Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Olive tree Did you know that the Olive tree and its products are an integral part of the Mediterranen diet, which has the honour of being called an intangible cultural heritage of humanity, and it grows widely in the northern to southern Africa , Arabia, India to China? Did you know that Olive oil is still used in many religious ceremonies and symbolizes wisdom, fertility, power, and purity? The Olive tree with botanical name, Olea europaea, is an evergreen tree or shrub tracing its origin to the Mediterranean Europe. It was also integrated into the religious practices of all the "known religions" of the region with implications of peace, fertility, strength and purification. It now grows widely in the northern to southern Africa , Arabia, India to China. Hundreds of cultivars of the olive tree are known.  Historically, the olive plant was first cultivated some 7,000 years ago in Mediterranean regions. For thousand...

🌷 Katho Upanishad 🌷        Chapter 1        At the door of death        🌻 Day 6 🌻 तिस्रो रात्रिर्यगवात्सीर्गृहे मे ऽनश्नन् ब्रह्मन्नतिथिर्नमस्यः । नमस्तेऽस्तु ब्रह्मन् स्वस्ति मेऽस्तु तस्मात्प्रति त्रीन्वरान्वृणीष्व ॥ Yama gave three boons to the boy – “I owe you three boons because you have been so calm , so quiet , you have meditated , you have been spiritual. You have been thinking of something higher.” शांतसङ्कल्पः सुमना यथा स्याद् वीतमन्युर्गैतमो माऽभि मृत्यो । त्वत्प्रसृष्टं माऽभिवदेत्प्रतीत एतत् त्रयाणां प्रथमं वरं वृणे ॥ Nachiketa said , “O Lord of Death , as the first of these three books , grant that my father’s anger be appeased, so that when I return he may receive me with love.” Father’s anger weighed heavy on the child , Nachiketa. The first boon he asked was an immediate relief from that. A very simple mind , simple question , simple needs. The greater you are the simpler your needs and desires ar...

🌷 Katho Upanishad 🌷                Chapter 1        At the door of death            🌻 Day 5 🌻 Nachiketa goes to the abode of death and waits there for 3 days without food and water. There is greater , deeper knowledge here. What happens in the process of death? What happens to you when you die? First , the mind withdraws from the five senses with their impression. You stop feeling, numbness comes. Sensations in the body disappear. Then , sight gets blurred and vision goes away. Sense of touch goes away , sense of taste goes away , sight goes away and then smells and finally sound disappears. When body is dying , they keep a candle burning so that if the soul, the spirit leaves the body , it can feel the light , see the light and remind itself that it is light and move on. This ritual is there in all ancient traditions. The mind retrieves from the five senses , with the impressions of those sens...

🌷 Katho Upanishad 🌷        Chapter 1        At the Door of Death             🌻 Day 4 🌻   बहूनामेमि प्रथमो बहूनामेमि मध्यमः । किँ स्विध्यमस्य कर्तव्यं यन्मयाऽद्य करिष्यति ॥ Nachiketa thought , “let me be the first to do among those who are going to die. Everyone is going to die. I will go a little earlier. Like corn which ripens and falls and then , comes up again. Everything is temporary. People are dying and I will also die. It’s just that I am going a little early , I am going to go to the Lord of Death.” Nachiketa knew that his father said it in anger , but he still went to death. This is very beautiful. This Upanishad is about dialogue of this young boy and the Lord of Death. What is death? What is the ultimate secret that nobody is able to unwind? What is that? There is another story related to Nachiketa. Once , Vajashravas was praying on a river bank. He accidently left all his belongings on...

🌷 Katho Upanishad 🌷       Chapter 1       At the Door of death        🌻 Day 3 🌻 उशन् ह वै वाजश्रवसः सर्ववेदसं ददौ । तस्य ह नचिकेता नाम पुत्र आस ॥ The Vishwajit yagna was done by Vajashravas and he gave away whatever he had , in the ceremony. He had a small eight year old son. His name was Nachiketa. तँ ह कुमारँ सन्तं दक्षिणासु  नीयमानासु श्रद्धाविवेश सोऽमन्यत ॥ He saw his father giving everything away. He was running around and observing what his father was doing. He was watching everything with a lot of faith , “Oh. Father is doing all this. He is doing such a great job. He has given everything away.” He also saw his father giving away cattle which were old. He noted that his father would not get any merit out of that. Children are very smart , smarter than their parents. They are so innocent. पीतोदका जग्धतृणा दुग्धदोहा निरिन्द्रियाः । अनन्दा नाम ते लोकास्तान् स गच्छति ता ददत् ॥ Sometimes people give away things whi...