Yoga & Ayurveda are sister sciences and are collectively considered to be complimentary healing disciplines of India. Even though each modality has its specific approach to body-mind health, both overlap in their healing approach at various levels. While the purpose of both Yoga & Ayurveda is the same, Yoga is more a Vedic system of sadhana for self-realization while Ayurveda is the Vedic system that sets the universal rules of right living, self-healing & medication. When the two come together your life becomes a sadhana or practicing living right on a daily basis.
What is Ayurvedic Yoga?
Ayurvedic Yoga reflects a Vedic approach to living right by supporting body & mind with Yoga & Ayurveda practices. Both disciplines teach us to align ourselves with the higher universal energies as the root level solution for body-mind health. Ayurveda helps implement the Yogic approach by classifying body & mind as different individual constitutional types, focussing on the fact that each person is different from energetic standpoint. Ayurveda offers an approach to classify a person the scale of specific body energy type (Vata, Pitta or Kapha), & specific mind type (rajas, tamas & sattva). With that understanding, the approach to practicing Yoga becomes more ‘individual constitution’ oriented to bring about harmony in physical and psychological state of a person. Thus, Ayurvedic Yoga focusses on the fact that just as you must eat right for balancing the body & mind tendencies, similarly, you must practice yoga which is right for your individual constitution type.
Why Practice Ayurvedic Yoga?
Yogasanas designed according to individual Ayurvedic constitution help achieve inner balance, taking body into a state of homeostasis. As per the Ayurvedic Yoga approach, a Yogasana modifies the energetic channels of the body which have a direct impact on our physical & psychological self. Thus, practicing in alignment with your energetic self not only helps body of imbalances but also has a heling impact on the mind, emotions, and psychological disorders. To support deeper healing, Ayurveda offers an internal medicinal approach with diet, herbs and therapies.
Approach to Practicing Ayurvedic Yoga
When practicing Ayurvedic Yoga, you identify your individual constitution as per Ayurveda’s pattern mapping system. The classification is sone at two levels:
- Basis three gunas of sattva, rajas and tamas that map you on the scale of mental- emotional make-up.
- Basis three doshas of vata, pitta, kapha, that represent the psychophysical model of balancing body-mind conditions.
Asana practice can be performed by considering these two body-mind energetic models to help increase or decrease the effects of dosha and bring about internal balance. Use of right breathing techniques becomes of utmost importance as breath can be used to modify the energetic effects of asanas. Engaging mind with an intention also plays a huge role in Ayurvedic Yoga approach as energy flows where mind & intention goes. Therefore, unity of asana, prana & mind can be adjusted in a way to get the desired energetic result.
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