Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Lord Rama once asked a question. He was so curious to see so much devotion and dedication in Hanuman that wondering about it, he asked Hanuman, what it felt like being Hanuman. Hanuman told Rama, "When I think I am an individual - when I am in the " body consciousness " - I am your servant, but when I am in the "soul consciousness", I am part of You.... and when I am in the "being consciousness" - when I am in my Self - then I am You. There is no difference between you and me." - Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji 

I had a beautiful experience during Mahashivratri 2020 at Bangalore Ashram! I was having a very rough time in my personal life and was even losing faith in Art of Living, even though I have been associated since 2013. I am doing PhD from IIT Delhi and University of Queensland (Australia) so work pressure and high expectations from professors and peers was a challenge and due to it I even left doing kriya in between thinking I didn’t have the time, which is never the case.  But somehow I regained little faith back after doing 3 days Padmasadhana and went to Bangalore ashram during Shivaratri. I had bought a gift for Gurudev (a very beautiful, expensive one) whole heartedly and thought to myself whether He will even take it or not, whether I will be able to reach Him in the Darshan line or not. But when I sat in the amphitheater, after going in “bhaav” (devotion) He sent Swami Purnachaitanya (who has been my mentor in personal life) straight to me and he said “Gurudev has...

I feel really blessed to have been selected by my marvelous Guru to walk on the path. My story is one that will kindle the lamp of faith in the hearts of many. I had been suffering since 2009, with severe immobilizing pain, swelling and burning in my left thigh & abdomen. This was the result of multiple failed surgeries, which caused grave damage to the nerves.  Medically this condition is a post-operative femoral Neuropathy at inguinal ligament. It results in complete limitation in living, because of which there arises a feeling of disappointment and helplessness regarding the future course of one’s life. On very little exertion, I would experience immense pain, and lack of physical strength to perform normal everyday activities. Allopathic doctors said that there was not much hope but still attempts could be made for a fourth surgery, where the chances of recovery and improvement would be very bleak. But having faced tremendous problems in earlier such attempts, I...

Graha means catching, holding on to something. The whole Universe is moving very fast and whatever is holding the Universe is all Grahas. They are being held by orbits, that’s why they are Grahas, that which holds on. It remains there forever. If not forever, at least relatively, not in absolute terms.         Agraha is insisting, you hold on to something and you insist, that is agraha. Then Nigraha is where you control, it’s again a type of holding. Then comes Vigraha, that is trying to hold on to something, your goal is to hold on to something which is ethereal, which you cannot perceive or hold on to. But in a special manner you try to hold on to, that is Vigraha.            The infinite, absolute, unmanifest divinity cannot be held. But through some special means you want to establish a sort of relation, communication or a sort of connection. You are already connected, but when you are trying to feel the connection with i...

I'm associated with AOL since 2001 and have done all the possible courses many times and the recent one is Sanyam in April 2021. I was always aware that Guruji is taking care of me and my family but believed when this incident took place.  It was March 2020 when lockdown was announced and we all started working from home. I worked for a export company for 15 years as a Manager. Markets which were handled by me were badly affected by covid resulting delay in payments and 70-80% drop in business.  25th June 2020 I received a call from my stakeholder asking me to step down gracefully with 3 months notice period (I was entitled only for 30 days notice period) during my conversation with the stake holder I felt relived and happy that he asking me to quit . I don't know why but I felt. I could see hazy smiling picture of Gurudev for that moment and then vanished.  So then all the melo drama started in my mind. What will I do now, kids education, living is expensiv...

Actually, there are four Navratris. One in each of the four seasons. Though we have six seasons, but the main four seasons have one Navratri each.          This is the Navratri in spring, which starts from new year, Ugadi. The new year is the same.         You know it is so wonderful to discover that even Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan and Turkey they all share same new year. And they do exactly the same what the people in Kerala do for new year. They do ‘vishu kani’, morning you have to keep in a plate: two lamps, some fruits, some vegetables, and then a mirror, a sacred book. All these are kept and first thing in the morning you are supposed to see this and feel abundance. New year begins with a sense of abundance, with a sense of knowledge.           See, the way Iranians celebrate the new year, very similar to the Vaidic New Year or the Vaidic days the new year is being celebrated. Of course in Kerala it is t...

What is it that you have to surrender? Anyway everything belongs to the Divine already. But when you think that something belongs to you, then I say, 'Let go'. When you are holding onto something so tight, that is when I say, 'Hey, relax'. Relaxation is called surrender; it is nothing else. It is just like offering aahuti (the act of making prayerful offerings to the sacred fire). So whatever bothers you or troubles you, offer that as aahuti to the Divine. That which you cannot handle by yourself, that which has become a burden for you, that which you are tired of carrying on your head, just put it down and let go. That is what is meant by surrender. Otherwise what is there to surrender? Your body belongs to God. Even your mind belongs to God. Everything belongs to God. But you think it belongs to you, Just let go, relax and smile. Letting go, relaxing and smiling is what the meaning of surrender is. In Buddhism, it is said 'Buddham Sharanam Gachhami, which means wh...

That is the real skill. When self interest is not there then it is much easier. Like when you do seva, you are passionate as well as dispassionate, isn't it? So many of you are doing seva in kitchen, are you not doing it passionately? At the same time it doesn't matter to you as well, right. There is passion and there is dispassion. The best thing is the seva here, the transport seva, the housing seva, the van running up and down, and putting the mattress till 12 o'clock at night. I took a round nearly at midnight and I saw these boys and ladies taking the mattresses and making the beds, making sure everybody is comfortable. They were not doing it for recognition. They didn't do it because they were getting something out of it. They were not even thinking that they would get some big merit by doing it. It needed to be done and they just did it. There was passion and at the same time dispassion. I said, 'All of you go now and sleep. It will be done tomorrow.' The...

We do it every evening in satsang, anyway. We are chanting the name of the Divine. Yes, as you by keeping on doing japa (chanting) come to a state of ajapa (practice of japa without the mental effort normally needed to repeat the mantra), you become calm and go beyond the chant, and beyond the name into a state of Samadhi. This is called Bhaava Samadhi. Bhaav Samadhi is a part, an aspect that should also be practiced. But without knowledge, bhakti (devotion) does not mature. Knowledge and devotion should go together. Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji 

I tell you, if someone insults you, criticizes you, let them be! How much harm can they do? Let them go ahead and insult as much as they can. Next time, tell them, “My dear, go ahead and insult me as much as you want. I will not change regardless of how much you want to criticize me”. Face it with courage. Be strong, do not run away from it. Stand tall before them and let them insult you as much as they can. See, you should respond to an insult with a smile. A person of true patience and courage is one who can respond to any insult or criticism with an unshakeable smile. A real saint is one who responds to a gunfight with bouquets of flowers. The sign of an intelligent person is one who can respond to taunts and criticism with humor and wit. If you also get angry with someone who comments on you or taunts you, then that is not intelligent behavior on your part. The sign of intelligence is to transform an unpleasant situation into a pleasant one. That is what the intelligent...

It is that which is in between effort and no effort. There is one level of upayas where there is lot of effort and there is one where you don’t put any effort.         Shambhavi is in between where you put a little effort and then it happens. One of the Shambhavi mudras is, you just put a little attention in between the eyebrows but then let go. But in the name of Shambhavi mudra people do all wrong things and they end up having so much headache. They end up having migraines, headaches and sometimes they go cuckoo.         So my advice is don’t venture into any of these. In the name of Hath yoga they do what all. All these kriyas don’t look normal. People lose strength in the body and the mind as well. That is why my advice is go very natural and whatever is safer, which is traditional, that which is taught here now. We must be authentic when we do Yoga practices. Gurudev Sri Sri Ravi Shankarji 

Hatha yoga (a branch or limb of Yoga dealing mostly with postures) is only a very small part of the Ashtanga Yoga (Eightfold path of Yoga). People misunderstand that alone to be what Yoga is all about. It is alright. That is also good for keeping the body healthy and free from diseases. Actually, Patanjali, an ancient sage, defined yoga as the ‘restraining of thought waves'. He compiled ‘Patanjali's Yoga Sutras', the aphorisms of yoga, in which he provides an eight-limbed approach for the well-being and purification of body, mind and soul. This eight-limbed approach, known as Ashtanga Yoga, is not to be mistaken as a step-by-step approach but a multidimensional approach in which all eight limbs are practised simultaneously. The 8 Limbs are 1) Yamas - the five social ethics a) Ahimsa - Non-violence in action, speech and thoughts b) Satyam - Truthfulness in intention, remaining established in the higher truth c) Asteya - Non-stealing d) Brahmacharya - Divine condu...

The Art of Living JalTara has proven to be a highly effective method for rising groundwater levels thus, increasing crop yield, with an average increase of 42%. This innovative approach has resulted in significant improvements in the productivity of various crops, such as cotton, soybean, chana, onion, and wheat. With such remarkable benefits, it's no wonder that JalTara has managed to maximize the crop yield and increase in profits, while also contributing to the sustainable development of agriculture and farmer’s livelihood. "A step towards a promising future. India's water crisis finds a solution through innovative method of JalTara”. Through JalTara, we have achieved great success in addressing this critical issue that has affected so many communities in our country. JalTara project has benefited over :  ✨50,000 farmers in Jalna Dist, Maharashtra by increasing groundwater levels to 14 Ft,  ✨Optimizing crop yield by 42%, and  ✨Increasing farmer’s income by 120% in just...

Air is already there..When you switch ON the fan, you realize it even more..Right?  Wake up!  The giver is anyway giving you..  Become aware of the grace and love that the divine is pouring on you every moment.. Relax.. Know that you have everything.. Don't worry..  Worrying is not being aware of the potential that you have.. Worrying is not knowing that the biggest power of the universe is yours.. WAVES OF HAPPINESS 

A newborn feels protected when a mother holds him with care..Isn't it? Wake up!  There is a higher power that is protecting you all the time.. It will take care.. Relax.. Wherever you are, the divine knows your heart better than you do.. Don't worry.. Be content with whatever happens, for what God chooses is surely better than what we choose for ourselves.. WAVES OF HAPPINESS 

Weekly Knowledge 107 Montreal Ashram 25 Jun 1997  Canada THE PERSONAL AND IMPERSONAL How can we reconcile the impersonal with the personal? In love you raise the object to life. When you love an object it becomes life. For children everything is personal. Children take each object they play with and make it totally personal. Even a stone has a face; even the sun laughs. When you attach emotion, the whole creation becomes personal. When you remove the emotion, even people become objects. Violence is removing the emotion. How a person can kill another person: it is when they do not see them as a person, they see them as an object. But even a stone attracts reverence when it becomes personal. Dean says: In military training they teach soldiers to see people as killing objects coming toward you that need to be killed first. Susannah says: In the temple even a stone is elevated to the level of spirit. The impersonal cannot attract reverence. Most people see God as impersonal and therefo...

The Queen of Spices.” It has a distinct floral aroma and sweet taste. It is one of the most expensive spices in the world, only surpassed by saffron and vanilla.There are two types of cardamom in Ayurveda. Green cardamom and black. In Ayurveda, spices are classified by their qualities, tastes and the actions they have on the body and mind. Cardamom has warming and calming qualities, along with sweet and pungent tastes. Although it is considered to be tri-doshic (balancing for all doshas), those with Pitta imbalance should use it sparingly or in moderation, as it is heating. So, what is cardamom good for? According to Ayurveda, the buildup of ama (toxins) blocks normal circulation in the body, reduces energy levels and is the main cause of illness and disease. Cardamom’s warming and detoxifying effects aid in reducing the accumulation of ama (toxins) in the body and maintaining health. In addition, it helps to reduce Kapha in the stomach and lungs (such as congestion and muc...

Good morning friends, so far the wellness herbs that we studied had a warm or heating nature, today we take up something that's cooling and refreshing - yes, we're talking about the COMMON GARDEN MINT (Mentha spicata). Mentha spicata is a fragrant herb from the basil family (Lamiaceae). A popular kitchen herb known for its cooling and refreshing flavour, is a key spice in many cuisines, ranging from teas, salads, sauces and desserts. The mint flavor is tasty and freshens breath.  Spearmint is also commonly used in infusion products like chewing gum, essential oil, after-mint, mouthwash, perfumes, and aromatherapy. Besides its culinary uses, it also has many health benefits and has been a herb in traditional medicines since ages. 🌷ETYMOLOGY The genus name “Mentha” comes from a Greek myth about a nymph named “Minthe” (also known as Menthe) who became Pluto’s mistress. Pluto’s jealous wife transformed Minthe into a mint plant. 🌷THE PLANT Spearmint is a p...

100 BENEFITS OF SUDARSHAN KRIYA PHYSIOLOGICAL BENEFITS  1- It lowers oxygen consumption 2- It decreases respiratory rate 3- It increases blood flow and slows the heart rate 4- Increases exercise tolerance 5- Leads to a deeper level of physical relaxation 6- Good for people with high blood pressure 7- Reduces anxiety attacks by lowering the levels of blood lactate 8- Decreases muscle tension 9- Helps in chronic diseases like allergies, arthritis etc. 10- Reduces Pre-menstrual Syndrome symptoms 11- Helps in post-operative healing 12- Enhances the immune system 13- Reduces activity of viruses and emotional distress 14- Enhances energy, strength and vigour 15- Helps with weight loss 16- Reduction of free radicals, less tissue damage 17- Higher skin resistance 18- Drop in cholesterol levels, lowers risk of cardiovascular disease 19- Improved flow of air to the lungs resulting in easier breathing 20- Decreases the aging process. 21- Higher levels of DHEAS (Dehydroepiandrosterone) 22- pre...