Category Archives: Health and Health Care
Chronic Fatigue
Chronic fatigue is not due to overwork — we do not work nearly so hard as our ancestors did — but rather due to a scattering of our forces.
Ours is not a “focused” age. Countless influences pull us in conflicting directions. We find ourselves trying to do a hundred things hastily, rather than one thing at a time carefully and well.
We measure achievement by numbers rather than by excellence. A result is the exhaustion one finds written on the faces of so many in our bustling cities, where strangers pass one another with never a smile or even a glance of greeting.
Fatigue is also a direct result of a loss of interest. Our energy supply depends not primarily upon food and other external causes, but our capacity for smiles, for enthusiasm. People lead “one-horsepower lives” when they forget how to smile, when they over-complicate their daily routine, and clutter their minds with the debris of useless desires and preoccupations.
The person who can simplify his life and marshal his energies to do a few things well, instead of scattering his forces restlessly, will find that he has more than enough strength for whatever he has to do.
Be willing in everything you do, for willingness begets energy. My guru Paramhansa Yogananda used to say, “The greater the will, the greater the flow of energy.” Read the rest of this entry
Why your weight stays ?
You’ve been living on the treadmill and eating organic lettuce, but it doesn’t show on the scale. Check if you are making one of these mistakes
It’s been almost two months since your New Year resolution to lose weight was set in motion. While you are hitting the gym, running the extra mile and keeping a check on your food intake, those pesky kilos have just refuse to leave your body. If you still wear a swimsuit with a towel around you, or can’t slip into the one-size-smaller skinny jeans you bought in hope, our experts give you a few reasons why those pounds aren’t dropping yet.
Inadequate fat in diet
Recognizing which fat is good for your body is one of the most important aspects of weight loss. Nutritionist Rujuta Diwekar says, “While on a diet, most people cut out on fat. What’s worse is that they keep gobbling ‘diet biscuits’ which are rich in trans fatty acid — the bad fats — while cutting down ghee, white butter and paneer, all of which provide the body with the essential fatty acids. These fats are required for mobilizing fatty acids from the stubborn fat areas of the body.” Read the rest of this entry
Drugs & Medicines
Dear Health Seeker,
Welcome! Please spend a minute reading the following – it is worth your while!
You may have been consuming drugs for health – but getting sickly more and more? Did you ever think why? Drugs don’t cure! Do you know that? They only relieve or control..! Medicines alone help cure! Actually Body & Mind can completely cure themselves with the right kind of help. Do you know the actual difference between a drug and a medicine? Contrary to the normal belief that they are synonyms (same) – they are actually antonyms (opposite). Drugs take away control of your body & mind from You! Medicines reverse this and restore the control back to You!
Let me elaborately clarify here how it is so …
Drug:
A drug is a chemical substance that takes control of your body or mind depending on its own inherent nature. For example – when you take a sleeping pill, it puts you to sleep no matter how much you want to be awake! It rules over your body & mind. You can repeat this exercise many times – and you will experience the same every time.
It does not stop there! Subsequently when you want to sleep, it will make your body ask for the pill again. As you start yielding to its demand, it will keep asking progressively for more and more pills for the same amount of sleep while reducing the quality of sleep! You will finally end up in a state that – unless you have many pills each time – you simply cannot have even normal sleep – which is so natural to all living creatures. By now you have become totally a slave to that pill. Pill is the lord & master! This state is called drug dependence. Your life will not be under your control – but the drug. Read the rest of this entry
The Correct Understanding of Beauty
| In a time when beauty is often equated, in many cultures, with a “fair” complexion or a fashionably thin figure or the shape of the nose, it is interesting to look back to a time when beauty was defined in holistic terms, and that beauty was within every woman’s reach.
Right thinking, clear speech, regulated and refined body-language are all essential parts of true beauty. Ayurveda, the most ancient healing system of India, has a unique perspective on beauty. Holistic, all-encompassing, the Ayurvedic definition of beauty reads thus – Roopam, Gunam, Vayastyag – iti – Shubhanga Soundarya Kaaranam. According to Ayurveda, there are 3-foundations of beauty. Roopam is outer beauty – personified by shining healthy hair and a clear radiant complexion with sparkling Eyes. Gunam refers to inner beauty – the beauty that shines from within, characterized by a warm pleasing personality and innocence of mind and heart. Vayastyag means lasting beauty – looking, and feeling younger than your chronological age.” Thus, Ayurveda does not focus only on cosmetics to achieve the state of true beauty. Roopam does not specify a type of figure or the color of the skin or the length or style of the hair. Outer beauty, according to Ayurveda, is a reflection of good health – Mental & Physical. The frame of the body is what you are born with. Each type of body structure can be beautiful as long as good health exists. “You are what you eat.” Ayurveda takes this notion very seriously. In fact it goes a step further to say “You are what you digest and assimilate.” A radiant clear complexion begins with proper nutrition, efficient digestion and assimilation of nutrients by the body and regular elimination of toxins. Yadha Bhojanam, Thadha Vyakthithwam – says Ayurveda – meaning “The way you eat is the way you become! There are simple Ayurvedic principles you can follow. Some of Ayurvedic tips MSR Ayyangar (Inventor of VedaCeuticals) strongly recommends for life are …….
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PranayAmam & its significance
Human activities cover a very wide range .It includes not only physical activities but also intellectual activities. For this wide range of activities of a human , only one raw material input is the food we take. The human body has to function as an individual complex , to convert this input into various requirements of the body to meet the needs of the different activities. In any Industrial plant , it is well known that for conversion of raw materials to end products , the plant has to be provided with energy .This is done through electricity in most plants.In the case of human body , how is this energy provided ??
The Vedic references mention about ‘Prana’ , as the source of energy for the activities of the human body.This is available everywhere in the universe. According to vedic tenets ‘Prana’ enters the body and divides itself into five forms to cover different zones and also assumes different names .’Prana’ is the prime source of energy and enters the body through respiration. The life energy or ‘Prana’ distributing itself all over the body is known as ‘Vyana’. The energy regulating excretory organs is known as ‘Apana’. The life energy catering for the neck region is known as ‘Udana’ The life energy covering nAbhi (navel) region to support digestion etc is known as ‘Samana’.These are known as ‘Pancha Pranas’ or five life energies . It is customary practice to make offerings to ‘Pancha Pranas’ before taking food .Thus respiratory system is a source of energy supply to the body .This apart, Vedic references mention also ‘ Chakras’ in our body as another source of supply. Of these , the respiratory source is considered very important and measures for respiratory control developed .The pranic energy referred to here is not of one particular type but a mixture of several types.They serve not only as source of energy but also provide faculties such as speech, hearing etc. They also influence personality. Vedic philosophies discuss this aspect .
Realising the importance of pranic energy, efforts were also made for their intake as a part of our living. Sages such as Manu, Yagnavalkya, ParAsara, Gautama and others in their ‘Smritis’ have given the art of living ( Dharma Shastra ) based on their experience .Their one objective was to enhance the nobility and respectability of humans and establish an ideal human society. Out of a rock lying uncared for and treaded by one and all, if an artisan carves an idol of God, it becomes worthy of worship. In the same manner, a human birth alone cannot reach a level of respect Some processing is necessary. This is called ‘SamskAras’ and are made integral part of living .These ‘SamskAras’ enable the individual to acquire various qualities through absorption of appropriate pranic energy.
Our predecessors realized that respiration held the key to health and personality of humans. Thus respiratory control or ‘PranayAmam’ was evolved. This view of the Indian sages was not acceptable to Scientists and the Western world. Hence, these remained as mere rituals. Around 1960, some studies of the brain and the Kirlian photography brought about a revolution. The approach of our sages received recognition. Since then lot of progress has been made.
This is also used in all Vedic rituals. Our sages have given a format for ‘PranayAmam’ .This format is discussed in the light of research of human body through Kirlian photography, brain studies etc. It will be seen from these discussions, that the format for ‘PranayAmam’ given by our sages is indeed unique and helps a great deal in preserving our physical health and also develop our personality
MSR Ayyangar's Blog 