Ayurveda: A Historical Perspective

Ayurveda: A Historical Perspective

- Sri T.K.Sribhashyam

O Rudra, may we not make your furious!

You are indeed generous!

We hear that you are the best among physicians;

And, may our children grow up with your remedies!

----- Rig Veda 2.33.4

The word ‘Ayurveda’ is composed of two Sanskrit terms, viz., ‘Ayus’ meaning ‘life’ and ‘Veda’ meaning the ‘knowledge’.  Taken together, it means the Science of Life.  However in a limited sense, it is always used to imply ‘the Science of Medicine’.  Ayurveda is a science through the help of which one can obtain knowledge about: the useful and the harmful types of life, happy and miserable types of life, things which are useful and harmful for such types of life, the span of life as well as the very nature of life.  Ayurveda is thus not only an individual medicine but also a social one dating back to 2500 years.

Ayurveda does not deal exclusively with the treatment of human beings.  It also deals with the treatment of diseases of animals and plants.  It provides rational means for the treatment of many internal diseases which are considered to be obstinate and incurable.  Simultaneously, it lays a great deal of emphasis upon the maintenance of positive health of a normal or healthy person.  

Indian medicine has come down to us in several strands: The first strand is composed of professional physicians, called Vaidya.  The second consists of wandering peddlers who collect herbs and drugs from forests and mountains and sell them in villages.  The third group comprises temple priests mostly belonging to Vaikhanasa School who are also required to function as physicians.  The fourth strand is the family knowledge transmitted by the elderly lady of the house.

Health was one of the major preoccupations of Indians.  Their concern with health is as old as life on earth.  That the body should function efficiently was as much of a necessity as it is now.  Added to this was the fear of the unknown.

One of the early medical authorities, Charaka, has been credited with two statements that are apparently conflicting.  One of them is that as long as man lived a natural life, he was altogether free from ailments.  A time came when man’s life was not longer natural, and then the ailments broke out.  The second statement is that diseases and mankind have been co-existent all along.  In other words, ailments and medicines have always existed.  Health has been a continuing concern of man.

Professional medicine in India has four major lines of development, all of which go back in their origin to a very remote past.  Two of them, one represented by the physician Charaka and the other by the surgeon Sushrutha are collectively designated Ayurveda (or the Science of Life).  They constitute but one tradition.  The third line of development is the system of therapeutical alchemy known as Rasavaidya (or the Rasayana School) in which the use of metals and mercury is extensive.  The fourth line of development is the Siddha (the adept) system, the origin of which is attributed to South India, especially Tamil Nadu.

The fear of death which has always haunted man has been the most potent motivation for the development and discovery of techniques to prolong life.  If death generates a strong sense of fear, disease is likewise a major source of concern.  Death is inescapable, but diseases could be prevented and cured.

Ayurveda has made marvellous progress in its diagnostic methods.  To cite some: therapeutic procedures, employment of a large number of articles, discovery of the excellent medicinal properties of herbs, plants, trees and spices and the determination of the dosage and the manner of taking medicines were codified and systematised.

Ayurveda has also developed a neat and consistent philosophy.  This philosophy is free from the magical practices. 

The two lines of development of medicine in India represented by Charaka (2^nd century BC) and Sushrutha (6^th Century BC) are together known as Ayurveda.  It is also regarded as the fifth Veda[1].

The characteristically Ayurvedic ideas like the circulation of multiple breaths (Prana) inside the body, or the three pathogenic factors (Tridosha), or the medical properties of the herbs and plants (Oshadhi) in the Vedic literature are frequently found in the Vedic literature also.

Rudra was considered the first Vedic Physician[2].  Ashvins, the twin-Vedic deities are also considered the first physicians.

For the Ayurvedic physicians, health was of the highest consideration.  Clean life, good food, normal pleasures and vigorous health constituted the major part of Ayurvedic Ethics: deprivation and over-indulgence were equally wrong in this outlook.  Austerity was prescribed in consideration of health and not because of religious reasons.  A physician was expected to understand human constitution and human nature and secure efficiency of the physical apparatus (called the body).

There are two kinds of diseases, one caused by eating unwholesome food, and the other caused by evil spirits.  Ayurveda treats the former, while the latter are dealt with in Atharvana Veda.  Diseases caused by unnatural conditions and beyond precise diagnosis were generally ascribed to the anger of spirits, infection of unwholesome elements, influence of evil forces, effect of magic.  The treatment of such ailments include magical spells (Mantra), wearing of amulets or precious stones, expiation, magical potions, purificatory rites, fasting and pilgrimage.  One of the eight branches of classical Ayurveda is the treatment of ailments caused by supernatural agencies (Bhuta Vidya).  The other branches of Ayurveda are: Toxicology (Agada Tantra), Rejuvenation (Vajikarana), general therapeutics (Kaya Chikitsa), Surgery (Shalya Tantra), Diseases of Ear Nose and Throat (Shalakya Tantra) and Pediatry (Kaumarya Bhrutya)

It is customary to recognise two major lines of development in Ayurveda, one specialising in general therapeutics (Kaya Chikitsa) and the other in favour of surgery (Shalya Tantra).  The two branches have much in common and the basic theoretical framework is the same in both.  The former is attributed to a great work called Sushruta Samhita where as the latter is ascribed to Charaka Samhita.

It is unfortunate that much of the medical treatises have been lost.  Apart for the above mentioned texts, Ashtanga Hrudaya by Vagbhata (7^th c AD) which incorporates the view of both Charaka and Sushruta.  Similarly, Ayurveda today possess an excellent work on diagnostic known as Madhava Nidana.  Like wise, we have Harita Samhita that deals with the pathogenesis of our daily food.

Ayurveda continued to grow vigorously till about the thirteenth century.  Ayurveda as a growing discipline appears to have lost its vitality about this period.

During the foreign invasions and internal frictions many oiginal works were destroyed.  Whatever remained had to be preserved and explained to people through commentaries.  It is in the late nineteenth century that the people of India started thinking afresh about the development of Ayurveda.  Yet, with the introduction of Allopathic Medicine, Ayurveda started losing its identity.  In spite of long and hazardous study of Ayurveda, its recognition was degraded while the recognition of Allopathic Practices gained importance.

Constant and sustained patient effort by Ayurvedic practitioners helped this ancient medicine to revive even if it did not win back its formal status.  Now, Ayurveda is slowly picking up its lost ground.  The growing interest that the western countries are showing both in the medical and the non-medical circles has also contributed to the revival of this science in India.  Both the East and the West are trying hard to bring out the little available materials of Ayurveda.

Western medical science can use to its own benefit some of the particularities of Ayurveda like: the diagnostical methods, the pharmacological studies on plants, roots etc.; its logical prognosis etc.,  At the same time, Ayurvedic concept on food can be complimented to our classical treatment.  The Ayurvedic medical preparation may not be applicable here.  Yet, already some enterprise has been underway to introduce Ayurvedic medicines in dry form of tablets or powders.

For a common man, Ayurveda provides ample information on the hygiene of life, on the properties of food (whether vegetarian or not), and drinks, the modifications according to the seasons and such other important matters without affecting the daily life.

For a Yoga teacher, knowledge of Ayurveda is a necessity, since all the physiological concepts of Yoga are based on Ayurveda.  Moreover, it helps the teacher to understand the intricacies of Asana and Pranayama and other parts of Yoga.

           

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[1] Rig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sama Veda and Atharvana Veda are the four Vedas

[2] Refer to the invocation at the beginning of the article.

http://www.yogakshemam.net/English/Ayurveda/Ayurveda-Historic.html

"Steps Toward Inner Peace" By Peace Pilgrim

Steps Toward Inner Peace

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Steps Toward Inner Peace by Peace Pilgrim

IN MY EARLY LIFE I made two very important discoveries. In the first place I discovered that making money was easy. And in the second place I discovered that making money and spending it foolishly was completely meaningless. I knew that this was not what I was here for, but at that time (this was many years ago), I didn't know exactly what I was here for. It was out of a very deep seeking for a meaningful way of life, and after having walked all one night through the woods, that I came to what I now know to be a very important psychological hump. I felt a complete willingness, without any reservations, to give my life, to dedicate my life to service. I tell you, it is a point of no return. After that, you can never go back to completely self-centered living.
And so I went into the second phase of my life. I began to live to give what I could, instead of get what I could, and I entered a new and wonderful world. My life began to become meaningful. I attained the great blessing of good health; I haven't had a cold or headache since. (Most illness is psychologically induced.) From that time on, I have known that my life-work would be work for peace; that it would cover the entire peace picture - peace among nations, peace among groups, peace among individuals, and the very, very important inner peace. However, there's a great deal of difference between being willing to give your life, and actually giving your life, and for me, 15 years of preparation and of inner seeking lay between.
During this time I became acquainted with what Psychologists refer to as Ego and Conscience. I began to realize that it's as though we have two selves or two natures or two wills with two different viewpoints. Because the viewpoints were so different, I felt a struggle in my life at this period between the two selves with the two viewpoints. So there were hills and valleys - lots of hills and valleys. Then in the midst of the struggle there came a wonderful mountain-top experience, and for the first time I knew what inner peace was like. I felt a oneness - oneness with all my fellow human beings, oneness with all of creation. I have never felt really separate since. I could return again and again to this wonderful mountaintop, and then I could stay there for longer and longer periods of time, and just slip out occasionally. Then came a wonderful morning when I woke up and knew that I would never have to descend again into the valley. I knew that for me the struggle was over, that finally I had succeeded in giving my life, or finding inner peace. Again this is a point of no return. you can never go back into the struggle. The struggle is over now because you will do the right thing, and you don't need to be pushed into it.
However progress is not over. Great progress has taken place in this third phase of my life, but it's as though the central figure of the jigsaw puzzle of your life is complete and clear and unchanging, and around the edges other pieces keep fitting in. There is always a growing edge, but the progress is harmonious. There is a feeling of always being surrounded by all of the good things, like love and peace and joy. It seems like a protective surrounding, and there is an unshakeableness within which takes you through any situation you may need to face.
The world may look at you and believe that you are facing great problems, but always there are the inner resources to easily overcome these problems. Nothing seems difficult. There is a calmness and a serenity and unhurriedness - no more striving or straining about anything. Life is full and life is good, but life is nevermore overcrowded. That's a very important thing I've learned: If your life is in harmony with your part in the Life Pattern, and if you are obedient to the laws which govern this universe, then your life is full and good but not overcrowded. If it is overcrowded, you are doing more than is right for you to do, more than is your job to do in the total scheme of things.
Now there is a living to give instead of to get. As you concentrate on the giving, you discover that just as you cannot receive without giving, so neither can you give without receiving - even the most wonderful things like health and happiness and inner peace. There is a feeling of endless energy - it just never runs out; it seems to be as endless as air. You just seem to be plugged into the source of universal energy.
You are now in control of your life. You see, the ego is never in control. The ego is controlled by wishes for comfort and convenience on the part of the body, by demands of the mind, and by outbursts of the emotions. But the higher nature controls the body and the mind and the emotions. I can say to my body, "Lie down there on that cement floor and go to sleep," and it obeys. I can say to my mind, "Shut out everything else and concentrate on this job before you," and it's obedient. I can say to the emotions, "Be still, even in the face of this terrible situation," and they are still. It's a different way of living. The philosopher Thoreau wrote: If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps he hears a different drummer. And now you are following a different drummer - the higher nature instead of the lower.

READ MORE AT: http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Steps_Toward_Inner_Peace

http://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Steps_Toward_Inner_Peace

Vinyasa Krama Teacher Training with Srivatsa Ramaswami

Vinyasa Krama Teacher Training with Srivatsa Ramaswami

By Pam Hoxsey
In August 2006, the Chicago Yoga Center (and Suddha Weixler) hosted Srivatsa Ramaswami to teach a one-week Vinyasa Krama Teacher Training certification program. The vinyasa krama method was taught to Ramaswami over many, many years of study with his teacher, Sri T. Krishnamacharya. It is important to realize that for over 30 years, Krishnamacharya continued to impart the wisdom of all the vast, essential aspects of yoga to Ramaswami, including Sanskrit chanting, the important yogic texts and the many elements and practices contained in the components of the eight limbs (astanga) of yoga (yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana, samadhi).
Ramaswami began each of our classes with a Tamil chant to Ganesha (an elephant-headed deity) and a Sanskrit chant to Patanjali, which set a peaceful yet serious tone for the class. He sometimes ended our class with ten minutes of Vedic chanting, often from his Mantra Puspam (pronounced “push-pum”; the word means “flower,” but it is a book of Vedic chants and mantras). He told us that he chanted many times with Krishnamacharya, even in the last year or so of his life when his teacher was unable to get out of bed. Krishnamacharya, he said, would always chant from memory, while Ramaswami himself would read from his Mantra Puspam.
It would be difficult, if not impossible, to relate the depth and breadth of what we learned during the week of training with Ramaswami, so what follows is a brief summary of the highlights:
Kaivalya (freedom) is the ultimate goal of yoga
According to Patanjali’s yoga sutra I-2, the goal of yoga is freedom. In the teacher training, Ramaswami created a tapestry of yoga practices for the participants. By using Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras and other ancient texts, Ramaswami gently and thoughtfully brought each thread back to the main goal. Asana, pranayama, pratyahara (withdrawal of the senses), meditation, mantras, etc., were all discussed with kaivalya in mind.
When kaivalya has been reached, the three gunas, or qualities of nature, that constitute the mind (citta), fall into a state of equilibrium and become quiescent. (The three gunas are tamas [inertia, heaviness of mind], rajas [action, fickleness of mind] and sattva [lightness, clarity of mind]. Even the sattvic state of mind must eventually be overcome.
Your guru is your own mind
This is the translation of a saying in Tamil (a South Indian language), which is Ramaswami’s native tongue. He learned this saying at a young age. This concept can be applied throughout a yoga practice to assess one’s own progress. How jumpy is the mind? How many times was it distracted? Are you feeling relaxed and comfortable in a posture?
And so forth.
Vinyasa krama is the art of sequential variations within prescribed parameters
The Sanskrit syllables for vinyasa krama are defined in this way: vi – variation, nyasa – within prescribed parameters, and krama – sequence.
There are four parameters in vinyasa krama: sthira (steadiness), suhka ( comfort), prayatna (effort of life, which is breathing), and saithilya (smooth and long breathing). They are set out in these two yoga sutras: II-46 “steadiness and comfort characterize the yogic posture (asana)”; and, II-47 “by making the breath smooth (and long), and focusing the mind on the breath, the perfection of the posture is obtained.” (Ramaswami pointed out that Krishnamacharya interpreted sutra II-47 as focusing the mind on the breath and not on the asana or posture, as some teachers might suggest.)
When we practice asana with steadiness and comfort, as recommended in sutra II-46, we will be able to sit comfortably in a posture for a long time, do pranayama for one hour and then meditate.
There are ten main vinyasa sequences and several minor ones
The sequences have beautifully flowing variations and movements arising out of one main posture. There are dozens and dozens of variations within each sequence. They are taught in a precise order. Ramaswami introduced us to the ten main sequences, which are: the standing series (tadasana); the one-leg seated postures; posterior stretch (paschimatanasana); one-leg standing postures; supine postures; prone postures (dhanurasana, or bow pose); triangle (trikonasana); “topsy-turvy” poses (as Ramaswami calls them), which are also known as viparita karani, or inverted postures; meditation (vajrasana); and the lotus pose series (padmasana). He also taught us some of the minor sequences, including the sun salutation (surya namaskara) with chanting, which is traditionally done on Sundays, the salutation to all directions (ding namaskara) with chanting, and a few others. These sequences and their variations, as well as the Sanskrit prayers for surya namaskara and ding namaskara, are set out in generous detail in Ramaswami’s book The Complete Book of Vinyasa Yoga.
During the practice of yoga asana, the breathing rate should come down
If the breathing rate does not slow down over the course of one’s asana practice, one is not doing yoga, but ordinary exercise.
Ujjayi breathing helps the abhyasi (yoga practitioner) hear the breath and keep the mind focused. It is to be done during both the asana and the pranayama practices. Ujjayi breathing requires a slight constriction of the throat, which creates a quiet hissing sound. The mouth is closed during both the inhalation and the exhalation.
Repeat kapalabhati (a bellow-like breathing technique) a total of 108 times after your asana practice and before your pranayama practice. (Kapalabhati means that which makes the skull shine.)
This is the way Ramaswami taught us to practice kapalabhati: First, sitting in a comfortable position with our heads down, our chins in jalandhara bandha (the chin lock) and our hands resting on our knees, we repeated kapalabhati 36 times. Then, after we rested for a moment, we raised our arms above our heads on an inhale, interlocked our fingers, reached our palms toward the sky, and did 36 more kapalabhati. Then we rested again. Finally, with our elbows bent and our hands resting on the opposite shoulder blades behind our heads, we repeated kapalabhati for a third round of 36 times. This made a total of 108 times, which is the number of repetitions Ramaswami recommends.
Practice asana to bring down rajas; practice pranayama to bring down tamas
This (along with proper diet) helps the yogi achieve a more sattvic state (which manifests as a light feeling in the body and a clear mind).
After our asana and kapalabhati practices, Ramaswami had us practice pranayama. We did this twice a day. Ramaswami introduced a new element or a different type of pranayama each time. The ratio we practiced was 5:5:10:5. He asked us to inhale for a count of 5, hold after inhale for a count of 5, exhale for a count of 10, hold the breath out after exhale for a count of 5. For those of us who were used to practicing the bandhas (or locks), we were asked to do them in the hold after exhale. (Less than a count of 5 in pranayama practice is not recommended.) Ujjayi breathing was used for all of the pranayama practices (except the inhalation in sitali, which is done through a curled tongue and open mouth). Some of the pranayama practices Ramaswami introduced us to were: ujjayi, nadi sodhana, viloma, anuloma, sitali.
For pratyahara practice, do shanmukhi mudra (sealing the six senses) for at least five minutes after every pranayama practice
Krishnamacharya had Ramaswami do shanmukhi mudra each time after his pranayama practice. Sanmukhi mudra helps to quiet the senses and allows us to observe the state of calmness or distraction in our minds. In shanmukhi mudra, our thumbs close our ears, our little fingers rest at the corners of our mouths, our ring fingers slightly close the nostrils, the second fingers rest lightly on the lower eyelids (with our eyes closed), while our first fingers rest lightly on the upper portion of the eyelids. We may keep our minds focused either on the breath or on the silent repetition of the mantra “OM.” (A mantra is a sound that protects the thinker, whether it is said silently or aloud.) Ramaswami said that once we make the choice of either the breath or the mantra “OM,” we should stick with it for the full five minutes. If our arms began to tire, we may lower them for a few moments, then return them to the main position, in which the elbows and arms are raised to shoulder level.
The three important aspects of meditation (samyama) are dharana, dhyana and samadhi
Ramaswami defined dharana as the ability of the mind to focus on one object (a space, an object, the breath, the mind itself, etc.); dhyana as the state in which the mind can easily focus on one object moment after moment, eventually in a continuous, habitual way; and samadhi as the state in which one completely forgets the self, and only the object remains.

For a deeper understanding of yoga, Ramaswami advised us to take some time to read and study Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras, the main text on yoga philosophy
One final note: Ramaswami related to us that his teacher, Sri T. Krishnamacharya, always stressed the importance of a balanced practice. By that, he meant that a yoga practitioner should practice all of the eight limbs of yoga, and not focus on only one limb. The emphasis on asanas, for example, will change according to the age of the practitioner. For children and young adults, there is a greater emphasis on asana practice. For older people, greater attention is given to pranayama and meditation. And for those in the middle years, a balance of asana, pranayama and meditation is suggested. During the middle years, Krishnamacharya recommended doing asanas for only about 60% of one’s practice time, the other 40% being devoted to pranayama, pratyahara and/or chanting.
This article has touched briefly on some of the very rich details Srivatsa Ramaswami presented to us. If you would like to learn more about Ramaswami’s approach to yoga, I would highly recommend his books: Yoga for the Three Stages of Life, The Complete Book of Vinyasa Yoga and Yoga Beneath the Surface (co-authored by David Hurwitz).

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Pam Hoxsey has been practicing and studying yoga for 35 years. She has studied asana, chanting and the Yoga Sutras with Ramaswami. She is the author of Patanjali’s Yoga Sutras: Based on the Teaching of Srivatsa Ramaswami, which is a record of her one-on-one study with the vinyasa yoga master.

http://www.yogachicago.com/nov06/ramaswamitraining.shtml

A poem by Sri T. Krishnamacharya from 'Yoganjalisaram'

"O! sluggish mind, praise the Lord Gopala and the Lord Hayagriva, after your prayers to the Guru! To what purpose are the ways of this age if the body be weakened and the blood made impure?

When the truth is known ignorance cannot be, when the mind is pure there is no disease, when the breath is mastered there is no death, therefore, surrender to Yoga.

In the practice of Yoga one can emphasize the body, the mind or the self and hence the effort can never be fruitless.

Master your breath, let the self be in bliss, contemplate on the sublime within you.

Thus speaks Yogi Tirumala Krishna"