The article below is a piece that I wrote with Dru Australia. My very first article with them.
In this e-article, we bring you an inspiring treat: we are joined by Shweta Bajee, who shares with us some of her practical Ayurvedic wisdom. Shweta, a personal life coach, is in the final stages of completing our Dru Ayurveda Health Coach diploma course—remotely, from Mauritius! She will soon be a qualified Dru Ayurveda Health Coach.
I am new to this world of healing, but would like to share my journey with anyone that has the curiosity to learn more.
Since a young age, I've always disliked the typical western medicines, and refused to take them unless absolutely necessary. Don't get me wrong, I am still thankful for western medicine and the advances made in this field (I am still alive today because of a life-saving intervention to remove my appendix, so yeah kinda thankful :P). Still, Ayurveda met me at a time where life challenges were becoming overwhelming for my vessel on this Earth, aka my physical body.
Ayurveda helped deepen my spirituality as I got further proof, from a 6,000 year old wisdom, that my body was merely showing me physical evidence of deeply-rooted spiritual ailments that my soul had been trying to reveal. While Ayurveda and yoga are becoming trendy, I believe it is all about listening to your intuition and deeply understanding what your soul, mind and body are telling you. ‘How do we know when to trust our body inner wisdom?’ I hear you say. The easy (but complex) answer is that we can only know when we are personally in balance in our body. Ayurveda states that ‘opposites balance’ and ‘like attracts like’, especially when we are out of balance. For example, when we have feelings of sadness, most of us tend to look for comfort in fried and oily foods. That’s one example of how like attracts like. In this particular case, Ayurveda would recommend to go out for a walk or have a simple, warm soup to alleviate the feelings of sadness.
In numerology, 2023 is a 7-year (2+0+2+3), where 7 means balance. Hence this year, even if you can’t get everything right all the time (which will happen) or you mess up sometimes (which, again, will happen), strive to seek balance. Through balance, you are getting ready for a commitment to yourself, to your soul, mind and body. And, through balance, you will be able to listen to your inner body wisdom / intuition / gut feeling.
For many (including myself), the past few years have been unstable and inconsistent. This is why I would like to start this year by sharing some simple Ayurvedic wisdom to help you on your journey, hoping it helps you as much as it helped me:
Ginger tea
This famous herb that we all have in our kitchen and that we use so often, has precious qualities that help to rebalance all 3 doshas (vata, pitta and kapha). Root ginger is referred to as tri-doshic for this reason. It helps our bodies to stimulate our agni (digestive fire) and to cleanse ama (toxins). It heats and burns the ama in your body, while the lemon/lime helps to wash the ama away. Make yourself and your family a big jug with 1 inch of ginger in 1 liter of hot water. Add 1–2 drops of lemon or lime juice and an optional teaspoon of honey to your cup before you sip on this wonderful concoction.
Be present in the moment
Take time to smell the roses and pay attention to beautiful trees, flowers, buzzing bees, chirping birds. Let’s be present enough to enjoy the beauty that Mother Earth gave us freely. Take the time to connect to all your senses when you are out and about. Even better, take your cup of ginger tea, sit in your garden or your favorite park and be in the moment. Breathe in and breathe out.
A breath of calm
Speaking of breath, what calms your breath and brings a smile to your face? Come on, I can’t keep telling you what to do—what truly brings you joy? Is it painting? Is it playing with your kids or grandkids? Is it a good book? Is it a hug? Is it the beach? Is it a good walk on a beautiful trail? Is it a kiss? Find the beauty in the small moments, as joy and calmness are the true wealth. Try to do more of it this year.
Move your body
I swear, I am not trying to sound trendy: Move your body! Vata is the dosha that governs all movement. Without movement in our body, the breath/prana, our digestion (digestion, absorption and assimilation of food), our blood supply and so much more, would not function properly. Find a physical activity that you enjoy: a walk, yoga, a jog, badminton, tennis, dancing etc... Do something you enjoy and be mindful of how you feel afterwards. Let us know what you did, how you felt before and after in the comment section.
Aligning mealtimes with the sun's daily cycle
Before leaving you, I'd like to share the first thing I implemented years ago at the start of my Ayurvedic journey. Most of us have been told that breakfast is the most important meal of the day, so we eat large, filling breakfasts. Ayurveda reminds us that a light breakfast is favourable, while lunchtime is the best time for a heavier main meal, not dinner). In the mornings, it's wise to introduce food gently back into our system. It is called break-fast for a reason—it truly is breaking a fast from our last meal the day before. Also start the day by hydrating from the night with a glass of boiled warm water with a few drops of lemon or lime and optional honey. The juice and honey will stimulate the agni and prepare your digestive system to start digesting foods and liquids.
Meals, according to Ayurveda, are best consumed in alignment with the daily the cycle of the sun. The sun is at its hottest and strongest around noon, and this is directly correlated with the heat of our digestive fire, which is also strongest around noon. The sun is at its weakest during sunset, and similarly, so is our digestive fire. This is why Ayurveda recommends having lighter evening meals. Planning my meals according to the sun cycle has been extremely helpful. The difference in my digestion has been truly incredible.
I genuinely hope that these simple tips that helped me can help you bring balance in your healing journey and your sattvic life.
In gratitude,
Shweta, February 2023
If you’d like to step into a practical experience of Ayurveda and learn more about stimulating your digestive fire, burning toxins and discovering more lifestyle practices that align with nature, then join us on our Dru Autumn equinox cleanse. Introductory evening workshops: 12 & 13 March, runs 20–26th March.
We look forward to supporting you as you explore the power of Ayurveda to keep you healthy, happy, balanced and fulfilled.
In light
Mouli and Greg
P.S For all my Northern hemisphere people, Dru UK runs the same cleanse as a Spring cleanse. Or you can always join the Australian one or join the UK Autumn Cleanse later this year.
Link to UK Spring cleanse from Mon 27 Feb to 3 March: https://druyoga.com/uk/events/ayurvedic-detox-retreat-apr-2023
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