What Is Panchakarma?
Panchakarma literally means FIVE THERAPIES and comes under the heading of sodhana therapy (purification or detoxification therapy). If something upsets our stomach, we tend to vomit. If the intestines are affected, we get diarrhea. Phlegm is eliminated through nose and mouth and so on because these are the natural channels of cleansing the body. Ayurveda recommends to use these natural channels of cleansing in an increased, but controlled way to cleanse the system.
The five procedures which come under PANCHAKARMA are
Pancha karma
What it means?
What it treats?
Vamana
Emesis (inducing vomiting)
Ultimate cleansing for stomach and Kapha (water factors)
Virechana
Purgation (also known as purge; inducing diarrhea)
Helps to cleanse the whole gut, ultimate cleansing for Pitta (fire factors)
Sneha Vasti
Oil Enema (lubricating enema)
Helps to cleanse pelvis, ultimate cleansing of Vata (air factors)
Kashaya Vasti
Herbal enema (cleansing enema)
Known as Chikitsardh- the half of all therapies. Helps to cleanse Vata, addresses Pitta, and Kapha as well.
Nasya
Nasal cleanse
The cleanse for head and neck
PANCHAKARMA FOR WELLNESS
Ayurveda recommends seasonal cleanse for anyone who is healthy. Panchakarma (Ayurvedic detox) according to ritus (seasons) are indicated for healthy individuals. Ayurvedic detox forms a part of Ayurvedic seasonal regimes (Ritucharya). According to our body type, we naturally tend to increase certain doshas in some seasons. If not addressed timely, they can accumulate causing problems later. So, Ayurveda recommends seasonal cleansing for all healthy individuals to maintain and boost health. Depending upon the body type, previous imbalances and diseases tendencies, the pancha karma recommended for a person can vary. Practicing pancha karma according to ritus (seasons) go a long way in maintaining health and vigor.
Liv Ayurveda offers pancha karma plans for healthy individuals that are relaxing, affordable and that can be easily done.
The five procedures which come under PANCHAKARMA are
VAMANA
Emesis (inducing vomiting)- Ultimate cleansing for stomach and Kapha (water factors)
Virechana
Purgation (also known as purge; inducing diarrhea)- Helps to cleanse the whole gut, ultimate cleansing for Pitta (fire factors)
SNEHA VASTI
Oil Enema (lubricating enema)- Helps to cleanse pelvis, ultimate cleansing of Vata (air factors)
KASHAYA VASTI
Herbal enema (cleansing enema)
Known as Chikitsardh- the half of all therapies. Helps to cleanse Vata, addresses Pitta, and Kapha as well.
VAMANA
Emesis (inducing vomiting)- Ultimate cleansing for stomach and Kapha (water factors)
Virechana
Purgation (also known as purge; inducing diarrhea)- Helps to cleanse the whole gut, ultimate cleansing for Pitta (fire factors)
SNEHA VASTI
Oil Enema (lubricating enema)- Helps to cleanse pelvis, ultimate cleansing of Vata (air factors)
There are two ancient schools of thoughts in Ayurveda; school of medicine (Atreya parampara) and school of surgery (Dhanwantari parampara). The school of surgery considers oil enema and herbal enema under a single heading, and introduces a fifth procedure known as Rakta moksha (blood-letting). It helps to cleanse blood and Pitta (fire factors). Blood-letting is not allowed to be practiced by Ayurveda practitioners in Australia.
Ayurveda considers the factors of body, mind and soul while choosing a treatment and each treatment differs from person to person because Ayurveda treats the patient not the disease. Pancha karma is chosen according to the disease/ imbalance, sites/ organs affected, body type (prakruti), strength (bala), metabolic fire (agni) and the season. The herbal combinations, the intensity and frequency also vary from person to person. This is what makes pancha karma unique and the thorough cleansing helps to cleanse the whole system substantially. When the Pancha karma therapy is done according to the principles of Ayurveda, the patients usually describe a feeling of a general well-being.
BENEFITS OF PANCHAKARMA
If you are healthy or ill, you can benefit from Pancha karma (of course, the plans would be different) as Pancha karma aims at cleansing the body from the accumulated doshas and toxins. The main objectives of panchakarma are
How Pancha karma is planned:
At Liv Ayurveda, Pancha karma is planned after a consultation with our experienced Ayurveda physicians. If you are looking for a holistic Ayurveda plan for your health condition, it is recommended to begin the journey with an initial consultation (please tag initial consultation here). Your practitioner will give you a detailed Ayurveda plan of diet, lifestyle, herbs, massage therapies and detox. However usually initial
consultation doesn’t involve a detailed discussion for detox as the body may not be ready for that. Once your body is ready for Pancha karma, you will be booked in for a detox consult (please tag detox consult here) where the recommended plan will be explained. Taking into consideration your practical situation, our practitioners will help you to find a plan that works for your health condition and body type.
If you are visiting Liv Ayurveda just for a cleansing or to plan your seasonal cleanse, you are recommended to book a detox consult (please tag detox consult here)where our Ayurveda practitioner will assess you and recommend the plan needed. Our practitioners will help you to find a plan that works for your health condition, body type and practical situations.
PANCHA KARMA HELPS TO
- Balance the TRIDOSHAS- vata, pitta and kapha
- Restore metabolic fire (Agni)
- Relieve symptoms and diseases
- Correct imbalances
- Elimination of toxins (ama)
- Improves mental health
- Reduce stress
- Boost immunity and energy
- Slow down the aging process
- Relieve insomnia
- Increases ojas (essence of tissues) and immunity
- Improve longevity
HOW PANCHAKARMA IS DONE
As mentioned earlier, Pancha karma is the process which eliminates toxins from the body and thereby helps to bring back the balance of the body. For an effective cleansing it is important to process the toxins properly before doing Pancha karma and also to nourish the body and ease back to a normal and healthy life after the process of Pancha karma. Taking all these factors into consideration, Pancha karma is done in three stages as
POORVA KARMA
Preparation for Pancha karma. Involves processing toxins and preparing the body for the cleanse. The pre-procedural protocol consists of four main steps and these are to be done meticulously to achieve…
PRADHANA KARMA
The actual cleanse: After proper administration of the pre-procedural steps, we now move on to the main detoxification procedure…
POST-PROCEDURAL PROTOCOL OF PANCHAKARMA
After the main procedure of pancha karma is done, Ayurveda recommends to slowly ease back to normal lifestyle by taking the same number of the days so that body rest and get time allow time to absorb the benefits of Pancha karma. After Pancha karma body can be at ease with slow digestion. So a person is recommended to follow an easy and clean diet and lifestyle according to the principles of Ayurveda to bring the best out of Pancha karma. This is called samsarjana kriya (diet after Panchakarma).
In samsarjana kriya, the aim is to gradually alter the diet from lighter to heavier foods. It is recommended begin with warm liquid meals to solid foods. This is also known as peyadikrama in Ayurveda.
