HP Oliver Becker (D)

Learn and discuss with famous Vaidyas of traditional Ayurveda!

In the tradition of Ayurveda, personal instruction within a trusting teacher-student relationship is highly valued to impart deep knowledge and enhance the personal development of the aspiring physician or therapist.

Following this ancient Gurukula tradition, we have invited outstanding teachers to meet with our students and alumni to share their knowledge analogous to this ancient approach. The professors and medical practitioners will share their special perspective and experience on a topic and delve into the therapeutic intricacies and philosophical dimension of Ayurveda.

The Gurukul is free of charge and exclusive for alumni and students of the European Academy of Ayurveda.

- Exclusive and free of charge for all graduates and current participants of the medicine trainings at the European Academy for Ayurveda and the Heilpraktikerschule Lucerne -

You are an essential part of the REAA family. With this in mind, we would very much like to strengthen our bond and are hosting this meeting. After you complete your training with us, you will be actively involved in the field. We believe that you have some exciting success stories to tell. We would be happy to in our big academic family at share.

The alumni reunion is also a unique opportunity, Questions from your daily Ayurveda practice to clarify with a real capacity. In this session, Prof. Dr. S.N. Gupta will address special patient cases that you bring to the Alumni Meeting. Active participation is strongly encouraged! Get fresh inspiration for your work with Ayurveda and Gain confidence in diagnosis and treatment.

And of course, the alumni meeting is the ideal platform to to meet colleagues from the study time again and to make new contacts. Look forward to meeting, exchanging and taking another step on your path with Ayurveda - of course in a relaxed, friendly and cheerful atmosphere.

Therapy (cikitsā) in Āyurveda is a comprehensive concept in which different treatment approaches are combined.

Basically, Āyurveda differentiates three approaches to disease treatment:
1. daivavyapāśraya-cikitsā: "subtle" therapies.
2. yuktivyapāśraya-cikitsā: rational therapies.
3. sattvāvajaya: psychological therapies

Daivavyapāśraya-cikitsā includes forms of therapy whose mode of action cannot be rationally explained on the basis of ordinary worldly logic. The term daiva can be interpreted in two ways in this context: on the one hand, as results of past actions (principle of cause and effect) and, on the other hand, as subtle factors beyond the control of man. Daiva, from an Ayurvedic point of view, can also have a pathological effect and thus cause disease. The classical Ayurvedic texts point out that conventional, rational forms of therapy do not work or work insufficiently when a disease is caused by daiva.

Examples of daivavyapāśraya therapies include prayers, mantra (recitation of certain sound combinations), homa (Vedic fire rituals), maṇi (gemstones), a way of life based on ethical principles (niyama), upavāsa (spiritual fasting), pilgrimage, etc.

The field of yuktivyapāśraya-cikitsā includes all forms of therapy whose mode of action can be explained rationally, i.e., on the basis of ordinary worldly (quasi-scientific) logic. The term yukti can be translated in this context as "logic" or "logical reasoning.
Yuktivyapāśraya therapies are further subdivided into cause prevention (nidāna-parivarjana), purification (saṃśodhana: internal and external cleansing and surgery), and palliation (saṃśamana: diet, behavior, and medication).

The sattvāvajaya therapy pillar includes psychic/psychiatric therapies designed to enable the patient's mind to withdraw from harmful objects (e.g., negative ways of thinking, traumatic memories, or distressing emotions) and gradually return to mental clarity, resilience, and positivity. The prerequisite for this is the gradual strengthening of sattva-guṇa and the reduction of excessive rajo- and tamo-guṇa in the patient's mind. To achieve this, Ayurveda uses a complex psychotherapeutic concept in which diverse therapeutic elements are combined.

In the lecture, the three therapeutic approaches of Ayurveda outlined above will be further elaborated.

Āyurveda has developed its own classification of body components with the concepts of doṣas, agnis, dātus, upadhātus, malas and srotas. These can be divided into two groups:

1.  functional components (doṣas and agnis)
2. structural components (dhātus, upadhātus, malas and srotas)

Āyurveda distinguishes seven dhātus which, together with the seven upadhātus, form the essential structural components of the body:

Seven dhātus:

• rasa: plasma, leukocytes and platelets
• racta: erythrocytes
• māṃsa: muscle tissue
• medas: adipose tissue
• asthi: bone tissue
• majjā: bone marrow and brain cells
• śukra: male principles (male hormones, spermatozoa).

 

Each of these dhātus has specific functions in the body that are essential to physiology, some of which cannot be derived from their anatomical features.

Seven upadhātus:

• stanya: breast milk forming tissue
• ārtava: female principles (female hormones, eggs, menstrual blood)
• kaṇḍarā: tendons
• sirā: blood vessels
• tvak: skin
• vasā: intramuscular fats
• snāyu: ligaments and nerves

 

With the concept of dhātu-pariṇāma (process of dhātu transformation), Āyurveda also describes the formation of the essential structural body components (dhātus, upadhātus and ojas).

The term dhātu-pariṇāma refers to the gradual process of transforming nutrients into new body cells. In this process, agni is the central transforming principle. Agni is a thermal principle that carries out all kinds of splitting and transformation processes in the body. The correction of dhātu-pariṇāma is the overall therapeutic goal of Ayurvedic medicine.

The presentation will further elaborate on the aspects outlined above.

The Ayurvedic technical term āma is used in different contexts, a circumstance that repeatedly leads to misunderstandings. Thus, the term āma can denote a pathological metabolic intermediate, an accumulation of waste products or a certain stage of disease.

Of particular relevance to the lecture topic is the former meaning: āma as a pathological (i.e., abnormal) metabolic intermediate that arises due to a weakened jāṭharāgnis in the digestive tract, spreads throughout the body via rasa, and in this way causes disease (including autoimmune disease).

Simply put, āma can be thought of as improperly digested food. The central digestive fire, weakened by certain factors in diet and lifestyle, is no longer able to carry out the normal digestion of food. Thus, incomplete structures ("immature" material substances or molecules called āma) arise in the digestive tract, which have a tendency to combine with any body components (doṣas, dhātus, upadhātus, and srotas) and interfere with their normal functioning.

Āma thus causes pathological changes in healthy structures and functions in the body. In addition, āma also interferes with the normal effect of therapies and medications. It is therefore important to first carefully examine each patient for āma before starting any therapy and to eliminate this, if present, by specific therapeutic measures (laṅghana and āma-pācana: agni relief and āma decoction) before starting other therapies.

Important: Only sick people can have āma, but not every sick person has āma.

The following clinical manifestations indicate the presence of āma in a patient:
Loss of appetite, stiffness, heaviness, unexplained fatigue and sluggishness, digestive disturbances and altered bala (altered resistance and immunity).

Due to the latter symptom, it seems only logical to also treat autoimmune processes on the basis of the Ayurvedic āma concept. The clinical successes confirm the correctness of this assumption.

The lecture will explain the main features of the āma concept, the therapeutic approach to āma and its particular implementation in autoimmune diseases.

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The Ayurvedic technical term rasayana can be simply interpreted as an anti-aging measure. Behind it lies a complex and proven concept that uses different practical approaches and is applied both preventively and therapeutically.

Important components of rasayana therapy are:
- daily routine measures including healthy activities
- healthy eating
- a lifestyle adapted to the qualities of the seasons
- internal cleansing of the body
- Substances with rasayana effect
- ethical living

The Caraka-samhita, one of the most important classical Ayurvedic texts, defines rasayana as a means to achieve excellence of rasa, etc. Central to this definition is the concept of dhatu-parinama (transformation of dhatus), the complex process of transforming nutrients from food into body structure. This process takes place continuously in the body and ensures that our essential structural body components (dhatus, upadhatus and ojas) can regenerate continuously.

Ideally, a rasayana treatment produces the following general effects in the body:
- Balance of the dosas
- control of agni, in particular the dhatvagnis
- normal function of the srotas
- specific nutrition of the dhatus

This results in a cell regenerating effect.

Certain substances also have a rasayana effect. In the ayurvedic substance teachings dravyaguna-vijnana the term rasayana is used as a special seal of quality, a specific pharmacological effect (karma) or special expertise of only a few substances from the field of food, medicinal plants, minerals and metals.

The lecture will present some important rasāyana substances from the field of food and phytotherapeutics:
- Cow's milk
- Ghee
- Amalaki (Emblica officinalis)
- Guduci (Tinospora cordifolia)
- Mandukaparni (Hydrocotyle asiatica)

Yoga as a therapeutic element in Ayurveda medicine - overview and example from clinical practice
Oliver Becker Dipl.-Päd. HP
Ayurveda and Yoga originate from the Vedic tradition. Both systems pursue the same goal, namely to enable people to live a happy life on all levels. Ayurveda is more moderate, even worldly oriented, the yogic approach is more strict, focussing on the spiritual liberation (mokṣa) of the human being. While Ayurveda medicine focuses primarily on the health of the body in addition to the consideration of psychological elements, the yoga tradition is a comprehensive science of the mind with a variety of approaches to systematic mental development.

Ayurveda has always used a variety of yoga elements both preventively (svasthavṛtta = health maintenance) and therapeutically (cikitsā = therapy). In fact, continuous yoga practice is an integral part of an Ayurvedic way of life and can therefore not really be called a therapeutic element. Thus, Ayurveda recommends the regular morning practice of the following yoga techniques as part of daily routine (dinacaryā): jala-neti (yogic nasal rinsing to prevent problems of the upper respiratory tract), āsana (physical exercises), prāṇāyāma (breathing exercises) and dhyāna (meditation). These form a comprehensive daily fitness program for body and mind.

In addition, the classical Ayurvedic texts vividly emphasize the great importance of a morally superior way of life (so-called ācāra-rasāyana; the practice of values that are generally considered good) as a foundation for stable health, recommendations that are called yama or niyama in yoga. The Caraka-saṃhitā (with the most important classical Ayurveda text) even emphasises the anti-aging effect of such behaviours as not hurting other beings, truthfulness, helpfulness, compassion, self-control etc.
Vegetarianism is an important foundation for the successful practice of higher yoga, which strives for the subtle unfolding of the mind. Even though Ayurveda does not explicitly promote vegetarianism, Ayurveda considers a vegetarian lifestyle to be extremely beneficial to health.
The above examples show the high value Ayurveda places on regular yoga practice as the foundation for a long, healthy and happy life.
Ayurveda also uses the concept of the individual constitution (prakṛti) The mental constitution (mānasa-prakṛti) is determined on the basis of the dominance of triguṇas (three qualities = sattva, rajas and tamas). This theory originates from the saṃkhya system, on which Yoga is also based.

In Ayurveda medicine, disease treatment is carried out through a synthesis of rational (yuktivyapāśraya), subtle (daivavyapāśraya) and psychological (sattvāvajaya) approaches.
Especially in ayurvedic psychotherapy, among other things, the entire range of yoga instruments is used to clear and tone the mind of the patient. This is intended to create a favourable (sattva-promoting and rajas-tamas-controlling) mental milieu and thus improve the effect of other psychological therapy methods.

Ayurveda medicine also uses techniques of the āsana 6 yoga (āsana and prāṇāyāma) in the therapy of certain chronic diseases of the body (such as diabetes mellitus, ankylosing spondylitis, essential hypertension, bronchial asthma etc.) within the framework of rational therapy. However, its application is more complementary to the support of other specific Ayurvedic therapies such as internal and external cleansing procedures, nutritional and orderly therapy and drug recommendations. Especially the breathing techniques of yoga are an effective complementary therapeutic tool for a variety of problems, especially cardiovascular diseases, diseases of the respiratory tract, stress disorders as well as psychosomatic and psychological problems.

In the workshop, the above contents will be explained in more detail and finally rounded off with an example (patient case) from clinical practice.

According to WHO estimates, the number of diabetics worldwide has almost doubled from 4.7% in 1980 to 8.5% in 2014. The majority of patients suffer from type 2 diabetes. The number of type 2 diabetics increases with the extent of over-nutrition.

This results in major challenges for patients and the health care system alike. In diabetics, the complication rate for myocardial infarction, heart failure and stroke is about 2 to 3 times higher. The risk of other dangerous secondary diseases (e.g. diabetic foot syndrome, diabetic retinopathy, nephropathy and neuropathy) is also high. Diabetes mellitus is a disease that significantly limits the life expectancy and quality of life of patients. Therapy, especially of complications, is costly.

In the Ayurvedic source texts the classical clinical picture madhumeha is found as the equivalent of diabetes mellitus. Madhumeha can be translated as "excessive (honey)sweet urine flow". As in conventional medicine, Ayurveda differentiates between two subspecies: kṛśa-pramehī (corresponds to type 1 diabetes) and sthūla-pramehī (corresponds to type 2 diabetes). Both types are considered prognostically incurable, but therapeutically controllable (so-called yāpya classification).

Also from an Ayurvedic point of view, diabetes mellitus is a lifestyle disease. For the development of madhumeha, Ayurveda describes various etiological factors (hetus) from the areas of nutrition and behaviour. Also a genetic component (especially in type 1) is mentioned in the classical texts. The described causes lead to the provocation of doṣas (especially vāta and kapha), which finally, due to a disturbance of the transport spaces (srotas), locate themselves in various weakened structures (dūṣyas) of the body and damage them. Madhumeha is a multi-organ disease. In diabetes all dhātus as dūṣyas (damaged body components) are involved in the pathogenesis. Also ojas is involved. This shows the complexity of the disease.

Despite this complexity, Ayurvedic medicine offers effective, clinically proven therapy concepts for diabetes mellitus as well as for the chronic complications of the disease. Also in the field of prevention Ayurveda offers numerous simple but effective recommendations to prevent the development of diabetes mellitus. Especially for people with a family history of diabetes, following preventive recommendations is especially important.

Although Ayurveda cannot reverse an existing insulin obligation, the insulin dose can often be significantly reduced by Ayurveda therapy and a healthy lifestyle of the patient.

As proven therapy elements for diabetes, Ayurvedic medicine uses above all physical cleansing therapies (śodhana), various remedies (especially with bitter = antidiabetic taste), an individualised nutrition and order therapy, rasāyana therapies as well as techniques for mental harmonisation. For the therapy of the chronic complications of diabetes mellitus there are specific therapy procedures.

If the diabetes is very pronounced, an in-patient therapy is initially preferable. Later, or if the disease is milder, outpatient therapy is also possible.

In the workshop the above contents will be explained in more detail and further elaborated. The etiopathogenesis, symptomatology, therapy strategy as well as the therapeutic principles of diabetes mellitus from an Ayurvedic point of view will be presented. Preventive recommendations are also addressed.