Yoga and ayurveda retreats in Rishikesh | Ayurveda and panchkarma massages and therapies in Rishikesh | Ayurveda and panchkarma courses in Rishikesh | Yoga tours and vacations in Rishikesh

Ayurveda is a holistic, ancient , time tested and traditional system of medicine that is indigeous to and widely practiced in India. The word ayurveda is a Sanskrit term meaning “science of life”. Ayu means “life” or “daily living” and veda means “knowing”. Ayurveda was first recorded in the Vedas – the ancient texts of the Himalayan sages.

The ayurvedic healing system has been practiced in daily life in India for more than 5000 years. All ayurveda literatures are based on the Samkhya philosophy of creation. (The root of term Samkhya: sat means “true” and khya means “to know”). The Vedas, made up of the Rig, Yajur, Sama and Atharva Vedas in which the ancient scriptural knowledge is found, have been handed down to us generation by generation over several thousand years of oral tradition, before finally being recorded in written form. It was not until about 500 B.C. that the sage Adi Sankara culled the end portion of vedas, called vedanta, which reveals the knowledge that the self and the supreme being are one. Sankara recorded this knowledge on palm leaves. Rig veda, the foundation pillar and oldest of the vedas, contains many references to ayurvedic principles, although ayurveda itself was primarily developed from the Atherva Veda, the most recent of the Vedas. The mainstay of ayurvedic knowledge we have today is found in two treatise, Charak Samhita and Sushrut Samhita, each of which first appeared at the turn of the first millenium B.C.

The main objective of ayurveda is to impart health-full longevity and to relieve human suffering. This is achieved through appropriate regimes of Ahara, Vihara, and Ausadhis and systemic Samshodhana {detoxification} of the body.

• Ayurveda in India
  • Ayurveda Services
  • Ayurveda Treatments
  • Ayurveda Packages

Rishikesh is located on the foothills of Himalayas, where ayurveda medicines, herbs, shrubs and trees are found in abundance, which makes it an ideal destination for exploring various aspects of ayurveda.

Practice Non-Violence
Ayurveda considers killing or doing bodily harm for pleasure or out of habit, is a crime, which is believed to cause suffering in the killer`s Karmic life. It may, also, create harmful traits in an individual. Only in case of saving somebody`s life that auyrveda recommends meat or animal body-parts as medicine. Hence, this extremely negative act should always be avoided.

Avoid Stealing
Stealing induces fear and anxiety in the person conducting the act. When it becomes a habit, the person may have to live in constant fear, which may not be good for the person`s mental and physical health. Also, it harms other people, which auyrveda strongly advises against.

Avoid Sexual Misconduct
Ayurveda forbids any sexual activities which may cause anxiety, fear and disquiet in the mind, and thus may lead to illness. Because it believes that overindulgence and any other wasteful sexual activities render a person incapable of producing healthy progeny.

Abstain from Telling Lies
Telling lies induces fear, which create negative vibrations in a person`s mind and consequently, physical health the person is affected. Though auyrveda does not strictly advise against telling a lie as it may be done for a good cause, the circumstances under which a person may have to tell a lie should always be avoided.

Avoid Consuming Addictive Substances
Addictive like alcohol etc. is considered as Tamasic (inactive or lethargic) both for body and mind. Auyrveda forbids the consumption of any intoxicating material, which has an adverse effect on the normal functioning of the body and the mind.