Taking Your Maharishi Ayurveda Products
How to make the most of your Maharishi Ayurveda products
Maharishi’s Vedic Approach to Health
Health and happiness are affected by many factors. Maharishi Ayurveda (MAV) identifies the most important of these and advises how to use them all to promote balance and integration. This holistic approach is Maharishi’s Vedic Approach to Health. You will get maximum benefit from your Maharishi Ayurveda products in the context of this knowledge.
The purpose of Maharishi’s Vedic Approach to Health is to enable everyone to develop the state of perfect health – that state in which ones inner genius is fully enlivened and life is lived to its full potential. This goal is approached without strain by practical, natural and cumulative steps that bring life more and more into harmony with Natural Law.
The key recommendations of Maharishi Vedic Approach to Health
Index:
- Well begun is half done
- Development of consciousness
- Rest
- Exercise
- Diet and Digestion
- Maharishi Ayurveda Food Supplements
- When to take your MAV preparation
- How much to take
- If you are taking more than one food supplement
- For how long to use the product
- Anupan or vehicle for food supplements
- Pregnancy and beast feeding
- Storage and lifetime
- Safety precautions
- Negative Effects - side effects, adverse reactions and drug interactions
- Other aspects of Maharishi’s Vedic Approach to Health
- How to make fresh yoghurt for lassi
- Further information
The ideal first step, whatever your state of health, is to have a consultation with a practitioner trained in Maharishi Ayurveda. From the start you will have clear guidance tailored to your individual needs, on diet, lifestyle, daily routine and food supplements. See Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre for contact details.
A very valuable tool to promote health is Transcendental Meditation™, a simple technique through which ones thinking and actions become spontaneously healthier. With regular practice of this technique one tends to do more of what is useful to health and less of what is damaging (Transcendental Meditation™, founded by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, is a programme for the Development of Consciousness, which, in the UK, is available only from Maharishi Foundation™, registered educational charity number 270157. see Transcendental Meditation or phone 08705 143733).
Adequate rest is very important for health and rest before midnight is twice as valuable as rest after midnight. Maharishi Ayurveda recommends that you go to bed before 10pm and get up before 6am.
It is helpful to exercise for at least 30 minutes
daily up to half your capacity preferably in the morning.
Choose exercise appropriate to your body type, age and the season (See
Vata, Pitta & Kapha Self-Evaluation Questionnaire
to determine your body type) - people of Vata body
type need less exercise, so lighter activities such as walking are best.
Pitta types need moderate amounts, swimming and outdoor activities, for
example, and Kapha types need more intense exercise, such as jogging and
aerobics, in order to stay in balance. Increase your exercise in winter and
spring and reduce it in hot weather. Children have more capacity for
exercise and older people need less.
Ayurveda says ‘Let food be your medicine’. This means that proper diet is a major tool in maintaining and promoting health. Ayurveda provides a simple general framework for guiding diet. As this diet varies with the seasons regular consultations with your MAV practitioner are recommended.
Ayurveda emphasises the great importance of a good digestion for health and holds that how and when you eat is as important as what you eat. It recommends:
- Eat in a settled atmosphere and savour your food – sit, don’t stand and avoid TV, radio and reading. Let your attention be on the food.
- Be regular in your meal times and eat your main meal in the middle of the day when the digestive fire is at its strongest. Eat lightly in the evening at least 2 hours before bedtime. Do not eat until the previous meal has been digested.
- Eat freshly prepared food, preferably organic. Avoid GM food, leftovers, pre-cooked and fast food.
- Eat moderately: avoid overeating and do not skip meals.
- Eat a balanced diet preferably with food of all six tastes every day. This will help reduce cravings.
- Minimise heavy foods (e.g. meats, especially red meat, fish, eggs, aged cheese), refrigerated and ice-cold foods and drinks (they depress digestion), raw vegetables (easier to digest when cooked) and alcohol.
- Avoid sour foods (yoghurt, soft and hard cheese, buttermilk) at night. (Lassi is ok).
- It is advisable to leave 1 ½ - 2 hours after meals before exercising vigorously but a gentle stroll 15 minutes after a meal aids digestion.
For further information about Maharishi Vedic Approach to Health in general and diet in particular see Dietary Guidelines. The following books are recommended: Contemporary Ayurveda by Dr H. Sharma and Dr C. Clark, and Conquering Chronic Disease Through Maharishi Vedic Medicine by Dr Kumuda Reddy.
Maharishi Ayurveda Food Supplements
All food is essentially a source of order and intelligence and Maharishi Ayurveda preparations particularly harness the intelligence of plants to increase the orderly functioning of mind and body. To maximise the intelligence of the plants they are harvested at their best, processed with great care and skilfully combined in time-tested ways. How they are used is also important.
When to take your MAV preparation
For best results take your preparation very regularly and at the same time each day. In some cases the time to take the preparation is advised on the label. If you miss the recommended time it is better to take the preparation anyway rather than miss altogether. In case the advice is that the supplement should not to be taken on an empty stomach and the stomach is empty then be sure to take it with or after a light snack.
Adults:
The dose on the label is for adults except where the product is specifically for children. Unless you have been advised otherwise by a Maharishi Ayurveda practitioner or other health advisor it is best not to exceed the recommended dose.
Children:
The general recommendations for children are:
- 10 years+ adult dose
- 4-10 years 1/2 dose
- 2-4 years 1/4 dose
- 6 months-2 years 1/8th dose (for children below 12 months it would be wise to consult a physician.)
The Elderly are advised to take the lower dose where a range of doses is recommended e.g. if 1-2 tablets 2-3 times a day is recommended use 1 tablet 2 or 3 times a day.
The Infirm are advised to consult a Maharishi Ayurveda physician for appropriate recommendations before taking any herbal preparations. Alternatively consult your GP.
If you are taking more than one food supplement
In general if two or more preparations are to be taken at the same time of day, then ideally the doses should be separated by 30-60 minutes (or 15 minutes if time is short). This will allow the body to respond best to each preparation. However, ultimately, it is better to take the preparations together rather than miss one altogether.
In general it is not recommended to take more than three MAV food supplements concurrently unless advised to do so. This advice does not include the Maharishi Amrit Kalash food supplements, which are considered to be valuable for nearly everyone at all times and to increase the effectiveness of other preparations.
For how long to use the product
The time required to produce the desired result will vary depending on your state of health, for how long it has existed and on various factors such as how healthy is your routine and diet. It is often necessary to take the supplement for at least 3 months without interruption and to continue for 2-3 months thereafter to stabilise the benefits.
When you want to stop taking the supplement it is best to reduce the dosage gradually over several days, especially so if you have been taking it for a long time.
Anupan or vehicle for food supplements
Some preparations are to be taken with a specific vehicle or anupanam/anupan, which will be specified on the label. The anupan facilitates the action of the preparation and allows it to enliven a more profound level of the body’s intelligence. If the recommended anupan is not well tolerated or is not available take a smaller amount or use hot or warm water instead.
Solid anupans such as candy sugar (shakara) should be taken in amounts similar to the recommended dose of the preparation. For liquid anupans 1⁄2 cupful is ideal. If this cannot be tolerated a lesser amount may be taken.
Tablets may be sucked, chewed or swallowed directly, followed by the anupan if this is liquid or the anupan and a sip of warm water if the anupan is solid.
Common anupans include:
- Water: if hot or warm water is specified this means boiled water that has been cooled to drinking temperature. Even if no anupan is specified it is useful to take the supplement with a sip of water.
- Milk: milk is best boiled and then cooled. If no temperature is specified it should be warm.
- Coffee: this means genuine coffee from coffee beans. Decaffeinated and instant coffees are not recommended but the MAV drink Raja’s Cup may be substituted.
- Honey: a 1/2 -1 teaspoon of honey should be taken. Please note that according to Maharishi Ayurveda Honey should never be heated above body temperature (400 C). Heating not only diminishes the beneficial qualities but also creates undesirable effects on the physiology. It is wise to assume that uncrystallised honey has been heated unless it is labelled otherwise.
- Lassi: one part plain fresh yoghurt blended with two parts water. It is strongly recommended that the yoghurt be completely fresh – not refrigerated and consumed within 24 hours of making. See instructions below.
- Candy sugar (rock sugar): made in the Ayurvedic way by repeated solution and crystallisation and called shakara is ideal. It is said to balance all three doshas.
The general rule is that it is better not to take any preparations during the first trimester of pregnancy, even Ayurvedic preparations. However Ayurvedic preparations for external application may be used during the first trimester.
In general Maharishi Ayurveda internal preparations do not cause any problem during the first trimester of pregnancy. Where there is even a remote possibility of a problem during pregnancy there is a warning to that effect on the preparation label.
There are several circumstances, however, in which ladies may be advised by an Ayurvedic physician to take an Ayurvedic preparation during the first trimester.
The Maharishi Amrit Kalash supplements (MA4, MA5, MA77) are rasayanas (something that enlivens the essence of life). They are very safe and nutritious to the growing foetus and are recommended after the first trimester.
There are no MAV food supplements that need to be avoided by breast-feeding mothers (and there are preparations that support lactation).
In order to maintain the intelligence and effectiveness of the herbal preparations as much as possible keep them in a tightly closed container in a dry, cool and dark place.
Maharishi Ayurveda preparations are inherently safe; however they should be kept out of the reach of children and the warnings on the labels observed. If a child eats a lot of a preparation serious consequences are unlikely but it would be wise to consult your Maharishi Ayurveda practitioner or if they are not available your family doctor. Your doctor may wish to contact us at phone +44 (0)1695 51015 or map@maharishi.co.uk for full details about the product.
Negative Effects - side effects, adverse reactions and drug interactions
The UK Medicines and Health products Regulatory Agency
(MHRA) has requested that any possible negative effects of herbal medicines
be reported. The safety record of Maharishi Ayurveda Products has been
excellent. In over fifteen years use of our time-tested balanced herbal
formulae in UK negative effects have been rare and minor - principally
individual sensitivities to particular herbs. (In contrast side-benefits are
common).
If you experience discomfort when using a Maharishi Ayurveda product try to
establish whether there is a causal relationship between what you are
experiencing and the product. Discontinue using the product for 2-3 days or
until the effect has become less or disappeared. Then start using the
product again at half the dose. If the negative effect returns or increases
again, ideally repeat the process of stopping and starting once more before
reporting it.
If a practitioner has recommended the product to you
please report the effect to her/him. Otherwise please report it to Maharishi
Ayurveda Products (see contact details below). We will request you to
provide some details about yourself and what happened. N.B. all reports made
to the MHRA will be entirely anonymous.
If it appears that using your Maharishi Ayurveda Product has influenced
(positively or negatively) the effectiveness of a pharmaceutical medicine
please inform the doctor who prescribed the pharmaceutical medicine. We
would appreciate it if you also report it to us.
Other aspects of Maharishi’s Vedic Approach to Health
- Music therapy: Maharishi Gandharva Veda & www.gandharva-veda.com
- Designing houses for maximum health: www.mgc-vastu.com
- Growing food for maximum health to both the consumer and the producer: www.mvoai.org
How to make fresh yoghurt for lassi
- Boil milk for 5-10 minutes (the milk may be boiled with a slice of fresh ginger).
- Let the milk cool to around 40 degree Celsius (about body temperature).
- Place the milk in the Yoghurt Box, vacuum flask or yoghurt machine.
- Add yoghurt starter (1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon of ordinary live commercial yoghurt is the simplest).
- Leave it undisturbed for 5-7 hours. Do not shake or stir.
- Switch off the yoghurt machine or open the vacuum flask. Leave at room temperature until used at lunchtime.
- Do not refrigerate.
Perfect yoghurt is well formed (of semi-solid
consistency which easily breaks up) and it is not yet (very) sour.
Improperly formed yoghurt, which is sticky, is not good for health nor is
yoghurt stored for more than one day.
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For further information about the products mentioned above and on how to order them see How to Order or call 01695 51015 and for information about the Maharishi Ayurveda Health Centre see www.MaharishiAyurveda.co.uk or call 01695 51008.