Can we equate wellness to Ayurveda?
Yes, we can. Ayurveda is synonymous to Wellness. All routes of basic as well as advanced approach to wellness converge to a single point of destination called Ayurveda.
Let us see the principles of wellness as well as Ayurveda –
First let us take up Ayurveda
Here are the three very basic quotes from Ayurveda texts –
- The ‘holistic-wellness-mantra’ of Ayurveda’ is meant to be chanted every morning:
May all be happy; May all be free from disabilities;
May all look to the good of others; May none suffer from sorrow”.
(“Sarve bhavantu sukhinah; Sarve santu niramayah;Sarve bhadrani pashyantu; Na kashchit dukhabak bhavet”)
2. The ‘introductory mantra’ of Ayurveda:
The science which tells us about useful, harmful, happy and unhappy span of life and also gives guidelines for what is beneficial and harmful to life is Ayurveda.
(Hitahitam sukham dukham aayustasya hitahitam;Maanam cha taccha yatroktam ayurvedah sah ucchyate.)
3. The ‘aim-mantra’ of Ayurveda:
The aim of Ayurveda is to maintain the health of healthy person and to cure the diseases of the sick.
(Swasthasya swasthya rakshanam;Aaturasya vikaar prashmanam.)
Ayurveda says health is a complete state of wellness that includes physical, psychological, spiritual as well social and economic wellness. It says a perfect balance and harmony of body, mind and soul is health. It undertakes all aspects of health and aims at prevention of disease, promotion of health and its preservation. It integrates body, mind, and spirit. Ayurveda emphasizes on maintenance of positive good health by the control of diet, lifestyle, Yoga and Pranayam (correct breathing technique).
Ayurveda teaches that the mind has the greatest influence in directing the body toward sickness and health. Thousands of years back, before modern medicine discovered the mind-body connect, the ancient sages had mastered it. They developed Ayurveda as a system for connecting with our own inner intelligence or mind, bringing it into balance, and then extending that balance to the body.
There are well laid norms for daily, seasonal as well as individual body constitution lifestyles. These, if followed, lead to complete wellness. A few of the norms are:
- Wake up early in the morning
- Start the day with gratitude for everything you have
- Exercise daily for flexibility, strength and fitness of mind and body
- Eat mindfully
- Cultivate loving and nurturing relationships
- Work with passion
- Have early dinner
- Sleep sound
These principles of Ayurveda for restoring and maintaining mind-body balance are as relevant today as they were thousands of years ago. They are pro-nature.
Now let us take up modern day Wellness
Wellness is defined as the state of being happy, healthy, or prosperous. Wellness is about proactively maintaining your body in optimal condition and nurturing it through consistently good health and lifestyle choices so that the body can intelligently respond to its environment and heal itself. It guides people to take responsibility for their own health by taking health and lifestyle decisions that promote wellness
Body has the ability to execute what mind wishes to do, so mind-body synchrony is important in wellness. This includes all measures to maintain optimal health – physical exercise, relaxation, meditation, stress management education, eating healthy food and any other activity that supports wellness.
Wellness means health and vitality in all dimensions of life:
- Physical wellness deals with eating, exercising and maintaining weight
- Mental wellness is how you feel about yourself, how you deal with life
- Spiritual wellness is the one which affects both physical and mental health
- Economic/Social wellness is a strategy that works to help you get out of your debt, and become financially independent and move ahead congenially in society. Economic/social stress can affect weight gain, unhealthy habits, depression, and a host of other problems that are carried into the workplace.
- Corporate wellness is the induction of wellness programmes in corporate houses. This induction is now an essential part for profitability, productivity and sustainability of any corporate house. Employees are the assets for any corporation and investment in their health, eventually, leads to a company’s growth.
From the above we can make out that modern day WELLNESS echoes the same thoughts as AYURVEDA.
Thus Ancient Ayurveda = Modern Wellness
Ayurveda does not reject the use of other systems of health. Its main principle is that we should make use of whatever healing modalities required for attaining health and balance in body. This innovative approach makes it the most suited system of health in modern time. This healing system has been practiced in daily living in India for more than 5000 years. Ayurveda is the world’s oldest collection of knowledge. This knowledge, that is older than Greek and Egyptian medicine, is now known to the wider world as a New Age medicine proving its eternal significance and its innovative flexibility.
