Ayurveda at your kitchen : Ayurcuisine

Ayurcuisine

Ayurveda - the traditional health system was several thousand years ago in the land of India and is widely in practice in many parts of the world today.

It was developed in the hands of sages and saints benefiting humankind in every aspect of life. This ancient yet completely alive and progressive system of medicine with its philosophy touches every phase and facet of our lives. That ranges right from health maintenance to disease management, from food to medicines and from exercise to sleep.

In such an endeavor of maintenance and creation of health, ayurvedic principles are applied to every part of our lifestyle and it has been tuned to perfection so that the chances of any ill health are minimized. In other words, a planned diet helps us to improve the immunity to an extent that diseases are kept at bay and simultaneously, vitality, vigor, exuberance are enhanced.

Understanding food from the perspective of Ayurveda is a complete paradigm in itself. Its knowledge opens new avenues for a different cuisine – a cuisine that is palatable and has numerous health benefits. Ayurvedically planned food helps maintain the health, keeps ailments at bay, improves the vitality and the flavors elate the mood.

These specifically planned recipes with explicit ingredients heal the conditions due to their medicinal values. This helps to set that equilibrium of bodily constituents back in force. This is another way of Ayurveda to maintain health and to treat ailments in a delicate but definite manner.

Is Indian cuisine same as Ayurvedic Cuisine?

The answer is No.

Some of the recipes were part of Indian Cuisine but over the period, some of them have lost their originality and the purpose. Some of the traditional recipes have retained the status of healthy ayurvedic recipe.

Ayurveda and Vedas have given tremendous importance to food and the food is widely discussed in various texts as well. Each food is a natural substance may it be from plant or animal source. It possesses its own individual characteristics just the way an herb would possess certain specific qualities. These qualities are incorporated in diet and certain recipes to create season specific, disease specific, benefit specific diet plans.

Why do we need it now?

This probably is the era where we are seeing highest number of diseases ranging from common to rare most conditions as well as from minor to severe conditions. Apart from various known diseases, there are certain not so healthy conditions that are not manifested as a full-blown disease but still they are creating some ill health. Such subclinical conditions and various diseases, have potential to disturb the physical as well as mental health of any individual. The diseases we see in today’s world are primarily the NCDs – non-communicable diseases. These diseases do not require any specific mode for their transmission. These are lifestyle related conditions. The changing lifestyle needs to be regulated in a way that it will not create any unfavorable changes in the body.

There cannot be a better time to introduce ayurvedic cuisine than now and this will be a customer delight completely. With ayurvedic cuisine and some introduction to ayurveda, people are already being benefited around the world.

Shlokas

व्यायामं च व्यवायं च धावनम् पानमेव च |
युद्धं गीतं च पथं च मुहूर्तं भुक्तवान त्यजेत्||

…आत्रेय

This quote refrains from workout, sexual activity, running, drinking water, singing and studies just after meals. They can be resumed 48 minutes after the meals depending upon their strenuousness. These 48 minutes helps us in supporting digestion process. Vajrasan and sitting quietly is helpful for digestion. -Atrey

मितभोजनं स्वास्थ्यं |

…चाणक्य सूत्र

Right quantity of the food is known to impart health. – A quote from Chanakya Sutra

जठरं पूरयेदर्धमग्नैर्भागं जलेन च |
वायो: संचरणार्थाय चतुर्थमवषेशयेत ||

…विष्णुपुराण

This quote from Vishnupuran is quite helpful in understanding the quantity of the meal. It advocates having solid part half the stomach cavity. A quarter part should be filled with water / liquid and remaining quarter part should be kept empty for (vayu to move) supporting the digestion.

आयु:सत्वबलारोग्यसुखप्रितिविवर्धना:|
रस्या: स्निग्धा: स्थिरा हृद्या आहारा: सात्विकप्रिया:||

…भगवद्गीता 17/8

Bhagvat Geeta indirectly advocates having diet that is unctuous, possesses all six tastes, rich in milk and ghee, pleasant and the one that is known to increase mental and physical strength. Moreover, this kind of diet also helps in increasing Satva Guna in mind.