Why Ayurvedic Products are like Yoga for the Skin
Fondly referred to as inseparable sisters, Ayurveda and Yoga are a part of a greater system of Vedic knowledge. Yoga originates from Yajur Veda and Ayurveda from Rig Veda and Atharvana Veda.
Simply explained, Ayurveda is a science and Yoga is a practice of the science. Both are based on the same principles and have an understanding of how the body works. They advocate both the practice of pranayama as well as the use of herbs on a regular basis.
According to Ayurveda, the body is made up of a combination of three different energies or doshas: vata, pitta and kapha. Ayurvedic products concentrate on working with the doshas. According to Ayurvedic study, like increases like and opposite forces balance each other. The products, along with proper yoga practice and diet, affect these forces and create greater balance and harmony. People with vata constituency should avoid dry, light and airy foods, pita constituency spice and fatty foods and kapha constituency cold food.
Working on this principle, Ayurveda offers beauty treatments with a fresh and holistic approach in their facials and oil massages. Ayurvedic aestheticians treat skin disorders like eczema, psoriasis and acne effectively with their hundred percent natural methods. Just like how a yoga regime is required to balance the prakriti or constitution, an Ayurvedic regime with the right internal and external beauty routine can significantly improve the health of the skin.
Both Ayurveda and Yogic texts maintain that Ojas which translates as ‘that which invigorates’, is the ultimate secret to glowing beauty. When Ojas is healthy, all the signs of natural beauty like radiant skin, lustrous hair, bright eyes, and robust immunity along with a happy vigor are present. When Ojas is low it shows in wrinkled skin, dull eyes and the fatigue and negativity always present.
A simple Ayurvedic skincare routine involves three steps- cleanse, nourish and moisturize. The way to go about it is:
To cleanse: Use an ubtan, which is a paste made from flours, legumes and herbs. You can mix equal parts of dry milk powder and chickpea flour, add water to make a thin paste and scrub this lightly over your skin when you shower.
To nourish and moisturize: Mix ten drops of an essential oil that is suitable to your prakriti with an ounce of almond oil. Warm the oil and give yourself an abhyanga or self-massage with oil. The massage technique and the ayurvedic mixture of oils essentially acts the same way as yoga as it spreads nourishment to the tissues in the body as well as to the mind and senses.
Vibrant beauty is described by sages as our natural state. But limiting the conception of beauty to a physical state alone is incorrect. And what reminds us better of the fact that beauty is more than skin-deep than the time-tested practice of Ayurveda and its sister science yoga?
