What is Ayurveda?

Ayurveda is a complete way of life. As a holistic health system comprising diet, Yoga, massage, detoxification, herbal remedies, meditation and daily lifestyle, Ayurveda improves not only a person's health, but also their well being, behaviour and state of mind.

Ayurveda is prevention-oriented, is free from harmful side-effects and treats the root cause of a disease rather than just the symptoms. Ayurveda views illness as caused by an imbalance in a person's physical or mental constitution and therefore seeks to gently bring a person's body and mind back into a healthy balance.

Although Ayurveda can be used to alleviate various conditions, it is founded on the principle of preventing disorders in the long term rather than waiting for problems to manifest themselves. Thus, it is the ideal way for healthy individuals to maintain good health and general well-being.

With a few small changes to a person's daily life, it is possible to live the Ayurvedic way and reap the benefits. Ayurveda is certainly not intended to replace modern medicine, but rather to give people the tools to treat their body according to its needs, leading to emotional and mental well-being and good health.

Ayurveda sees everything in the universe, including human beings, as composed of five basic elements (or Panchamahabhutas): space, air, fire, water and earth.

These five elements in turn combine with each other to give rise to three bio-physical forces (or Doshas) within the human body- Vata (air and space), Pitta (fire and water) and Kapha (water and earth). Together they are known as Tridosha and govern all the biological, physiological and psychological functions of the mind and body, both, physical and emotional, as well as effecting how an individual interacts with everything around them.

Every individual has within them all three bio-physical forces, but it is the dominance of any one or two or all three that makes up a person's individual constitution or Prakriti.

Although a person's Dosha type is determined at the moment of conception, Doshas are constantly shifting within the body. Just as the five basic elements fluctuate within the nature, these elements will also fluctuate within the body. Therefore, the Dosha dominance changes with age, time of day or night and the season etc.

Most of our products come in different variations that are created to support the respective Dosha.

Ayurvedic treatments involve establishing an individual's constitution and the nature of any imbalance and then seeking to return the individual’s body to a state of healthy balance. The treatments consist of the use of:

• Specialist Ayurvedic massages using herb-infused massage oils
• Herbs and herbal remedies
• Nutritional advice tailored to bring balance to a person's Doshas
• Advice on lifestyle habits
• Specially selected yoga exercises
• Advice on appropriate Ayurvedic herbal teas, herbal supplements, Ayurvedic massage oils and Ayurvedic cosmetics to bring balance on a daily basis
• Panchakarma (the Ayurvedic five-step detox treatment) - this highly effective treatment involves a five-step programme of internal cleansing. It restores and maintains good health, strengthens the immune system, and protects the body against diseases by removing toxins and rejuvenating your body's internal systems.