When the first rays of light shine on the part of the earth I am dwelling, my body awakens naturally and a smile enters my face as I am beginning to notice my breath, realising the Gods within my spine. Left hand is making its move to the heart region while the right finds the abdomen, sensing the rising and falling sensation of the chest, slowly tuning into whispering my morning prayer.
I find the bathroom for my Ayurvedic self care rituals to begin. Deeply refreshed and with a clear mind, I am drawn to the yoga mat in front of my little shrine, taking my seat in Siddhasana getting prepared for the daily morning pooja. During this ritual I am offering to the Gods with devotion to receive love and blessings. Outwardly it may appear as a mechanical ritual which my intellect would have questioned years ago. Now, I am deeply aware of its hidden significance and it is performed through me without any resistance or questions.
Bringing attention to my body, energizing and activating it, I firmly rub my palms together and when they become nice and warm, I put them on my eyes and take a few long breaths, then moving the hands down the face and on my chest and abdomen, and lower over my knees and thighs, legs and ankles and toes, finally letting them touch the Earth below me, repeating the Prithivi Gayatri mantra to pay homage to Mother Earth.
Om Prithivi devyyaya Vidhmahe
Sahasra murthaye cha Dheemahe
Tanno Prithvi Prachodayath.
translation:
Om, Let me meditate on the Goddess of Earth,
Oh, Goddess who has thousand forms, give me higher intellect,
and let Goddess Earth illuminate my mind.
I bring my hands back up into Anjali Mudra in front of my heart center to chant OM three times with all my being, feeling the vibration on heart level to then slowly transition into a set of different Yoga techniques designed to transform, uplift and rejuvenate the wholeness of my being.
Life is a challenge for every human being – we can go beyond and get the awakening process going. It is a simple choice but requires self- responsibility and the willingness to reclaim our health. The ancient wisdom teachings show a beautiful path that embraces the wholeness of our being.
Remember, it is pure joy and a great gift to be alive and be given a discerning intellect to realise the eternal truth and become truly awake to all that there is, in this aliveness. It is always now, so why not beginning with integrating some of the Ayurvedic self care rituals into your daily life…
Ayurvedic Self Care Rituals
Ayurveda recommends a beautiful routine that make the morning a great time to take care of ourselves and spoil our being with attention and self love.
- The best time to arise is about two hours before dawn, around 4:30 to 5:00 AM. This time has maximum Sattva, or vibration of purity and perfection, in the universe and is called Brahma Muhurta, which means the time of the creator – the time when I can create myself, become the Brahman and make myself the way I wish myself to be.
- Ayurveda encourages you to wake up early. During early morning – Vata period – the body is free of fatigue, also one gets the advantage of vata qualities such as lightness, exhilaration and freshness, which get infused in the body, mind and brain and last throughout the day.
- Splash your face with cold water and rinse out your mouth. Wash your eyes with cool water (or one of the eye washes mentioned) and massage the eyelids by gently rubbing them. Blink your eyes 7 times and rotate your eyes in all directions. Dry your face with a clean towel. This relieves early morning dullness and brings freshness.
Tridoshic eyewash: try triphala eye wash ¼ tsp. in 1 cup water, boil for 10 minutes, cool and strain
Pitta eye wash: use cool water or rose water from organic rose petals
Kapha eye wash: try diluted cranberry juice, 3-5 drops in a teaspoon of distilled water
- Gently scrape the tongue from the back forward, until you have scraped the whole surface for 7-14 strokes. It stimulates the internal organs, helps digestion and removes dead bacteria. White coating on the tongue is a sign of ama – either from last night’s meal as food gets deposited on its surface or due to deeper imbalance.
- Drink a glass of room temperature water. It is not a good idea to start the day with tea or coffee, as this will drain kidney energy, stresses the adrenals, causes constipation, and is habit-forming. It will help in maintaining the right electrolyte balance in the body and detoxify toxins present in the body.
- Daily elimination by ensuring a lighter and easy to digest meal the night before. The herb Triphala, taken the night before can also assist regularity in elimination. If chronic constipation persists or there are other elimination irregularities, an Ayurvedic practitioner should be consulted. Squatting can also promote the urge and so will a drink of warm water first thing in the morning (if required).
- The teeth should be brushed with herbal toothpastes and powders that have a predominance of astringent and bitter tastes with some pungent taste also. Traditional Indian natural cleanser for teeth is a neem twig.
- To strengthen teeth, gums, and jaw, improve the voice, reduce sensitivity to hot, cold and sour substances and remove wrinkles from cheeks, gargle with warm sesame or mustard oil. Hold the oil in your mouth, swish it around vigorously, then spit it out and gently massage the gums with a finger.
- Ayurveda recommends applying oil on the body daily: a small ritual of self massage called Abhyangam with warm sesame oil, followed by a bath or a shower with hot water.
- Yoga asanas are highly appreciated in Ayurveda to keep the body flexible. One should try to customize the personal Yoga practice based upon needs of the body and the requirements of the Ayurvedic constitution.
- Pranayama, or breath discipline, not only infuses the body with Prana (vitality) and healthy oxygen, but also begins to balance the mind, as according to Ayurveda, the breath and mind have a close relationship.
- The effect of Pranayama naturally leads into a meditative state, which will ultimately align the body, mind and soul. In meditation, we become one with the bliss within.
- Fresh and cleansed in body and mind, aligned with the cosmic intelligence and deeply grateful for the life-giving breath and this flexible body, I am ready to cook my breakfast of another beautiful day. A journey without goal…nothing to do and nowhere to go….but ever receptive for the grace.
Much love,
Christine