Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Most of my friends who have spent their childhood in Singapore, have played with the glossy red seeds of the Saga tree.  Adenanthera pavonina known to the locals as the Saga tree or red bead tree is a tall, fast growing tree, that is very beneficial to our environment. It is a valuable agroforestry species. The tree can fix the atmospheric nitrogen and thus helps rejuvenate soil. Further, it also provides useful mulch. The small leaves break down easily, giving a good green manure.  The interesting fact about its red, glossy seeds is- They were used in ancient India for weighing gold, silver & diamonds, because the seeds are curiously similar in weight, four seeds making up about 10 grams. In fact the name 'Saga' is traced to the Arabic term for 'goldsmith'. Isn't that funny?! The seeds are also used as beads in jewellery, necklaces, rosaries and as toys. The ground seeds can produce an oil which was used as an i...

In 2006. I did my Part –I course, but was not much inclined towards the Art of Living. In the May of 2006, Guruji had come to inaugurate the Texas Ashram. I was a student then and just got to know somehow that He was coming to San Antonio. I told my mother about it and told her that I won’t go as it would cost 100 bucks, and I had no mode of travel as well. My mother pushed me to go, calling me couple of times from India. So after much deliberation, I finally decided to go. As I was new to America, I did not have a phone or a car and nor did I know anybody from whom I could ask for help. I just called an organizer whom I call Sarah. She said a lady would pick me up from a bus stop. So I asked one of my friends to drop me at the bus station near my school. The Ashram was 4 hours away from my school. I reached San Antonio after 3 hours. I had no way to contact the lady who was supposed to pick me up. Suddenly, an old gentleman and a lady came out of a vintage car. They received me with g...