Monica B Groover, Ph.D, AWP
Director- San Diego College of Ayurveda
Starting a DETOX program after New Years Day in the middle of the winter while your body is dormant, and, storing energy is a NON STARTER.
I always laugh at this--because the BEST TIME to melt that kapha and toxins is SPRING, and for Vata and Pitta is FALL.
How is the physical body going to detox or lose weight, or, let go of toxins. It is hanging on to everything and dormant--because we are the microcosm of macrocosm. (I explain it later)
Why not take the assistance of mother nature in detoxifying? If you are a Kapha, you can also begin an Ayurvedic detox in the early summer. However, I would say pittas should just restore themselves and take it easy.
Why do we want to take help of the seasons?
Ayurvedic practitioners like myself to say – we are the microcosm of the macrocosm. This is repeated in religious and spiritual texts throughout history. If we are the microcosm of the macrocosm, a small part of the bigger pictures, minute part of the bigger whole – then, it goes without saying that we have the same purpose, same aim and same journey as the nature and our universe.
Going against the nature, against the natural laws of nature and universe is harmful to us, our planet and our future. In the last fifty years we have become disconnected from our environment and with the greenhouse emissions, we are making sure that future generations suffer.
Whether its raising huge amounts of livestock so we can overeat and become obese and subject ourselves to all the health issues caused by red meat, or using ridiculous amount of resources by raising this livestock; whether, its filling our landfills with trash that cannot be recycled , or filling our space with orbiting space debris, –we, as a species are not in sync with ourselves, our nature. That, my friends – is one cause of disease right there.
In my lectures, I talk about four types of lifestyle choices. Ayurveda suggests that living ahitayu – life not in sync with nature will cause havoc, imbalance and trauma.
Lets discuss this disconnectedness more. We communicate to the world and people around us through texting, Facebook, twitter and emails. We have created a virtual persona of ourselves – our virtual Doppelganger.
You’d be surprised how many clients I get whose physical imbalances stem from spending too much time on the social media websites. Living other people’s lives instead their own. Nature –being our parent, our macrocosm—has its own way of communicating with us. Nature provides feedback in many forms to us. However, in our virtual Doppelganger form it is hard for us to get the message. our body, the changing seasons, omens, sights, smells, how we feel – how our body feels. And, the universe lets us know. How?
We get instant feedback via our near environment. To give you an example, if you clutter your refrigerator and do not clean == strange smells will emanate. Instant feedback. If the winter is about to onset, fall will create dryness in your skin, your hair and preparing your body for the winter.
This is the season providing feedback to the body to start lubricating your skin with warm organic oils, and start eating soups. Moving on, lets clarify what we mean by our environment. What surrounds us is our immediate environment – be it social environment, the weather. The Macro environment would be prakrti or mother nature, and earth or the bigger universe – the planets and being part of the greater whole.
Ayurveda suggests we bring this journey of outer environment and what’s happening in and around us in sync. We can do this by living in sync with the seasons, with the cycle of day and night, with cycle of waxing and waning of moon. (Lunar and Solar cycles). Lets discuss a small example. Water is regulated on earth through moon. Moon gives rasa or taste to the fruits and fragrance to the flowers.
It regulates the oceanic tides. Water in the outer world is signified by the vast bodies of oceans. In fact 2/3rd of earth is water. Inside our body, the moon also influences the water element which is manifest as all fluid secretions, mucosa, lymphatic system, and blood.
In our mind, the moon supports water element that is manifested as feelings of relaxation, love, romance, winding down after a hard days work. It has been proved that listening to sounds of waves or waterfall can induce a feeling of relaxation in our nerve center. Earth element is manifested as mountains, deserts, rocks, the crust and inner part and center core of our planet.
Earth in our physical body is the structure, the muscles, the bones and the organs. In our mind the earth element is manifest as a feeling of being grounded, decision making, sticking to one’s guns so to speak.
The fire element in our planet is the summer season, transformation process of how seeds grow into a plant, then tree, the volcanoes. For example, all trees are made up of wood – which has the inherent fire element in it. In our body the fire element is exhibited by the digestion of food, transformation of thoughts into ideas, The air manifests as atmosphere and the gases like oxygen and carbon dioxide, in the planet and manifests as the exchange of gases in our lungs.
In the mind it manifests itself as creativity. Space in the nature is important. Most important. All planets exist in space. Space in our body is the space in our stomach, our lungs, nerves. Without space element, our mind would be crowded by thoughts and we wont be able to function.
So, use the early summer or spring--to its full advantage. Start your detox program at this time.