Rhythm

I've gotten into the most enjoyable rhythm of life I've ever experienced. Everything I do here is either to make me happy or to make me strong, and mostly both. Maybe I'm just a homebody (haha) but staying in Boudha all day, doing my classes and reading and resting, is like heaven. Whatever happens when Amchi comes back, I want to wholly take in this most lovely schedule. Yoga is getting more challenging, and Rupesh did warn me that we were going to take it up a notch. It's not about flexibility as much as it is about concentration, endurance, finding minute tensions in the body and eradicating them. It's blissful.

As he points out, it's simple logic that the longer you hold a position the deeper the effect will go--according to both Tibetan and Ayurvedic medicine, that means penetrating through all the bodily constituents; from the various muscle tissues to the fat tissues, to the bone, to the bone marrow, to the essence of the body's composition. I like that the word "organ" is used to describe the target of yoga's effects--it is to stretch the organs, both the skin and the internal ones, and sometimes "ancient" or forgotten organs. As a sidenote, the spleen is considered an organ of great importance in Tibetan medicine and is related to digestive functions. As far as I know, this is not the case in Western medicine.

Signs of health according to Ayurveda include waking up early, having light exercise in the morning (like yoga, and meditation also), regular bowel movement, and wanting to eat in the morning (breakfast is important). In general it's a good idea to eat a warm, light breakfast to regenerate energy and rebalance the doshas (kapha predominates during sleep). Lunch should be the major meal of the day, and we can eat heavier foods (pitta predominates during the day), preferably with a range of densities--i.e. solid, liquid, and in-between foods. It's generally better to have a light dinner, because otherwise when we sleep our energy is devoted to digestion rather than regenerating itself and resting ourselves. It's also good for dinner to be warm and softer food (vata predominates in the evening).

Food is the focus of the next week or so of classes--what kinds there are, the tastes, how to eat according to one's constitution, and how to treat imbalances with food and diet adjustment. For the sake of an example, let's say I'm a vata-pitta dual type (which I am). The nature of vata, like air, is cold, dry, light, hard, mobile...pitta is oily, hot, sharp, light, etc. That means that dry and spicy foods are are aggravating to my body, because they exaggerate the characteristics that are already dominant. Since the point of a correct diet is to bring the three doshas into balance within the body, it is important for me to drink lots of liquid and eat warm, moist foods.

The 6 tastes are the same (sweet, sour, salty, hot, bitter, astringent). In general, sweet taste increases body weight and tissues, but can be hard to digest, so intake should be limited. It is nourishing to both body and mind, a "loving" taste--hence "comfort food" often being sweet (of course, this doesn't apply only to candy sweetness; rice, meat, etc. are also). It is good for vata and pitta people, but not good for kapha. Sour and salty are both stimulants of the digestive fire; sour particularly is good for the heart, and helps to wake people up and make them feel happier. Sour and salty tastes are good for vata. Hot or spicy foods open the channels; it is sharp and pungent, beneficial for people with low digestive fire or bad circulation. It is good for kapha constitution. Bitter food gives the body and mind a feeling of lightness after eating, and is good for pitta and kapha consitutions. Astringent taste reduces secretions in the body and is good for closing channels (i.e. good for diarrhea, bleeding, etc.) and is good for the pitta and kapha constitutions.

As everything, the tastes relate back to the elements. This is what I learned in Tibetan medicine, and Dr. Kopila said it is (naturally) the same in Ayurveda. Each taste is a combination of two elements:

Sweet (earth and water)
Sour (fire and earth)
Salty (water and fire)
Bitter (water and air)
Hot (fire and air)
Astringent (earth and air)

It is best to balance all six tastes in a meal, or at least throughout the day. In preparation, this is taken into account by simplifying a meal as much as possible and cooking as little as possible. Simplifying a meal means matching tastes and not combining too many different natures of food in one dish--for example, potatoes are sweet and astringent. If you cook them with peas, which are also sweet and astringent, you add to the dish without complicating it. To balance it with the other tastes, consider that if you cook it with a little salt and little oil, already two more tastes have been added. Of course, take into account the constitution--dishes cooked in oil are fine for vata, but bad for pitta. Spices are definitely the easiest way to balance tastes. It's also better not to cut vegetables etc. too fine, or minced; the energy leaks out of them. Besides, they are (or were) living things. An imaginative person might think that in their own way, they feel a kind of pain, like anything with living energy does if it is cut up or divided.

The real nutritive value of the food we eat depends on three things: the amount, the quality, and the processing. It's easier to enjoy food in it's natural form, and it's also easier to digest! Our experience with food begins with grocery shopping--selection. We have to sense the color, the shape, the weight, etc. of the food as we choose it, and we should be aware of our mood and energy level, which heavily influences what food we choose. Naturally, the value of food we prepare at home is higher than food we buy already processed, or frozen, microwaveable, etc. Ayurvedic teachers tells chefs that they have the same job as a mother; when food is prepared with attention and care, it has more nutritive value for the people eating it. This can manifest in much simpler ways, that people sense without realizing it. For example, if the head of the household cooks dinner in a foul mood, the food might be prepared perfectly but somehow just not taste as good as it should.

As an example of how the same problem can be treated differently (with diet) according to constitution, let's take low digestive fire (called agni in Ayurveda). For kapha people, very plain rice is good. For pitta people, it is good to add some ghee (clarified butter) to the rice. For vata, it is good to mix it with a little fruit or vegetables. The way it is prepared works with the constitution to ensure that the function of the food itself--the rice--works in the body of the person having the problem.

Later we'll be studying more about the ama toxin, and about specific diseases and treatments. There were three days at the end of the month when I wasn't going to have class, because of a tour at the clinic (which is across town; our classes having been happening at home). However, the tour was canceled, and I'm absolutely so happy--I am going to go and stay at the clinic, maybe get a treatment or two to experience it myself (it's all for the sake of research of course), and most importantly have the opportunity to have some sessions with Dr. Koirala, the senior doctor who Dr. Kopila clearly respects and possibly reveres. Every day, from the beginning to the end of class, I feel happy.

The learning aspect of my yoga instruction is also increasing. Rupesh spent about 15 minutes at the end of class today telling me about what we'll be working on for the rest of our time working together. There are five aspects of Hatha yoga--asanas (positions), pranayama (breathing [prana=breath, ayama=lengthening]), mudras (hand gestures), bandhas (specific contraction in the body), and shatkarma (purification practices, some of which sound a little frightening). We will work on all of them except the last, though we might do some at the end. They include neti (nasal wash with purified water and non-iodized salt), among others.

As far as the physical work is going, my practice has improved dramatically, and I feel so much healthier (and even, dare I say it at age 20, younger). Even when I'm just standing around the house, or walking somewhere, my balance and sense of presence is much more grounded. We never realize how much effort we put into movements that really don't require conscious energy. Our bodies have physical momentum that can carry us, but instead we are always pressing down, pushing forward, and so on. Such unnecessary strain. Now that I've learned how to relax that sometimes, I can actually feel the energy circulating that's freed from all the muscle tension. It's liberating.