Tag: medicine

Gharshana: The Ayurvedic way to lose Cellulite

Gharshana literally means “to rub” or “rubbing”.
It is a traditional Ayurvedic dry massage that refreshes and stimulates the skin and lymphatic system, enhancing blood circulation and the release of accumulated toxins. To perform a garshana, one will need natural silk gloves, a soft sponge, or a dry brush that gently removes dead skin layers leaving the skin supple and glowing.
The ideal time to dry brush is in the morning before you shower, so that you can rinse off the impurities loosened by the massage.
Follow these steps to perform the Garshana traditional Ayurvedic dry massage:
Massage your entire body, excluding your face, chest, and heart. Avoid sensitive areas and anywhere the skin is broken or inflamed.
Use circular strokes on the stomach and joints (shoulders, elbows, knees, wrists, hips, and ankles), and long sweeping strokes on the arms and legs.
Apply light pressure where the skin is thin, such as the underarms, and harder pressure where the skin is thicker, such as the soles of the feet.
The direction of the stroke should always be towards the heart as this helps drain lymph back to your heart. Massage from feet upwards, continuing up to torso and on to neck. Also massage from the hands to the shoulders. Continue for at least five minutes.
Complete Garshana with a shower.
To enhance the release of toxins, end with a few cycles of hot then cold water. First turn the water to as hot as you can take it for several seconds, then to as cold as you can tolerate, then back to hot, and so on. This stimulates the blood circulation and further invigorate the skin.

Ear Piercing or Karna Vedha is an ancient ceremony performed on both male and female in many countries.This is seen across cultures in almost all continents where human civilization inhabited.

In India, this is called as Karna(ear) Vedha(piercing) ((Sanskrit: कर्णवेध) and is one of the Shodasha Samskaras (16 ceremonies) performed on a human between birth and death.

Common between male and females, it is intended to open the inner ears of the child for receiving sacred sounds. This rite has deep mystical and symbolic significance. It is believed that merely hearing sacred sounds has merit in that it cleanses sin and nurtures the spirit.

In China, this Acupuncture and Acupressure is done at a particular point on ear and it is believed to cure or prevent asthma.Behind the ear lobe there is a natural, small microscopic depression which contains nerve endings linked with diseases like bronchial asthma, cough and tuberculosis.

Chinese science of acupuncture states that the root cause of some diseases lies in the subtle regions of every organ in the body.When that area is punctured, the related disease is eliminated. Study of this science was done and recorded in the Vedas much earlier and the sanskar of piercing the ear lobes was already implemented on both genders of kids.

The metal (like gold or copper) earrings are believed to help in maintaining the flow of electric current in a human body. It is also believed that ear piercing helps in maintaining the regularity in the menstrual cycle of a girl.This part of the ear is the intuitive, Third Eye, or psychic point. It is very important that only gold, and not silver, be worn here on the ear lobe. Gold, combined with an amethyst or emerald (which are both traditionally regarded as very spiritual stones), will have an added positive effect on the function of intuition.

Ayurveda researcher and surgeon on ancient India, Susruta (6th century BC) says, “Ears of a child should be bored for protection (from diseases in his opinion) and decoration.” He explicitly prescribes the boring of ears for preventing hydrocele and hernia.
Susruta gives a very cautious procedure of the ceremony. He says that the ceremony should be performed in the sixth or seventh month, in the bright half and on an auspicious day. After the preliminaries the child should be put on the lap of the mother or the nurse. Then the child should be fondled and persuaded by means of toys. Now the surgeon should pull the ears with his left hand and bore them slowly at the natural holes which are visible in the sunlight. If the ears are tender they should be pierced with a needle, if stiff with a probe. After boring oil should be applied to the ears by means of a cotton thread or bougie.

Father of Western medicine, Hippocrates, wrote about ear piercing and earring wearing around 470 BC as a remedy and treatment for menstrual problems. Galen also wrote about the same thing. In ancient times, if there was a deficiency in energy or chi, gold earrings would be placed in a pierced acu-point for stimulation. Silver earrings were used if there was excessive energy.

Nagarjuna was an Indian metallurgist and alchemist, born at Fort Daihak near Somnath in Gujarat in 931. He wrote the treatises Rasaratnakara, Rashrudaya and Rasendramangal that deals with preparations of rasa (mercury) compounds. It gives a survey of the status of metallurgy and alchemy in the land. Extraction of metals such as silver, gold, tin and copper from their ores and their purification were also mentioned in the treatise. 
He also wrote Uttaratantra as a supplement to Susrutasamhita, dealing with preparation of medicinal drugs, and an Ayurvedic treatise, Arogyamanjari. His other treatises are Kakshaputatantra, Yogasara and Yogasatak. Because of his profound scholarliness and versatile knowledge, he was also appointed as Chancellor of the famous University of Nalanda.

Darbha Grass or Kusha Grass is scientifically known as Desmostachya bipinnata, commonly known in English by the names Halfa grass, Big cordgrass, and Salt reed-grass, is an Old World perennial grass, long known and used in human history.

In Ayurveda, Darbha grass is also used as a medicine to treat dysentery and menorrhagia, and as used as a diuretic (to promote free flow of urine).
Since Vedic age, Darbha grass is treated as sacred plant and according to early Buddhist accounts, it was the material used by Buddha for his meditation seat when he attained enlightenment under Bodhi tree.
This grass was mentioned in the Rig Veda for use in sacred ceremonies and also to prepare a seat for priests and the gods.
Darbha or Kusha grass is specifically recommended by Lord Krishna in the Bhagavad Gita as part of the ideal seat for meditation.
It is believed to block energy generated during meditation from being dischared through our body (mostly through legs and toes) into ground.

Darbha grass ringIn recent medical research, Darbha or Kusha grass has been observed to block X-Ray radiation.
Darbha is used by hindus as mat, ring on right hand ring finger while chanting vedic mantras, performing homam and all religious rituals.
For ceremonies related to death only Single leafed Darbha is used; for Auspicious and daily routine a ring made of two leaves is used; for inauspicious but not death related functions, (like Amavasya Tharpanam, Pithru Pooja etc) a three leaf Dharbham ring (Pavitram) is used and for the prayers in a temple, a Four-leaf Darbha ring is used.
Darbha has the highest value in conducting the phonetic vibrations through its tip.
Priests in India dip this tip in water and sprinkle allover the house or temple to purify the place.
During Fire-ritual (Homa), darbha is placed on all four sides of fire to help block all negative radiations.
During eclipses, darbha are placed on vessels containing water and food, so that negative effect of rays from eclipse does not spoil them.

Darbha is not cultivated everywhere but it grows naturally in selective places and is available in northeast and west tropical, and northern Africa ; and countries in the Middle East, and temperate and tropical Asia

For religious purposes, it is not cut or plucked on everyday, but only on Krishna Paksha Padyami (Next day after FullMoon day).