Panchakarma: A Unique Therapy Of Ayurveda By Dr. Sanjeev Sood Panchkarma is a purifying therapy to enhance the metabolic process through food and herbal medicines. It is used in deep-rooted chronic disease as well as seasonal imbalance of tridoshas. As the wastes are eliminated from the body the person becomes healthy. Literally Panch means five and Karma means action. So Panch Karma means five types of actions or techniques or treatment. These types of therapeutics are based on elimination therapy. It is natural that some toxins accumulate in the body as a result of various metabolic activities. It is necessary to eliminate these toxins from the body, which the body is doing to the great extent, but some toxins still remains in the body and causing many disease when their quantity increases beyond a certain limit. These wastes should always be eradicated from the body, otherwise they stick into minute channels of the body known as 'srotas' and start producing diseases. That is why, if we want to be healthy, it is necessary to eliminate wastes from the channels and no room should be given for accumulation of these waste products.Doshas and waste materials accumulate in the body as a result of following improper diet and living style. The seasonal accumulation of doshas is also described in Ayurveda. For example, Kapha doshas accumulate in winter. So to eliminate these excess doshas or impurities from the body, various Panch Karma treatments are used. Infinite number of unwanted toxins and unwanted metabolic substances accumulate in our body in due course of time, which is against the law of nature. These unwanted toxins and unwanted metabolic substances have been accumulated for the major reasons being the air pollution, the chemicals that we eat through our food, lack of body movements. In this 20th Century man is following a life pattern, which is totally against the principles of nature. At the formation of Universe, is considered, that the universe was free from any pollutants. Man is the cause for these pollutants. The question of accumulating of toxins was not arising at that time because the resistance of the body was strong enough to eliminate all the toxins in the natural form. As now days the life being artificial we disobey the laws of nature, as a result wastage gets accumulated in our body more easily. When the wastage in our body reaches to uncontrollable limit our bodies resistance is helpless and we become an easy prey to disease. As a human being advances in age by the time he or she is 40 these signs are clearly seen. The body resistance becomes weak and the human being unexpectedly suffers from minor or major disease. At this point Ayurveda says that body is not in equilibrium with nature and it needs immediate correction. The process of correcting is called panchakarma and is explained below how it is done. Snehana (Person doing Sneha) Hecticness , noise and the speed or our time produce excess of Vata dosha. This leads to dryness of the exterior as well as the interior body. This dryness is best treated with internal and external saturation of the organism with fat. Svedana (Person doing Svedana) After mobilization of the doshas and toxins by Snehana, warmth treatment liquefies them, opens up the fine channels, the srotas and prepares elimination.Commonly used is Bashpa Svedana. This is a form of steam bath, during which a wooden box is put upon the body. Vamana (Photo of Vomiting) As Kapha is mainly located within the upper stomach, therapeutic vomiting is indicated mainly in excess Kapha conditions. During pretreatment, the organism has put excess Kapha into this part of the stomach and is ready to expel it. Virechana Therapeutically purging removes excessive Pitta and Kapha dosha, which makes it an alternative for exhausting Vamana. Basti The therapeutical enema cleans the inferior part of the digestive tract, the colon. Vata is the dominating dosha, in Ayurveda it is the king of the doshas, and it is seated mainly within the colon. Dominating Vata makes it easier to balance the other doshas. Caraka Samhita, one of the oldest ayurvedic textbooks, says: "Basti - though applicated and acting mainly in the large intestine - by its force attracts all impurities from the sole to the head, like the sun standing in the sky and drying all moist in the earth." Vata controls the organism as well as life. It comes out of balance primarily where it is seated, within the colon. Thereafter it affects disorders in other organs. Balancing Vata disorders means controlling disease mechanisms of excess Pitta and Kapha origin as well. Typical Vata diseases are 1. Diseases of the nervous system 2. Rheumatic and other diseases of spine and joints 3. Circulatory disorders 4. High blood pressure 5. Digestion disorders like constipation or irritable colon 6. Pain syndromes 7. Migraine 8. Exhaustion states 9. Disorders of falling and staying asleep 10. Nervousness 11. Weakness of concentration 12. Infertility We distinguish enemas consisting of an infusion of herbal remedies and oil enemas. Nasya (Nasya) Nasal treatment aims at cleansing the head region from excess Kapha dosha by application fluids or powder into the nose.This treatment is indicated in 1. Chronic headache and migraine 2. Shoulder-arm-syndrome 3. Cervical vertebral syndrome 4. Chronic inflammation of the sinusoids 5. Allergic diseases of breath airways 6. Hay fever 7. Diseases of neck, ear and nose region 8. Tinnitus 9. Eye diseases 10. Sleeping disorders 11. Epilepsy 12. Upper body Paralysis Nose treatment is begun with a massage of shoulder and head region. After that follows an inhalation with ethereal oils and after that the real nose treatment, which is applicated three to seven days. RaktamokshanaTherapeutical bloodletting is done in 1. Skin diseases 2. Gout 3. Loss of appetite 4. Diseases of liver and spleen 5. Jaundice 6. Hyperacidity of the organism 7. Gastritis and heartburn 8. Chronic lymph node enlargement 9. Blood diseases 10. Heart disease 11. Pericardial effusion and pericarditis 12. Pneumonia and pleural effusion 13. Allergies 14. Chronic headache 15. Alcoholism 16. Drug addiction 17. Pitta disorders This treatment consists in taking 100 up to 200 ml blood out of a brachial vein. In some cases, especially skin diseases, medicinal leeches are applicated.
Published in Ayurveda for Total Health – August 2005, Page No – 5
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