Springtime is for cleansing and reinvigoration

The vernal equinox marks the beginning of Spring when daylight strengthens. Equinox comes from the Latin aequus (equal) and nox (night), and vernal means springtime or youthful and fresh.

For your own youthfulness and freshness, you may like to consider a Spring cleansing programme. Internal cleansing is particularly recommended by Ayurveda because Spring is the season when your body’s natural cleansing and rejuvenating mechanisms accelerate in tune with all of nature.

Maharishi Panchakarma treatment, (available at the Maharishi Panchakarma Centre in Skelmersdale and Maharishi AyurVeda Health Centre in Rendlesham when Covid rules permits), offers an effective approach to internal cleansing. There are also simple at-home recommendations you can follow which give good results.

If you have any doubts or are under your GP for any major health problem, please consult your doctor before undertaking any cleansing programme.

1. Cleansing diet

  • Avoid foods that create ama (digestive toxins), in the body, such as leftovers, packaged, tinned and frozen foods, foods grown with chemicals or with chemical additives.
  • Eat ama-reducing foods. Favour vegetarian foods that are light, warm and cooked. Freshly made flatbreads, soups and dals, organic vegetables cooked with spices, and whole grains are ideal.
  • Include cooked prunes, figs, apples, pears, pineapple, papaya and cooked leafy greens, Brussels sprouts and cabbage.
  • Choose foods according to your body type (doshas) or imbalances. This will help regulate your digestive fire (agni).
  • Drink warm-to-hot water regularly throughout the day to flush water-soluble toxins out of the body’s cells and tissues.

 

 

2. Daily cleansing routine

  • You may need more sleep while cleansing. Going to bed by 10 pm and rising by 6 am
  • will aid the body’s natural purification processes and establish a routine of most effective sleep.
  • Daily exercise, such as Maharishi Yoga Asanas and walking, support purification by improving digestion and elimination. While following a self-cleanse programme, it’s best to avoid strenuous exercise.
  • Daily self-massage – abhyanga – loosens deeply-embedded impurities, allowing them to flow into the digestive tract from where they can be easily eliminated through the bowel. Always follow abhyanga with a warm (not hot) bath or shower.

 

 

3. Ama-Reducing Eating Habits

All through the year, especially while cleansing, it’s important to follow the ayurvedic eating guidelines for reducing ama (which is a by-product of incomplete digestion):

  •   Do not fast or skip meals during any phase of the cleansing programme.
  •   Eat at the same time every day so your agni (digestive ‘fire’) is strong and ready for the meal.
  •   Eat your main meal at noon and more lightly at breakfast and dinner.
  •   Eat while sitting down in a settled atmosphere; paying attention to the food as you eat (without the distractions of TV, phone or reading).
  •   Enjoy pleasant light conversation with friends or family (no business meetings or emotional discussions).
  •   Eat only when the previous meal has been digested.
  •   Sit quietly for a minute at the beginning of the meal (saying grace before meals is a traditional way to do this), and wait for a couple of minutes after eating before leaving the table. This gives your digestion a settled start.
  •   Eat to only three-quarters of your capacity.

4. Cleansing regimen — 45 days of diet, daily routine, eating habits and herbal food supplements

  1.   Follow the ama-reducing diet, daily routine and eating habits described for the preparation phase through the cleansing period.
  2.   Take one to two tablets of Triphala Rose or two to four capsules of Herbal Cleanse (MA602) before you go to bed each night to cleanse the bowel.
  3.   Take two tablets of Detox ( MA1010) morning and evening to cleanse the liver, the blood, the sweat glands and the elimination system. Take Herbal Cleanse ( MA602) instead if you have a Pitta imbalance.
  4.   Take two tablets of Organic Genitrac (MA7002) morning and evening. This will purify the urinary tract and help flush out toxins through the urine.

(Note: If you take Amrit Kalash, cut your dosage in half when on the cleansing programme. Also, it is best not to combine Detox(MA1010) with Radiant Skin(MA926), because these formulations have overlapping actions and benefits.)

 

 

5. Post-Cleansing Routine and Rasayanas

  • After the 45 days of cleansing, you should feel much lighter, more blissful and more energetic. You may even have shed some unwanted weight. Give yourself some time to gradually transition back to your normal routine and eating habits. Gradually add heavier foods to your diet, and be sure to get enough rest for a few days after cleansing is over. Follow your normal ayurvedic routine and the recommended diet for your body type or imbalances.
  •   Take Rasayanas (ayurvedic formulas for overall health, vitality and longevity) such as Amrit Kalash (MA4 and MA5) and Vital Woman(MA5923) or Vital Man(MA924). Now that the channels of your body (called shrotas in Ayurveda) that deliver nutrients to the cells are clear, these Rasayanas will deeply nourish and rejuvenate your entire physiology.