Eight Ayurvedic Superfoods

By Nadia Marshall

This is a copy of Nadia’s Nutrition Column for Nova Magazine, published in July 2014

There is a lot of talk these days about “superfoods”. They’ve even found their way into a Masterchef mystery box! But what is a superfood anyway? According to Wikipedia it is a marketing term used to promote foods with health benefits that are usually high in nutrients and low in calories. Not particularly inspiring really… so I thought I might redefine the word from an Ayurvedic perspective. For a food to be “super” on my list, it needs to do two things:

1)  Promote ‘Sattva’ in the Mind

2) Directly nourish ‘Ojas’

These two terms probably don’t mean anything to you so let me explain…


What is Sattva?

A very important concept in Ayurveda is the understanding that our food has a direct effect on the quality of our minds. This is explained through the idea of the three Universal Qualities known as Sattva, Rajas and Tamas. 

Tamas is the quality of dullness and inertia. It is heavy and obstructive and when it becomes excessive in the mind, creates laziness, ignorance and depression. Rajas is the quality of agitation and activity. A mind predominant in Rajas is over stimulated and desirous, constantly seeking gratification outside itself. Any satisfaction it may find tends to be fleeting so the search continues…. eventually a Rajasic mind will exhaust itself and fall into a Tamasic heap. 

Sattva is the opposite of Tamas. It is the quality of clarity and stillness and is associated with peace, contentment, love, compassion and kindness. It is that elusive, sustained kind of happiness we are all looking for and, according to Ayurveda, can be cultivated skillfully, with ease.

Everything in the universe contains a predominance of one or more of these qualities, including our food. Drawing on the Ayurvedic law of LIKE INCREASES LIKE we can infuse our minds with greater clarity, peace and contentment by eating predominantly Sattvic food. Unprocessed, unrefined, seasonal wholefoods are generally more Sattvic but there are also specific foods that are super Sattvic! Simultaneously, we can decrease our level of over stimulation and agitation by avoiding excessively Rajasic substances (especially fast food, refined sugar, chilli, coffee and alcohol) and our propensity for dullness and depression by avoiding Tamasic substances (especially heavily refined and processed food, canned food and other drugs).

What is Ojas? 

Another very important concept in Ayurveda is the understanding of Ojas, the subtle essence of water in the body. There isn’t a direct Western translation for Ojas but Dr Robert Svoboda refers to it as “a pattern of secretions in the body” made up of various hormones, neurotransmitters and immune factors. The interplay between these factors relates to the function of Ojas described by Ayurveda.

Ojas is a subtle golden liquid said to have the color of ghee, the taste of honey and the smell of toasted rice. Although it is pervasive throughout the whole body/mind, it is found in greatest concentration in the heart and adrenal glands. In fact, Ayurveda teaches we have just eight drops of Ojas in our heart which sustain our life - when these run out, we die. 

Ojas is considered to be our potential source of strength, power and the foundation of our immune system, protecting us from both internal and external causes of disease. It also supports us mentally. Ojas is responsible for integrating our body/mind and is the source of our creativity, patience, faith and mental resilience. If we are prone to fatigue, regular illnesses and generally feel a lack of confidence in ourselves, it is simply a sign that our Ojas is depleted.

Ayurveda teaches that after eating a meal, the digested and assimilated nutrients from that meal go on to nourish each of our bodily tissues. After each of our tissues has been fed, the remaining (and most potent) nutrients go on to nourish Ojas. This process is enabled by a strong, balanced digestive fire (known as “Agni” in Sanskrit). So we look after our Ojas by looking after our Agni. In turn, strong Ojas helps to preserve and strengthen our Agni further. However, there are a handful of very special foods that actually nourish Ojas directly.

The Super Eight!

So the eight Ayurvedic superfoods I have chosen are genuinely super. They don’t just provide a low calorie, dense hit of nutrients; they actually help to promote strength, resilience, peace and contentment in the body/mind. And the best thing is, they are readily available to absolutely everyone! Here they are…

1) Ghee

Ghee is clarified butter, with all of the milk solids and buttermilk removed (so it is actually lactose-free and can be consumed by lactose intolerant folk). Unlike most of the other superfoods on this list, ghee is actually easy to digest and it, in addition to being Sattvic and nourishing to Ojas, has the special quality of enkindling Agni, according to Ayurveda.

2) Cow milk

Cows are considered sacred animals in India and cow milk is highly revered in Ayurveda as one of the most Sattvic of foods. Buy unhomogenised, organic or biodynamic milk and only consume it warm, preferably with spices like cinnamon, cardamom, cloves, black pepper or ginger to improve its digestibility and Ojas nourishing properties. If you have difficulty with cow’s milk don't worry, there are seven other superfoods on the list to choose from!

3) Basmati Rice

Basmati rice is Sattvic, nourishes Ojas and is also light and easy to digest so even if your Agni is weak, you should be able to digest it with ease. It is a long grain rice with a distinctive fragrance and delicate flavour... quick and easy to cook and absolutely delicious!

4) Dates

Dates are Sattvic and very nourishing to Ojas but are also quite rich, heavy and difficult to digest. Just because they are “super” doesn't mean you should eat them by the handful! Stick to two dates a day. Anything more and you may put a strain on your digestive fire.

5) Almonds

Almonds are also Sattvic and help to maintain our Ojas. But they are also quite rich and heavy so don't overdo them either. Two to four almonds a day is enough. To make them lighter and easier to digest, soak them in boiling water overnight, blanch them (remove their skins), then dry roast them. A great way to have your daily dose is as dry roasted slivers on top of porridge. Yummo!

6) Honey

Honey is super Sattvic and directly nourishes our own life-nectar, Ojas. The main thing to remember with honey is to choose the non heat-treated kind. Ayurveda teaches that when honey is heated to high temperatures its chemical composition is altered making it difficult to digest, with a tendency towards clogging the channels. So always purchase good quality honey that has undergone minimal processing and don't cook with it (adding a teaspoon to hot tea is fine). Honey is another rich food so again, moderation is key.

7) Ginger

Ginger is an amazing spice!! It is Sattvic and although it doesn't nourish Ojas directly, it promotes a strong, balanced digestive fire. If our Agni is balanced, our Ojas will be nourished as the end result of tissue metabolism. And eating ginger with all of the other foods on this list will make them easier to digest too!

8) Saffron

Our final superfood, Saffron, is one of the most revered of all exotic spices. It has a strong medicinal action on the blood, heart and reproductive system, is super Sattvic and also potentiates the action of any substance it is taken with, including the actions of the superfoods on this list! One to five strands per day is enough to impart its benefits and it is best eaten after soaking in warm milk.

Be careful not to boil Saffron as it contains precious volatile oils that will be lost and do not use if you are pregnant as it stimulates the flow of blood in the uterus.

So there you have it - my Ayurvedic Super Eight!

The good news is that all of these foods are also super delicious! But you may have noticed that many of them are quite rich, heavy and difficult to digest, which is another reason why it is so important to bring your attention to building a strong digestive fire - so you can digest and assimilate them properly.

If you are in any doubt about your health please be sure to consult an Ayurvedic Practitioner or your local health physician.

http://www.muditainstitute.com/articles/ayurvedicnutrition/eightayurvedicsuperfoods.html

Gluten-Free Diets: An Ayurvedic Review

Gluten is particularly difficult to digest and requires a strong stomach acid to process it. If not enough of this acid is produced or excreted due to a weak digestive fire, the gluten passes through to the small intestine, undigested. If eaten in excess, it can irritate the intestinal villi on the gut wall and affect our digestion and absorption .

http://www.muditainstitute.com/articles/ayurvedicnutrition/glutenfree.html

Salt is a natural antihistamine

Estuita Medical Inc. (Cardiovascular Chelation Center)

December 16, 2014 · 

Some Hidden Miracles of Sea Salt

Sea Salt and Table Salt

Sea salt is a broad term that generally refers to unrefined salt obtained directly from a sea or a living ocean. Sea salt is harvested through channelling ocean water into large clay trays which is then allowed for the sun and wind to evaporate it naturally. Sea salt is said to be healthier because the manufacturers typically do not refine it as much as other kinds of salt in the market, it contain 98.0% NaCl (sodium chloride) and traces of other minerals, including magnesium, potassium, iron, manganese, calcium, zinc and iodine.
Ordinary table salt which is the most widespread kind of salt found in the average kitchenhas been stripped of its minerals and is 99.9% NaCl (sodium-chloride). Sodium chloride is vital for optimum health but without the other valuable minerals and trace elements, it cannot be assimilated by the body, making it a poison to the system. The ordinary table salts also contain additives such as aluminium sislcate to keep it powdery and porous. Aluminum is a very toxic element in our nervous system and is said to beo one of the primary causes of Alzheimer’s disease (A progressive and fatal brain disease which destroys brain cells, causing problems with memory, thinking, and behaviour). Sea salt has a bright, pure and clean flavour and is considered to be as important as fresh pepper when it comes to preparing fine food because its mineral content gives it a different taste from table salt. The most common sources for sea salt in the world include the Mediterranean Sea, the Atlantic Ocean and the North Sea.

Healing Power of Sea Salt

Lack of salt can cripple one’s health. People have been taught since childhood that sault causes lots of health problems. There are also lots of books on salt-free cooking nowadays. It is important to note that the sea salt has great healing power.

· Sea salt helps to regulate the water content of the body preventing us from becoming dehydrated.
· Salt is strong anti stress constituent for the body.
· Salt is essential for the kidneys to clear excess acidity and to pass the acidity into the urine. Without sufficient salt, the body will become very acidic leading to complications like bone loss and joint pain. This is because when the body is highly acidic, it will do whatever it takes to return itself to a healthier pH balance. It then tends to steal the calcium, potassium, sodium, and magnesium it needs from the bones in order to buffer the tissue acids and they are systematically eaten away leading to bone loss and joint pains.
· Salt is vital in the prevention of excess saliva production to the point that it flows out of the mouth during sleep. Excess saliva, is an indication of salt shortage in one’s body. When the body is lacking in salt, which means it’s also short of water, the salivary glands sense the salt shortage and are obliged to produce more saliva to lubricate the act of chewing and swallowing and also to supply the stomach with water that is needed for breaking down foods.
· Osteoporosis (A disease in which bones become fragile and more likely to break) is partly as a result of salt and water shortage in the body. Studies have also shown that women are four times more likely than men to develop the disease especially after menopause.
· A salt-free diet lease to loss of libido and sexual ability (impotence and frigidity).
· Salt is necessary for the prevention of varicose and spider veins on the legs and thighs.
· Salt helps the liver and kidneys and adrenal glands to function efficiently.
· Studies have shown that, lack of bladder control in those who suffer from involuntary leakage of urine could be a consequence of low salt intake.
· Studies have also shown that salt is helpful in the regulation of blood pressures in combination of water. This is contrary to the belief that it causes high blood pressure. Instead, a low salt diet with high water intake will actually cause blood pressure to rise in some people. This is because if we drink water and do not take salt, the water will not stay in the blood vessels. One or two glasses of water and a little salt on the tongue will rapidly and efficiently stabilize irregular heartbeats and in the long run, will reduce blood pressure.
· Salt is very important for regular sleep. It is a natural hypnotic. If you drink a full glass of water then put a few grains of sea salt on your tongue and let it stay there, you will fall into a natural, deep sleep. Don’t use salts on your tongue without drinking water for repeated use of salt alone might cause nosebleeds.
· Salt is a natural antihistamine that can be used to relieve asthma by putting it on the tongue after drinking a glass or two of water. Too many bananas and too many orange juice or any sport drink which contain too much potassium might precipitate in asthma attack, especially if too much of it is being consumed before exercising. To prevent such attacks, some salt intake before exercise will increase the lungs capacity for air exchange.
· Salt is vital for extracting excess acidity from inside the cells, particularly the brain cells. If you don’t want Alzheimer’s disease (a progressive and fatal brain disease which destroys brain cells, causing problems with memory, thinking, and behaviour) don’t go salt free.
· Salt a vitally needed component in the treatment of diabetes. It helps balance the sugar levels in the blood thus decreasing the need for insulin to regulate blood sugar levels. Water and salt help to reduce the level of secondary harm associated with diabetes.
· Salt on the tongue will stop continual dry coughs.
· Salt helps to flush mucus and sinus congestion.
· Salt is vital for the prevention of muscle cramps.
Medical evidence have shown that natural sea salt is a health replacement for ordinary table salt and salt—free diet will not help us live longer. It is important to note that there is a large variety of sea salt; some are a bit grey or pink. Sea salt is much more expensive compared to other salts like the ordinary table salt but your body will thank you for it.

ESTUITA MEDICAL INC.
"the adult heart, hypertension, diabetes & stroke clinic
that treats on the molecular & cellular level."

Location: Unit 105 Taft Office Centre Condominium, 1986 Taft Avenue, near Buendia LRT station, Pasay City, Philippines

https://www.facebook.com/estuitachelationcenter/posts/some-hidden-miracles-of-sea-saltsea-salt-and-table-saltsea-salt-is-a-broad-term-/824538397605822/

J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2010 Oct-Dec; 1(4): 241–242.

doi: 10.4103/0975-9476.74421

PMCID: PMC3117313

PMID: 21731368

A traditional way of rice preparation with particular benefits for Arthritis and musculo-skeletal disorders

Muralidhar Kontum

Author information Copyright and License information Disclaimer

This article has been cited by other articles in PMC.

Sir,

The review paper by Chopra in J-AIM[1] concerning Ayurveda drugs for Arthritis is clearly of great value to those who have contracted the disease, but in order to be considered full Ayurveda treatments, such drugs need to be combined with diet and lifestyle recommendations appropriate to the patient. In this sense the studies concerned are not really about Ayurveda as practiced, but about a bowdlerized Ayurveda seen from the biomedical perspective, with its treatments implemented and evaluated strictly as a substitution for western medicine. This constitutes a sad failure to acknowledge Ayurveda’s unique features which promise to give it a highly valued place in medicine globally.

Diet and lifestyle components of Ayurveda are fundamental, and, as is well known, Ayurveda states that even the administration of the correct medicine to cure a complaint may not be of lasting value unless the lifestyle and diet of the patient are attended to. Most chronic illnesses or degenerative diseasees like arthritis result from persistent stresses placed on the system by personal habits which, in the long term, build into unacceptable strain on regulatory function. Over the years, such strain drives the system to breaking point, and pathology results.

Ayurveda is clear that diet and lifestyle have to be attended to. Without such action, say its texts, disease will inevitably return. To implement this, the vaidya plays the role of ‘doctor’ in the true sense of the word’s Latin root, ‘docere’, meaning ‘to teach’. Ayurveda traditional treatments incorporate components of instruction in remedial diet and so on, to help bring the patient’s regulatory system back to whatever state of relative equilibrium can still be regained after years of misuse. If the patient’s system is strong, however, such remedial instruction can often be of actual curative value.

Knowledge of good dietary practices was deeply embedded in India’s traditional culture. Earlier generations often observed age-old procedures for doing particular things for reasons they did not fully understand, but did out of habit from the example of their elders. Skeptical younger generations did not always continue to conform to tradition, and so the knowledge has slowly been lost.

In the case of arthritis, there is a method of cooking rice which appears to be very effective in helping musculoskeletal conditions. The method removes extra starch, increases vitamin content, and generally improves nutritional value, in such a way that arthritic conditions and several other classes of pathology seem to benefit considerably.

The method of preparation is simple and straightforward. First cook your rice with enough excess water, so that when water remaining after cooking is drained off, any excess starch is removed with it. Instead of throwing this valuable starch solution down the drain, it is used constructively: half is offered to animals and plants, while the other half is inoculated with buttermilk and a pinch of fenugreek seeds - apparently because the strain of yeast that grows on fenugreek seeds is of particular value - and fermented overnight. The following day it is added to the pot in which the day’s rice is being cooked.

The value of this procedure is easy to understand. Firstly, the most soluble carbohydrates are removed from the rice, so sugar loading is decreased. Early stages of digestion of ingested material may be expected to cause less impact on blood glucose levels. Secondly, decrease in the food’s Kapha content as a result of reduction of easily available carbohydrates decreases tendencies to constipation, and improves elimination. Finally, the food’s added microbial content from the lactobacillus and yeast considerably increases its nutritional value.

This single procedure therefore has health promoting and preventative value for many conditions. Decrease in sugar loading will reduce tendencies to obesity, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and type 2 Diabetes. The reduction in Kapha and constipation will tend to improve long term colon health, and all conditions involving ama, and amavata, such as the various forms of arthritis. Improved vitamin content from the lactobacillus and yeast (killed by the cooking) will help all conditions. I have extensive anecdotal evidence for all these kinds of benefit from adopting the procedure.

My grandmother never failed to use the above procedure when cooking the day’s rice, and our family enjoyed excellent health, but neither she nor the next generation understood the basis for its benefits. When she died, it ceased. Some years ago, seeking ways to improve health, I remembered her procedure, so I then adopted it, and have found it beneficial.

I recently recommended it to an elderly female friend, who had become bedridden from arthritis. Within two weeks of adopting it she was on her feet and able to do housework again. I then told two vaidyas about it, and after the wife had lost four pounds in ten days, they were sufficiently impressed to print a small pamphlet and distribute it among their patients. They received many reports of freedom from constipation, and feelings of lightness in the body that had developed over a similar time period.

The same vaidyas said that they did not know of reference for this procedure in Ayurveda’s literature, but this does not make it less Ayurvedic. Ayurveda’s knowledge of life and how to improve life-span has been recorded, and ‘codified’, by those who observed benefits received by their fellow human-beings from whatever cause. Today’s Charaka Samhita is a compilation of such observations over many millennia, now amplified by all later Nighantus.

This kind of procedure is a free way to improve health. It could be easily taught by doctor-vaidyas everywhere. Precise assessment of its benefits as a preventive measure would be of interest to evidence-based medicine; so would its therapeutic applications. In his summary of his work to the World Ayurveda Congress*, Dr Chopra mentioned that he would like to see Ayurveda’s holistic treatments assessed, not simply their phytomedicines used as substitutes for biomedical drugs. Might he and his colleagues not consider also evaluating the benefits which the above procedure may bring to his patients, and eventually those in some future arthritis study? Then he will be one step closer to evaluating Ayurveda as actually practiced.

Go to:

REFERENCES

1. Chopra A, Saluja M, Tillu G. Ayurveda - Modern medicine interface: A critical appraisal of studies of Ayurvedic medicines to treat osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. J Ayur Integr Med. 2010;1:190–8.[PMC free article] [PubMed]

Are pickles healthy?

Frederick Poor

Frederick Poor
Answered Nov 25, 2016
Originally Answered: Are pickles healthy?
The health benefits of pickles include a good supply of essential vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, contributes to modest diabetes control, improved digestion, liver protection, a supply of probiotics, and the ability to heal ulcers.

Pickles And Pickling Process

Pickling is one of the oldest methods of food preservation. Before the invention of modern refrigeration, pickling was the only way to preserve various foods for future consumption. Generally, pickling began as a method to preserve foods that are either exotic or seasonal and limited by nature and cultivation.

The process of pickling can be generally traced back to India, as it is believed to have originated about 4,000 to 5,000 years ago. With hot summers and a lack of water during summers, food production decreases during the summer. Thus, there is a need to preserve excess food produced during winters and hence, the process of pickling was invented to overcome this problem.

The traditional way of preparing long-lasting pickles in the Oriental style uses ingredients such as salt, oil, and dry chilli powder mixed with condiments. These ingredients are added according to set proportions. The proportions are meant to cancel out the other’s effect on taste.

Indian Pickles

In India, unripe fruits such as mangoes, Indian gooseberry, unripe tamarinds, and lemons are traditionally used. Apart from these, various vegetables such as gherkin, bitter gourd, carrots, cauliflower, ginger garlic, onion, jackfruit, and citron are also pickled. In most cases, only one vegetable or unripe fruit is used for pickling. But occasionally, a mix of two or more vegetables or unripe fruits were also made. Generally, pickles made from vegetables and unripe fruits are prepared with the utmost care so that they cannot spoil and be preserved all year long. Non-vegetarian pickles are also popular. These pickles are made from chicken, fish, prawns, and mutton.

Chinese Pickles

In Asian countries such as China, pickles are very popular and have also been prepared for thousands of years. Chinese pickles include vegetables such as cabbage, lettuce, yellow tea melon, cucumber, carrots, and shallots. These and other vegetables are added with sugar and salt and put in vinegar. Apart from vegetables, eggs (particularly duck eggs) are stored by applying salt, earth, hay and other ingredients and sealed to mature for about one month. Some pickling processes include soy sauce for fermentation instead of vinegar and in other varieties, condiments such as ginger, garlic, chilli, or peppercorns are also added for a hot and characteristic flavour.

Korean Pickles

In Korea, Kimchi is a common pickled product that is made with fermented spicy cabbage and it also includes a wide variety of vegetables including soy beans, fish, oysters and many different ingredients are used. Korean pickling process owes its origins to Chinese, but unlike the common Chinese cabbage pickles, the Korean pickling process has its own variations according to the local flavour and available ingredients. Korean pickling processes usually involve two types, one in which the ingredients along with spicy chilli pastes are fermented, while the other involves milder varieties pickled in water.

https://www.quora.com/Are-pickles-healthy-for-you

Pickles and other such fermented foods should be taken only in condiment size, never in excess

Fermented Foods and Ayurveda

by John Douillard on September 7, 2013 | 9 Comments

A common misconception is that, in Ayurveda, fermented foods like alcohol, cheese and pickled veggies are considered tamasic, or dulling to the mind, and should be avoided.

However, in India, as well as in Ayurvedic cooking, you will commonly find a cheese called paneer. While paneer is not fermented for days like traditional cheeses, adding lemon to milk, as is done to make paneer, initiates the process of lacto-fermentation.

Ayurveda recommends drinking lassi—a drink made of yogurt and water or buttermilk—at each meal to help aid digestion. Veggies and fruits are fermented into chutneys, rice and beans into dosas and idlis, and fermented wines, called Arishthas and Asavas, have been enjoyed for thousands of years.

Whether you age cheese or vegetables for months, or quickly whip up homemade yogurt, the underlying process, called lacto-fermentation, is the same. And, as it turns out, it is as much a part of the Ayurvedic culture as it was in Northern Europe.

Where does this dogma come from?

It could be that the climate in India is warm year-round, so there is no need to preserve fruits and veggies to preserve foods for the cold season. Fermenting food for months, according to Ayurveda, will render the food overly heating and dulling, and was unnecessary.

This effect, however, only happens when fermented foods are taken in excess, which is never recommended, even by Western advocates of fermented foods. Sally Fallon, who is perhaps the leading authority on Northern European fermented foods, recommends them only in small quantities, as condiment-size.

Fermented or cultured foods traditionally provided a healthy culture to inoculate the intestinal tract. In Ayurveda, this was already accomplished by ingesting lacto-fermented dairy.

Pitta Aggravation

Ayurveda says that fermented or cultured foods are heating or pitta-aggravating and, in excess, may cause overheating and/or inflammation. This makes sense for Northern European cultures who needed the heat to survive long winters, but can be a real cause of imbalance in a hot climate, like parts of India.

However, even in the summer, in small amounts, fermented foods can boost digestive strength – which is why lassi was always taken with the meal.

As long as a meal is primarily sattvic (energy-boosting and enlivening), a touch of fermented food as a condiment will typically only be beneficial.

Remember, nature requires a balance of mostly sattva, rajas and tamas. So it is unnatural to alienate oneself totally from rajas and tamas. While these are only needed in small portions, they are a natural part of balanced life.

It is always important to remember that Ayurveda is the science of life. If we look deeply enough, we will find the answers in the wisdom and logic of nature.

Comments

Kim says

September 11, 2015 at 10:24 am

Thank you so much for this! I kind of figured that was the answer, but was looking for someone with authority on the subject. I’ve started my whole body health journey and the Ayurvedic way seemed to be the most logical way to go, until I became confused about the fermentation issue because I’ve also done research on Sally Fallon and Weston A. Price. Thank you again.

https://lifespa.com/fermented-foods-and-ayurveda/

Another article on the same subject - https://easyayurveda.com/2017/02/21/avoid-pickles-food/

Do all successful people wake up at 4 am? Well, our Ayurveda taught this long ago

VARIETY

 |  4-minute read |   21-12-2018

POULOMI GHOSH

 @pghosh006

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No, we Indians didn’t invent aeroplanes before the Wright brothers. But at least, we knew for the longest time that 4am is the ideal time to wake up.

Social media has suddenly woken up to an old article which claimed that most of the successful persons of the world wake up at 4am. Most of the CEOs, including Apple’s Tim Cook, have revealed their key to success, and it seems, there has been only one key: waking up at and around 4am.

Not everyone has to attend calls from countries belonging to other time zones; they wake up so early to plan their day, to have some quiet time with themselves, etc.

The idea, as social media does to everything, was trashed. And how? Majestically. JK Rowling came forward to rubbish such 'success myths' by saying three magical words — Oh, Piss off.

J.K. Rowling

✔@jk_rowling

Oh, piss off.

Inc.

✔@Inc

The world's most successful people start their day at 4 a.m. http://on.inc.com/vvbCaaD 

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Many remembered Oscar Wilde’s famous quote:

Only dull people are brilliant at breakfast.

The definition of 'success' was questioned, contested, ripped apart, ferociously.

On the other hand, people who have to wake up early in the morning for professional reasons complained that despite being such early risers, they are yet to taste success!

Well, all those who go to sleep at 4 am are now happy and joyous.

But it’s a pity that the Westerners found this pearl of wisdom so late.

Dear Westerners, look East and everything will be sunnier.

Wake up before sunrise to lead a happy day. (Photo: Reuters)

According to our Ayurveda, the ideal time to wake up is before 45 minutes of sunrise, which is also known as the Brahma muhurta. A great shift of energy takes place at that time. This is the ideal time for attaining Brahm gyan. Of course, if you don’t open your eyes to the screen of your mobile phone. Ayurveda tells you to do some meditation, exercise and prayers instead.

Well, we are not that ambitious.

Plan your day accordingly. (Photo: Twitter)

But, as it seems, the claim of the successful people can’t just be junked. They must have read a page or two from our Ayurveda, which tells us that there is a reason why newborns wake up and start crying at the crack of dawn, because all our bodies are attuned to that natural clock, dictated by nature — waking up at sunrise, going to bed at dusk. (Not possible at all).

As we grow up, we eventually wrest this control from nature and pass it on to board examinations, projects, assignments, Netflix and chill, cups of coffee, social media, long phone calls, etc. So, we are actually going against our natural clock — and that’s why we are suffering from many “avoidable ailments”.

Pitta hour: Where is our productivity going? Well, here! (Photo: Reuters)

Explaining a little more in a simple way — Ayurveda tells us about three doshas, which are biological energies found in our body and mind: Vata (space and air), Pitta (fire and water) and Kapha (water and earth). A day is divided among these three doshas. 

Early morning (not by your definition, but by Ayurveda, which is 4 am to 5.30 am) is dominated by Vata, which governs body movement, flexibility, mental activities, etc. So, if you wake up at that time, you will get these advantages. Again, waking up does not mean opening your eyes and going through social media feeds. In this extraordinary case, waking up means getting out of bed and doing something — if not running like Usain Bolt, at least performing some household chores.

The Kapha dosha starts from 6 am — this dosha is marked by its heaviness. So, if you wake up after 6 am, Ayurveda tells that you are bound to feel heavy and slow throughout the day. 

Then comes the Pitta dosha, marked by productivity. No wonder we feel so productive between 10 pm to 2 am, and watch all our series episodes at one go — while we must be active between 10 am and 2 pm, when we basically sulk at traffic and then at office.

The Pitta time at night is also for productive activities, but not externally, says Ayurveda. Instead, internal activities should take place then.

All this unsolicited knowledge must spoil your weekend.

Go to bed early today.

https://www.dailyo.in/variety/the-best-time-to-wake-up-according-to-our-ancient-ayurveda/story/1/28463.html?curator=alphaideas&utm_source=alphaideas