Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Chapter 1 - Discipline Of Yoga Day 2  Your mind has been engaged and caught up in the outside world all the time. Your eyes have been open and you have been caught up in all that you have been seeing. Similarly, you have been caught up in all that you smell, hear, touch, taste, etc.  And when you are awake, you are constantly engaged in the activities of the senses. Otherwise, you go back to sleep and dream. Then, you are completely shut off. During sleep and dream, the same memories come but you are never calm and quiet.  When you unite all the loose ends of your existence, you become the object of your perception. When simple people or children watch a movie, they become totally involved in it. At that time nothing else exist - just the movie.  If you have a backache or a pain in your legs or back, it'll seem more intense if you are idle. But when you are engaged in watching a movie then you don't feel the pain or anything else.  You don't feel you...

Chapter 1 - Discipline Of Yoga  Day 1  Shaasana are the rules that society or somebody else imposes on you. Anushasan are the rules that you impose on yourself. Now, why is Yoga called a discipline? Where is the need for a discipline? When does the need for discipline arise? When you are thirsty, you want to drink water.  You don't feel that it is a rule to drink water when you are thirsty. And when you are hungry, you eat. You do feel that you have the discipline of eating when you are hungry, that you have a discipline of enjoying the nature. No discipline is necessary for enjoyment. When is discipline relevant?  Not when something is enjoyable at the very first step. A child never says that it has the discipline of running to his mother when he sees her. Discipline arises where something is not very charming to begin with, when you know that it would be ultimately give a fruit that is very good and enjoyable but that, in the beginning, it is not enjoya...

A Psychologist par excellence, Maharishi Patanjali was a seer who lived sometime around the 2nd century BCE. He knew the twists and turns, the pitfalls and the intricacies of the labvrinthian miracle called the mind.  Maharishi Patanjali was not only well versed with the craftiness of this mind but also knew a way to master the mind. The definitive authority on the body, mind and soul, his Yoga Sutras are an eye opening account, and perhaps the most advanced textbook of psychology.  2200 years later, this text is still the authority on the biggest global trend, that is Yoga. 2200 years later, his text finds relevance in our lives cutting across languages, cultures, borders, time. Yoga is helping people across the world deal with life and living, even today. But what is one supposed to make of the sutras written almost like a computer code?  According to Patanjali, 'Santosha' or contentment is the basic requirement for growth. But how do we get there in this da...

Another important fruit tree from the family Meliaceae is the Sentol tree (Sandoricum koetjape). that is native to the rainforests of Sumatra, through Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo, to New Guinea. Sentol is a tall evergreen tree, reaching heights of up to 50 m. The trunk is greyish and smooth when young, but grows flaky or fissured as the tree ages. The young branches are covered with short brown hairs. The tree has alternate, long-stalked compound leaves that are spirally arranged. Each leaf consists of three leaflets that are oblong-ovate with pointed tips and rounded bases. The leaf margins are either entire or wavy. The leaflets have prominent sunken veins, giving them an uneven texture. The upper side of the leaflets is glabrous while the lower side is pale and densely covered in short, soft brown hairs. The dark green leaves turn yellow or bright red before falling. Sentol produces sm...

Cinnamomum tamala Syn.: C. albiflorum, Laurus tamala (Common name: Indian Bay Leaf, Indian cassia, Indian cassia bark, Tamala cassia, tejpatta) - Lauraceae, a small to moderately sized ever green tree. The tough, three-veined leaves are very popular in India.  The name Bay Leaf is used for some other plant (Laurus nobilis). So, this one is called Indian Bay Leaf. Leaves are collected in dry weather every year from vigourous plants, dried in the sun and tied up into bundles for marketing. Today, Indian bay-leaves are a spice used in the kitchens especially for preparing biriyani and other foods.  Reference  Surendra Parihar Ex.Professor and Head. Deptt. of Seed , Science and Technology. IARI, Pusa,  New Delhi 110012