This weekend Anne Witmer is teaching a special Rasayana workshop that is completely sold out. If you wanted to attend but enrolled too late here are some tidbits from Anne herself on how to achieve body and soul rejuvenation from home. Enjoy!
Rasayana or “rejuvenation” is one of the 8 branches of Ayurveda and means “that which destroys old age and disease”. This therapeutic process offers deep nourishment to the cells, tissues, and organs of the body to support their healing and regeneration. A rasayana treatment might be indicated in a number of different situations such as after a deep cleansing process, when one is mentally and physically depleted from stress and overwork, or after intense physical exertion. These techniques can be particularly helpful in the late fall and winter (Vata season) to ease the transition to the colder, dryer time of the year when it is more likely for the body and mind to become out of balance.
Engaging in rasayana practices can help:
- Improve strength, energy, vitality and stamina
- Bolster immunity
- Promote courage, confidence, and success
- Slow the aging process and increase longevity
- Promote cellular intelligence and improve memory
- Bring balance, awareness, joy, and clarity into one’s life and relationships
The Rasayana Process entails dietary modifications (nourishing fresh cooked foods), the addition of ayurvedic herbs, simple lifestyle adjustments and specific ayurvedic rejuvenation practices. Lifestyle adjustments would include such things as minimizing travel and stress, ensuring good quality sleep and engaging in a gentle, grounding yoga practice. In addition, contemplative activities would be included such as pranayama, meditation, and guided visualization.
One of the most important techniques in a rasayana treatment is abhyanga (warm oil massage) with a particular emphasis on the feet, head and ears. According to the Ayurvedic text, Charaka Samhita: Sutrasthana: V: 88-89,
"The body of one who uses oil massage regularly does not become affected much, even if subjected to accidental injuries or strenuous work. By using oil massage daily, a person is endowed with pleasant touch, trimmed body parts, and becomes strong, charming and least affected by old age."
One might engage in a rasayana therapy protocol for a specific time period (often a month - depending on need) to repair and restore one's system But many of these practices can be incorporated into one’s daily routine to maintain a healthy and balanced lifestyle such as the one suggested below.