Ayurvedic Medicines: Alternative Treatments

Part of holistic medicine for those not in it initially is that at some point you need to divorce yourself from what you thought you knew and be able to appreciate new approaches to old things. Part of this is involves initiation rituals.

Different cultures have different initiations. The concept is so ingrained that even corporate culture has some initiation rites and apprenticeship. For example, making coffee, being forced to miss deadlines, missing paperwork, even the internship program itself, where you need to serve without pay all have their beginnings in initiation rituals.

Some cultures are more interesting, however. For example, the Sioux Sun Dance, where four days of meditation are followed by three days of dancing, and then one of sacrifice, where either small patches of skin are offered, or eagle claws are stuck through skin on the chest. The basic point to any initiation is that your perspective must change, and a good initiation ritual will do just that.

In a way, I miss hazing. Although ostensibly a humiliating ritual fraught with risks, it allowed a young man on his first time on his own to really appreciate the difference, by forcing him to evaluate what he was willing to do to join an organization. It also forced a change in perspective, in that his parents could not protect him, and that he was now dependent on other people. It also provided a definite turning point, one that he could point to as the dividing line between childhood and adulthood, something that men nowadays don’t really have.

But that’s true of any initiation ritual. By defining a point in your life, you can build from that point. As you explore Ayurvedic approaches, be aware that you need that change in perspective. Although it does have some of the approaches of modern science, it also has certain elements of mysticism as well. Being aware of the differences is extremely important to your ability to deal with this type of holistic medicine, and that will allow you to find your path.

Find that point, that point at when you can say that you have stepped over, and your path will be easier; by defining a start, you define the finish, and without a start you can’t finish. In order to be on a path, it must have a start and a finish; you may not finish where you thought you would, but knowing where you started defines the path. Where did you start?

Ayurvedic Medicine is a holistic approach to well-being, and requires that you be in touch with yourself. One of the best ways to do this is to meditate; however, not everyone can easily achieve a meditative state. There are some ways to achieve a meditative state faster. The most basic way to achieve a meditative state is to establish a place and a time for it, as well as some ritual that mentally prepares you.

The place and time are easy enough to establish. The place should be one that is quiet, has a comfortable temperature, and is reasonably easy to get to. You can build your own, if needed, but as long as you feel comfortable there, it should be okay. The time should be set aside at the same time each day, so that your body learns that it will be in a slightly different state at the same time each day. Once place and time are established, you need to establish a ritual.

The ritual can be as simple or as complex as you want; I suggest simplicity as it’s not only cheaper (as you don’t require as many materials) and quicker, but simplicity is usually best. Decide what constitutes a ritual, and also allow for one at the conclusion of your meditation, even if it’s as simple as blowing out a candle.

Some things to consider when you are creating your ritual are things that can be open and closed; for example, lighting a candle or burning incense at the beginning of your meditation, and then extinguishing it when you are done. Changing clothes, flipping something over or otherwise changing its position, or other brief activities that a two parts to them allow you to separate your meditation from your daily life, and that disconnect can be beneficial.

Do not meditate in the nude. It may sound prudish, but when you deal with things mystical, the symbolism of even simple things becomes important. Nudity may represent freedom, but it also represents lack of sexual inhibitions and lust as well, and you want to avoid anything dealing with those issues just as much as you hunger and thirst. Some people do, but try to avoid it at the start.

By establishing these factors, you will find yourself slipping into a meditative state easier, and being to establish a link to yourself and thus you will be able to better affect your path much more effectively.

As within, as with out: This ultimately the basic reasoning behind any system of holistic medicine. The idea is that you are only as healthy as you believe you are. Ultimately, your mind has control over your body, and that control is what makes you healthy or ill. It’s not necessarily a conscious control; your emotions are just as powerful as your will. Ever notice that anger leads to headaches and stomach problems; depression leads to being tired and less appetite; happiness leads to more energy? The mind truly is a powerful thing, and that anything that affects the mind, affects the body. Thus, why meditation and visualization are so important to holistic health. By reaching a stillpoint, emotion no longer influences you, and your will becomes the arbiter of your health. You can then visual what you want to happen, and then it does. But first you need to reach the stillpoint. To attain a state of meditation, you must be able to shut out any outside interference, and calm any emotion. To do so, find a place with little stimulation, such as a temple or hillside. It may sound difficult to in a city, but that’s why some gyms are silenced. You can create a silenced room in your house, by finding a room that is easy to cover in some sort of silencer, such as egg cartons. You can also build a meditation chamber, which is actually better; by concentrating on the purpose of the room as you build it, it makes using the room that much easier. There’s nothing mystical about it; as you put it together, you visual its purpose, which allows you to do what you’re building the room for easier. Rituals work much the same way; since you have certain expectations when you enact one, it’s easy to believe that what you expect to happen will. One of the reasons that guys have so many rituals and superstitions is that “going with what works” is a ritual in and of itself that has an effect on the real world. It may not make logical sense, but it works more often than you would think. When you meditate, concentrate on something (your breathing and the Universal OM are the usual targets), and then allow yourself to stop concentrating on it, losing yourself in the moment. Once you’ve mastered that, then it becomes easier to accept that you really can change things. Visualize the change you wish, and what the effects of that change will be; that makes it real and allows it to happen. Once you’ve managed that, you have managed but the first of many steps. And I do mean many steps…

Martial Arts can be a funny thing. It seems that some martial arts were created to get better fighting, and then evolved to entertainment (wrestling). Others were created to relieve teen-age hormones (boxing). Others were created to allow self-defense in weird situations (capoiera). Others were created for self-defense, and then became meditation (kung fu).

One of these martial arts became linked to a group of healers. By using vital points, the martial artists were able to become very efficient warriors. Kalaripayattu combines the physical nature of martial arts with an almost scientific approach that allowed the practitioners to become incredible healers as well. In a way, the Ayurvedic healing arts gained a lot by association with those that, ironically, caused the pain as well.

In essence, yin and yang working together for the betterment of the human in question, as is the best way to do things. There a number of ways that healing works, some in weird ways that go beyond expectations, others where the expectations were in the wrong areas. Sometimes, not all of the best ways of healing are what you would expect; sometimes it takes looking down an unexpected path to find what you are looking for, and even then what you are find wasn’t what you were looking for.

Before I get too much into fortune cookie territory, healing is best looked at as a problem-solving process. It’s not always important what method was used, as long as the problem is solved. When it comes to curing a disease, a lot of things can work; sometimes it’s just a matter of bolstering the person’s belief that there is a solution that helps just as much as an antidote.

When we look at holistic healing, it’s easy to discard it for the weirdness. That’s fine; as with modern medicine, there will always be a lot its practitioners know that those that benefit from it aren’t aware of. But…it works nonetheless. On this blog, I will be exploring various ways to heal yourself and won’t be limited by modern science. So let’s have fun on this journey, and see where it leads us, eh?

[Caveat: Do not use this site as a way to heal yourself. I am not licensed in any medical way, and my advice should be should treated strictly as friendly advice, not as an actual opinion. Look into the medicines shown here yourself, and don’t trust me word, okay?]