever possible.

3)      Constitution: Eat food that balances your constitution.

4)      Quantity: Do not over-eat. Fasting on regular intervals is also helpful in resting the digestive fire and burning toxins. Some people follow the routine of skipping every 15^th meal or so.

5)      Time of the Day: “Breakfast a little after sunrise, lunch at noon time and a light dinner by sunset” is a simple rule that keeps digestion strong and effective.

6)      Season: In the upcoming fiery pitta season (Summer) one should prefer cooling foods.

7)      Geographic location: Prefer food that is grown in your geographic area. 

Ayurvedic nutrition aims to enhance digestion. As mentioned in the Sanskrit verse above it is very important to pay attention to what you eat, where you eat and how much you eat. Of all the elements essential for positive health, food taken in the proper amount is regarded as important. Too much food will act like sand on fire- dousing the fire. And too little food will be like very few twigs for the fire to burn well. So it is important to eat the right amount, the amount appropriate for your constitution. 

Product News:

With this renewal season we would like to renew our relationship with you by announcing our new product line that will be extremely beneficial to support a healthy lifestyle.We have a line of Ayurvedic products including herbs, various Ayurvedic herbal combinations, Neti pots and Ayurvedic Beauty Products.It should be up on our website soon! 

A Note: 

Ayurvedic Cooking Workshop

It was a pleasure to conduct the Ayurvedic Cooking Workshop in March. It was a great success and the participants thoroughly enjoyed the “Lunch and Learn” menu.  We hope to offer more Ayurvedic cooking workshops in the future, so be on the lookout!! 

Presentation: 

 1)  “Lighten Up”- Wellness Teachers Coming Together

‘An Introduction to Ayurveda’ by Rucha Kelkar at the Center for Divine Awakening, Phoenix, AZ on April 23^rd 2005 at 11.00am. 

Upcoming Events: 

1)    Ayurveda Workshop

April 24^th 2005

2)    A Day Long Ayurveda Retreat

May 28^th 2005

 3)    Ayurveda Diet and Lifestyle Consultations

 May 29^th 2005

 4)    Women’s Health…. An Ayurveda and Yoga Workshop for Women’s Wellness

 May 21st 2005

 5)    Introduction to Ayurveda 

June 25^th 2005

It is always a pleasure to be of help. We would love to have your feedback at info@ayurbliss.com. Stay updated with our new events and workshops. Visit our website at www.ayurbliss.com for more information.

Namaste, 

Rucha Kelkar

Dec 2004

Dear Friends,

The transition of seasons is the most crucial time, says Ayurveda. This is the time when summer changes to fall, fall to winter, winter to spring or spring to summer. Due to the change of season there are changes in temperatures and in atmospheric conditions. This leads to a doshic imbalance in the body making us susceptible to a lot of diseases. Hence there are more incidences of viral and bacterial infections during this period. This is the most crucial time to listen to our body and bring it to balance. 

The best way to handle a transition is to slowly quit the lifestyle of the previous season and then gradually incorporate the lifestyle of the next season. 

Just like the seasons there is also much importance to a daily balanced routine and lifestyle. 

 “Brahmemuhurta Uttishthet Jeernajerna Nirupayan”(Ashtang Hriday)

The best time to wake up is early in the morning before sunrise, termed here as the “Brahmamuhurta”. The first cycle of the day is a Vata cycle (2 am –6 pm), which is a time of great mental activity, with increasing liveliness and rising energy in the body as the cycle proceeds towards 6 am. This increasing energy helps the body to overcome the sleep. When you wake up, sit up in the bed and join your palms together. Say a little prayer for the bounty of nature we all enjoy and for its continued availability in our lives. 

The Kapha cycle starts after 6am. Staying in bed in to this first Kapha cycle of the day dictates sluggishness and lethargy upon arising. The body becomes increasingly slow and sluggish. 

Thus, the time of ‘ Brahmamuhurta” is the best time for waking up, doing mental activities like reading, learning new things, memorizing and also meditation.

Vata is active during this period, and it aids in evacuation. Hence, it is a good time for the elimination of the natural by- products occurring from the digestive processes. 

According to Ayurveda, digestion is the key to health. Digestion is very important in Ayurveda’s understanding of human health and illness.

Thus, it becomes important to see if the food from the previous day has been digested well the following morning. If your burp still smells of the food of the previous day, it is a definite sign that the food has not been digested well. And if there are such signs and you still keep overloading the digestive system with food, then it is going to be hard on the digestive system. If the metabolic conversion of food is slow or incomplete it can produce sluggishness or low energy in the body. Thus, it is important that we pay attention to how and what we eat.

Upcoming Events:

1) Ayurveda Classes at UCI Medical School

2) Ayurveda Cooking Class

This is a wonderful class for beginners of Ayurvedic cooking, $30 with lunch and handouts.

3) Introduction to Ayurveda

 Thanks for the opportunity to be of service. We would love to have your feedback at info@ayurbliss.com. 

Namaste,

Rucha Kelkar

Fall 2004 

Dear Friends, 

We are back with more news and more interesting information on Ayurveda. 

In this issue we will be talking about some aspects of Ayurvedic Nutrition.

Diet and nutrition from Ayurveda’s perspective is not just what you eat but also how you eat it. Food is regarded as medicine and what and how one eats matters vitally. Food not only nourishes the body but also the mind. 

The ancient texts have offered various principles on how food should be eaten.

Food should be warm (cooked), tasty and easy to digest. It should be eaten in proper amounts, not too little nor too much.

Food should be eaten after the previous meal has been completely digested. Foods, whose energies are compatible, should be eaten together. The constituents of a meal should not contradict one another in their actions rather their actions should be in total harmony. Food should be eaten in pleasant surroundings, eating should not be rushed or should not be very slow either. Focusing on the food while eating and eating according to one’s constitution is also important.  

Occasionally one should undertake a cleansing fast or a light diet. This helps to cleanse the body of toxins and gives the digestive system a much-needed rest. A light and easy to digest diet of ‘khichari’ can be one of the ways to accomplish this.

Thus, when eaten in the correct manner food helps in burning toxins (ama) from the body and nourishes the body but when eaten or combined unwisely can give rise to toxins. Ayurveda says, every food has a specific taste, an energy- either cooling or heating and a certain effect after digestion.  The key to food combining is not mixing two or more foods with different taste, energy and post-digestive effect. Improperly combined foods overload the agni (digestion) and the enzyme system resulting in the formation of toxins. 

Some of the examples of incompatible combinations are as follows: Milk or milk products with fish, fruits, eggs, beans and meat. Honey and ghee in equal quantities, grains and milk, warm food with cold food. 

The whole idea about Ayurvedic Nutrition is to enhance digestion, nourish the body and maintain positive health. 

It is very essential that the food, which we eat, be seasoned with God’s blessings, His grace and most of all His love. A prayer to thank Him before starting a meal is a tradition followed by many cultures around the world. Food is God and should be treated with utmost respect. 

Upcoming Events: 

1) Ayurveda Workshop Series

July 10th and August 28th

2) Ongoing Series of Lectures on Ayurveda (in continuation with the Introduction to Ayurveda) Sept 18th, Sept 25th, Oct 2nd and Oct 9th

3) A 6-8 week Ayurveda Workshop for medical students at UCI (University of California, Irvine)

 A Note: 

It was a pleasure to meet with Dr. Vasant Lad, the pioneer of Ayurveda in America, when he lectured in Thousand Oaks near L.A. in May. It seemed he had an intuitive ability to address the audiences concerns. There is always so much to learn from such a great and knowledgeable teacher. 

Presentation:

It will be a great honor to present two clinical papers at the upcoming NAMA (National Ayurvedic Medical Association) conference in October 2004 at Long Beach, California. 

Article: 

“In September when summer turns to fall, there are changes in temperatures and in atmospheric conditions. This leads to doshic imbalances in the body making us susceptible to many illnesses and possible diseases. There are more incidences of viral and bacterial infections and many people experience colds, flu and other discomforts during this time, often suddenly and frequently without attributing the illness to the changing of a season.

          The best way to handle seasonal change is through awareness of each season's characteristics and then transition slowly into the next season by quitting the lifestyle of the previous season, gradually incorporating the lifestyle of the next season”. For more…

Do check Rucha’s article ‘Follow the Wisdom of the Seasons’ in the next issue of LA YOGA Magazine. 

It is always a pleasure to be of help. We would love to have your feedback at info@ayurbliss.com. Stay updated with out new events and workshops. Visit our website at www.ayurbliss.com for more information. 

Namaste,

Rucha Kelkar

April 2004

Dear Friends, 

Spring is here, beautiful vibrant colors and flowers, lovely weather and longer days. Spring is the season of renewal, rebirth, a new beginning! It brings with it a reawakening of the whole planet.

As we are profoundly linked to the nature’s cycles and seasons our body too enjoys the abundant energy that spring provides. End of winter and beginning of spring is a period where the body’s mechanism for returning to positive health is on a natural high. It is a time of planting the seeds of health for the coming year.

In spring, the ‘Kapha’ accumulated in the body is melted by the heat of the sun. This release of excess kapha can cause various imbalances and can disturb digestion leading to formation of toxins. The result of this is flu and colds. 

The excellent beverage for the spring season is ginger tea. Also a glass of lukewarm water with ½ tsp of honey first thing in the morning is a good combination. It not only helps warm the body but also digests all the toxins. This is also a great time for Panchakarma- a full body cleanse, with the help of which all toxins can be cleared from the body. It is a good idea to not oversleep or take naps in the afternoon. Avoiding heavy sour, sweet and oily food would be in good order. 

“Dosha kadachit kupyanti jeeta langhanpachanaihi

jeeta sanshodhanaihi tu na tesham punarudbhava” Charak Sutrasthan 16/20 

"Imbalanced doshas which are taken care of with fasting and digestive herbs may again become imbalanced. However, imbalanced doshas  which are  brought under control by cleansing techniques will rarely go out of balance again".

Spring may also bring a fresh wave of seasonal allergies to some. Allergies usually occur due to low immunity or’ ojas’. Low ojas can be due to prolonged disease, mental or physical illness as well as emotional disturbances.

Meditation, breathing exercises and stress management are particularly important in minimizing allergies due to repressed emotions. Herbal supplements and detoxification also help to take care of these allergies. 

Upcoming Events:

1)      May 22^nd 2004- Yoga and Ayurveda Retreat at Escondido, CA 

2)      June 3^rd 2004- Basics of Ayurveda at Leisure World, Laguna Hills, CA

For more information on any of these events see our website at www.ayurbliss.com/news.htm 

It is always a pleasure to be of help. We would love to have your feedback at info@ayurbliss.com.Our special thanks to Sneha Pai for creating the logo for Ayurbliss. Sneha is currently pursuing her Bachelors in Fine Arts at Baltimore, MD.

Namaste,

Rucha Kelkar

December 2003

Dear Friends,

Welcome to the first quarterly newsletter from Ayurbliss, Ayurveda Wellness for Mind, Body and Spiritual Health. Ayurveda as you all know is the science of health, a way of living life to the healthiest and to the fullest. Ayurveda is growing rapidly and gaining tremendous importance because of its insights and depth.

Ayurveda is a vast ocean of knowledge pertaining to human life. From this vast ocean of knowledge we will present the finest pearls. We will also be updating you with activities and workshops at Ayurbliss.

Today we will talk about Ayurbliss and it’s journey with Ayurveda:

Ayurbliss was started in order to bring awareness about Ayurveda and to bring forward the wonderful science of Ayurveda. We present comprehensive educative workshops and informative seminars on Ayurveda and also offer diet and lifestyle consultations, pulse diagnosis, Ayurvedic remedies with appropriate suggestions of herbs. We will soon be organizing Panchakarma (detoxification and rejuvenation) retreats!

Ayurveda is a way of life; Ayurveda is nature’s own medicine. Human existence, according to Eastern philosophers is a journey. According to them the true meaning of life is in finding one’s own divine destiny. They have taught us that the human form is a complex, involving mind, body and spirit. According to Ayurveda, Health is a state of balance of mind and body, resulting in a blissful state of existence. This Health is dynamic, as life itself is ever changing. In our existence we are endowed with certain physical and mental characteristics that make us all different. Making us an individual aspect of creation. Ayurveda understands this and hence tailors its approach based on Prakriti or the body constitution. In our newsletters we will talk about various Ayurvedic tips from time to time to achieve and maintain health and well-being.

Ayurveda defines health as a state of balance.

"Sama dosha samagnishcha sama dhatu malakriya

Prassannatmendriya mana swastha itiyabhidhiyate (Sushrut)(Ayurvedic text)"

A healthy person is the one whose doshas- dhatus- malas (all the bodily functions) work in a balanced fashion and the soul, the mind and the senses are in a state of bliss. So the basic idea is achieving the right balance not just for the bodily functions but also for the mind and soul. 

Seasonal tips:

In Nature change is the rule, hence we also need to change and tailor our lifestyles according to changing seasons.

This time of the year is the middle of the Vata season in the Southern California area; trees are undergoing a fall. Kapha dominates the nights and early mornings. The blowing of Santa Ana winds is a natural Vata event, and hence gives rise to an increased Vata during this period. We all should take extra precaution against Vata, one good way to do that is a good warm oil massage followed by a hot bath. A dip in the warm natural hot springs is also ideal in this time; the Palm Springs area is famous for its natural hot springs. Calming yogic exercises and pranayama are also a good way to remove or reduce Vata. Vata is motion, it is dry and drying, it is rough, it is cold and various types of joint pain etc are also attributed to Vata. Dry skin, or cold joints and extremities are indicators of some Vata imbalance. Vata imbalance may also lead to depression or anxiety. Ginger tea can be consumed in small quantities to reduce the effects of Vata. Application of warm sesame oil to the body helps pacify Vata. Favor warm or hot drinks to ice cold drinks. Follow a simple routine, sleep early and rise before sunrise. 

Hope you have a smooth transition through the Vata season.

A Note:

We are now offering customized diet and lifestyle consultations with seasonal recommendations at the following locations:

1) Our new location: Synergy Wellness Center at San Juan Capistrano, CA

2) Nurturing Nest, Palm Springs. For more information visit www.nurturingnest.com

Consultations Special: 15% off in January and February!!

Panchakarma Retreat: Start your new year with Panchakarma, a natural way of detoxification and rejuvenation!! We are offering a three day retreat at Palm Springs, CA. For registration call 949-305-0983 or email us at info@ayurbliss.com.

Location: Palm Springs, CA www.nurturingnest.com  
Date:       January, 2nd thru 4th 2004
Contact: (949) 305 - 0983

Thanks for the opportunity to be of service. We would love to have your feedback at info@ayurbliss.com.

Our special thanks to Romina and Vinay Narang (www.rominadesigns.com) for their timely help and support.

Namaste,

Rucha Kelkar