7 Basic Ayurvedic Principles to Regain and Maintain Mind-Body Balance

By on December 2, 2008 in Balance, Healthy Living

A basic premise of Ayurveda is that our experiences in consciousness translate into patterns in our bodies. We frequently cite the expression, “If you want to understand a person’s experiences in the past, examine their body now. If you want to predict what their mind and body will be like in the future, examine their experiences now.” Another way of saying this is: “Biography becomes biology.”

Each day at the Chopra Center, we see guests who reinforce our view that choices and experiences influence our tendency to be healthy or become ill. A woman with persistent family stress reports incapacitating headaches, unresponsive to multiple medicines. A man with relationship and job-related challenges notices a flare-up in his inflammatory bowel disease. From insomnia to fibromyalgia, from chronic fatigue to cancer, our perceptions, interpretations, and choices can make the difference between health and illness . . . between life and death.

Science supports the essential connection between mind and body. A recent study from the University of Michigan found that third-grade children who slept soundly at night were less likely to be obese. Another study from Britain found that people in conflicted close relationships had a 34 percent increase in coronary heart problems. A report from Ohio State University showed that one heated argument can delay wound healing by 24 hours.

The basic Ayurvedic principles to regain and maintain mind-body balance are as relevant today as they were thousands of years ago.

  1. Take time each day to quiet your mind.
  2. Eat a colorful, flavorful diet.
  3. Engage in daily exercise that enhances flexibility, strength, and cardiovascular fitness.
  4. Sleep soundly at night.
  5. Eliminate what is not serving you.
  6. Cultivate loving, nurturing relationships.
  7. Perform work that awakens your passion.

Your body needs you to make life-supporting choices. Please don’t wait until it is throwing a tantrum before you pay attention.

With love,
David 

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...

About david.simon

David Simon, M.D. Co- Founder, CEO and Medical Director of the Chopra Center for Wellbeing David Simon, M.D. is a board-certified neurologist and a true pioneer in the medical field. His personal mission is to facilitate the integration of complementary and conventional medicine in the 21st Century. Since he began his association with Deepak Chopra, M.D. in the 1980's, Dr. Simon has become one of the nation's foremost authorities on effective and appropriate use of holistic health care practices, specifically Ayurveda- the 5000-year-old healing tradition of India. As CEO and Medical Director of The Chopra Center for Wellbeing at La Costa Resort & Spa, Dr. Simon is dedicated to catalyzing the evolution of the prevailing health care system into a "healing system" that encompasses the emotional, spiritual as well as physical health of the individual. Dr. Simon's prolific program development, writing, and research are changing the landscape of health care for professionals and consumers, alike. His far-reaching endeavors have resulted in the training of thousands of physicians, nurses, health care providers as well as educators in holistic healing approaches throughout the world. He is the recipient of a National Institutes of Health grant to study mind body medical approaches on health quality, and has created initiatives to bring integrated mind body medical programs to medical institutions, community health centers, and health resorts. In his role as Medical Director for The Chopra Center, Dr. Simon continues to research and develop clinical programs in mind body medicine. He directs a comprehensive curriculum that includes on-site programs and seminars, in addition to a worldwide educational outreach enterprise. Dr. Simon is the driving force behind The Center's development, training and implementation of Perfect Health, Journey Into Healing, Primordial Sound Meditation, Seduction of Spirit, and Seven Spiritual Laws of Yoga- the flagship programs of The Chopra Center.Dr. Simon began his influential career in private practice in neurology, and with his roles as Chief of Staff and Medical Director of the Neurological Rehabilitation Center and Clinical Neurophysiology Laboratory at Sharp Cabrillo Hospital, an affiliate of the Sharp HealthCare system, the largest in Southern California. He is an assistant clinical professor in the Department of Neurosciences at The University of California and supervises medical students rotating through The Chopra Center on a weekly basis. Visit http://chopra.com to find out more about David's work at the Chopra Center.
View all posts by david.simon →

, , ,

8 Responses to 7 Basic Ayurvedic Principles to Regain and Maintain Mind-Body Balance

  1. Char December 1, 2008 at 6:20 pm #

    Thank for this great information.

  2. Venkataramanks December 2, 2008 at 2:00 am #

    Dear Mr. David Simon,

    Excellent. You have brought out the sine qua non of physical health very clearly. The body and mind are complementary; they can be mutually supportive or destructive depending on the way they are managed. Though Intellect is clubbed with Mind by many scholars, it would be better to study body-mind-intellect complex to understand their functions, interdependence and co-ordination. Swami Chinmayananda has dealt with this elaborately.

    With kind regards,

    K S Venkataraman

  3. Michael December 2, 2008 at 1:52 pm #

    My mother has experienced all kinds of things like migranes and IBS as long as I can remember. After years of failed treatments from the VA she was diagnosed with fibromyoagia and of course, the treatments have continued to fail. She continues to live with all kinds of problems due to her fibro (and she literally says everything is because of "my fibro") and understands that pills and shots are not helping her. My heart goes out to her because I feel that she is in a perpetual state of torture at times. There are a number of physical things that must be playing a role in her missery, most significantly the fact that she smokes cigarrettes but I can also see that most of what ails her is affected by her state of mind. I am unsure of how to approach her with this without sounding like a "know it all" son and also do not want to be the one telling her what to do. I have invited her to join Intent.com and it is my hope that little things like this will push her in the right direction. Any comments, advise, or prayer will be greatly appreciated.

  4. LilyS December 4, 2008 at 10:05 am #

    The science of life has never changed, thanks for sharing and caring.

    Hugs, Lily

  5. Loren.G-Goff December 13, 2008 at 10:09 am #

    Thank you for these worthwhile and excellent points. I work with people everyday who struggle with making the very changes you advocate. As a therapist, I help them work through their struggles of changing their life styles for their greater good. When this change involves their family relationships (nuclear and extended) many of their symptoms increase as their awareness of the negativity in their lives increases. As I observe, support and guide them through their journey in life, I learn even more about myself. Thank you for your clear, concise and direct message. I hope to pass your message on to my clients. All the best, Loren Gelberg-Goff

  8. atemha August 28, 2010 at 3:13 am #

    My mother has experienced all kinds of things like migranes and IBS as long as I can remember. After years of failed treatments from the VA she was diagnosed with fibromyoagia and of course, the treatments have continued to fail. She continues to live with all kinds of problems due to her fibro (and she literally says everything is because of "my fibro") and understands that pills and shots are not helping her. point blank indonesia My heart goes out to her because I feel that she is in a perpetual state of torture at times. There are a number of physical things that must be playing a role in her missery, most significantly the fact that she smokes cigarrettes but I can also see that most of what ails her is affected by her state of mind. I am unsure of how to approach her with this without sounding like a "know it all" son and also do not want to be the one telling her what to do. I have invited her to join Intent.com and it is my hope that little things like point blank indonesia this will push her in the right direction. Any comments, advise, or prayer will be greatly appreciated.