Ayurveda on Orcas | In midst of seasonal change, healthy diet, lifestyle = balance

||| FROM JULE ERON, WOWFarmOrcas.com |||

Ayurveda teaches that everything, humans included, is composed of the five great elements: earth, water, fire, air and ether. Our unique combination of elements, our constitution, established at conception, cannot be altered, but can be thrown out of balance by outside influences.

The cells, tissues and organs of the body are comprised of three doshas with the following characteristics:

• Vata = air + ether = dry, rough, light, cold, mobile, subtle
• Pitta = fire + water = oily, sharp, hot, light, liquid
• Kapha = water + earth = oily, cold, heavy, dull, sticky, static

Imbalance of doshas is the cause of disease. The secret to wellness is to diligently adjust our inputs – food, water, breath and perceptions – to counteract changes outside of our influence. Balance can be achieved through healthy diet and lifestyle. Ayurveda promotes prevention. Prevention is attained by creating and maintaining balance.

We are in the midst of seasonal change. Mother Nature is rapidly transitioning from sunny, warm, dry summer to dark, wet, windy fall. The change of season brings a transformation in the elements of nature. This environmental change
greatly influences our own composition.

My teacher professes the ancient Sanskrit texts, upon which Ayurveda is based, are a user manual for the human body. Within these five thousand plus year old readings is guidance for the change of season called ritucharya.. The direct
translation from Sanskrit is ritu = season charya = routine. Agni, our digestive fire, is weakened by the heat of summer. Rainy season further debilitates agni by bringing frequent water filled clouds. Cold, misty winds aggravate
vata. In order not to be thrown out of balance by the exterior change in elements, we must change our routine. By following the simple concept – like increases like and opposites balance – homeostasis can be achieved.

Ritucharya first begins with cleansing to mitigate imbalances from the previous season. Fasting tailored to one’s constitution, complete absence of food for kapha, juice fast for pitta, or a mono-diet for vata, gives the body a chance to rest and restore before transitioning into a new diet and lifestyle for autumn. Clean diet (elimination of sugar, alcohol, caffeine, chocolate, processed foods and animal products) along with massage and hot therapies like steam and sauna help to remove toxins from the system.

Once the body has been reset, a new diet and regimen are adopted to offset the exterior elements. Cold, wet and windy, can be counterbalanced with warm, dry and steady.

Diet: Avoid foods that are cold, frozen, raw or hard. Think hot bone broths, healing herbal brews with honey, grounding local winter squash and root vegetables roasted with warming spices (ginger, clove, cinnamon, cardamom, basil, pepper,
cumin, coriander, garlic, ginger, oregano, mustard, rosemary, thyme, etc.), as well as spiced up chili, soups and stews.

Lifestyle: Raging hearth fires, heating baths/saunas, invigorating massages, layered warm woolen clothing, bundled walks in the forest, regular exercise routine, and time for grounding meditation, pranayama or asana.

As we enter this period of ritucharya, we must change in step with Mother Nature. As days grow shorter and darker, our light must be generated from within. Rather than waste energy trying to manipulate forces outside of our control, instead apply it to self-care. The more wellness each of us creates within, the more the community is lifted as a whole.