Traditional Indian medicine.
A traditional Hindu system of healing that reviews a person’s state of health and lifestyle and recommends treatment based on herbal products, dietary control and spiritual practices.
The traditional natural system of medicine of India based on lifestyle interventions and natural therapies. Mental techniques such as meditation are employed for prevention and treatment, as are individually prescribed dietary, sleeping, bodily posture, and exercise programs. Herbal preparations are prescribed as well as various methods to eliminate toxic products in the body. A healthy social life is encouraged. Formal education programs in ayurvedic medicine, providing continuing education credit, are available for medical practitioners in the United States. Also called ayurveda.
An ancient Hindu medical system, promoted as a means of restoring balance and health by harmonizing mind and body. Ayurvedic medicine, also known as Ayurveda, uses herbal remedies, massage therapy, yoga, and pulse diagnosis. It bases its beliefs on five elements (fire, air, earth, water, and ether), which combine to influence a classification of body types that must be harmonized with nature to maintain well-being.
In Sanskrit the “science of life,” an ancient Indian medical system, holistic and preventative, of supposedly divine origin. Ayurveda is based on the collected works of various authors, most of which date back to 1500 B.C.E. While some works are relatively more recent and their authors known, many of the older scripts’ authors are either mythical or anonymous.
These classic ayurvedic volumes, some of which are still used as textbooks at Indian universities today, contain extensive case histories, detailed surgical records and illustrations, philosophical wisdom, and information on herbalism, anatomy, hygiene, causation, pharmacology, toxicology, and disease therapy. The works of Ayurveda represent humankinds first and perhaps most comprehensive set of medical sourcebooks.
An ancient healing system derived from India that seeks to establish a state of balance and harmony between the individual and the natural world.