Ayurveda, Vedic Astrology & Meditation: Completing the tools of the Social Scientist
Ayurveda, Vedic Astrology, and Meditation Completing the Tools of the Social Scientist by Swami Sada Shiva Tirtha Over 5,000 years ago, the mother of all sciences, India's `Vedic' system was organized and developed. So comprehensive was this system that it included holistic healing for the body, mind and spirit.
Midwifery, surgery and even the developmental stages of an embryo were known to the seers or Rishis of the time. Further, knowledge of the mind was highly developed. The Vedic healing systems of Ayurveda and Jyotish Astrology said that the first cause of any mental or physical illness is a loss of faith in the Divine.
In other words, if one does not see all things, Self, others, etc. as Divinity, then one is suffering from a lack of grace.
Lacking this experience causes the feeling of incompleteness. Therefore, if one feels incomplete, one is susceptible to weakness or to developing more specific forms of illness.
In Psychological and Sociological terms, feeling that something is lacking in one's life is a cause of low self-esteem. As we know, low self-worth is the root of all mental imbalances or illness. The psychological ground is made fertile for thoughts of co-dependency. That is, `if I am lacking something, let me find someone who can fill this void for me'.
The Vedic sciences offer modalities for developing and maintaining mental health through the body, mind, and spirit.
Ayurveda, notes that our mental health is directly effected by our physical health. If the body is ill or imbalanced, it causes mental angst, anger and impatience, and lethargy. Through the proper use of herbs, nutrition and lifestyle, the body may be kept healthy. Convalescence is at the root of all mental and spiritual health.
This topic has been discussed at length in earlier articles in this paper.
Jyotish, Vedic Astrology, offers an understanding how past karma, planetary influences and faith in the Divine influence ones' mental health. There are three unique values to these insights. First, it uncovers reasons for the imbalances that exist beyond the scope of childhood. This allows for a shift in priorities. Instead of a lengthy analysis and discussion, the emphasis of the session quickly and directly uncovers the cause of the illness.
Thus, the meeting becomes more active, offering remedies for the causative factors of the illness. The topic of discussion then revolves around new insights and healing awareness. Second, the combination of ease of discovery of the problem, and remedial measures creates hope and enthusiasm for the client.
This creates in them the desire to enter or continue the counseling process. Finally, it removes the ideas of `guilt' and `stigma' from the counseling process.
Again, this makes those who are frightened, leery or embarrassed to experience counseling, to freely undergo the process because there is no `personal' blame associated with whatever they may find out.
Let us take several case studies to understand how the process works. Potential client Jerry has cancer. He is skeptical of the traditional Freudian analysis process. Further, he is afraid he may find out that he did something `bad' to cause the cancer.
Maybe he feels it is just too painful to relive his childhood experiences. Jerry visits a counselor who employs Jyotish and Ayurvedic counseling methods. Upon having his astrological chart done he finds that Ketu, the south node of the Moon, responsible for radiation, cancer, etc., is adversely affecting his life.
Whatever the specific situations in his childhood or adult life, the underlying reason is Ketu's influence. It is this simple. There is no blame, no guilt.
The issue is uncovered quickly, and painlessly.
Next discussed are remedies to remove the malefic effects of Ketu so Jerry can live a healthier, radiation and cancer-free life. Ayurvedic herbs and foods, and Jyotish gems, yantras, mantras and more are pointed which will allow Jerry to effectively relieve Ketu's malefic effects. Further, Jerry will feel that he has a handle on the situation by following these constructive steps. A by product of this is that Jerry will realize he has the responsibility and ability to make his life better.
Susan is already seeing a psychologist to understand how her childhood experiences have caused her difficulties keeping a job as an adult. Jyotish can offer her several insights. First, the work she has completed in past lives will uncover strengths that she can use in this present life.
For example, Ketu may show her secret knowledge as a musician. She can apply this information towards her present career search. Second, the chart will lay open her innate or God-given talents that she may already be applying, or can begin to address.
This is known as dharma. Dharma means working in a field that is helpful to one's own spiritual and economic growth, and is also helpful to others, the earth and its creatures. Working in one's dharma means being employed in a career that one was born to function in.
If Susan tries to work in a career that is adharmic, or not exploiting her innate talents, she will feel incomplete and undergo a great deal of suffering. It is like trying to swim from America to Europe when a boat or plane will be a more suitable means of transportation.
Like that, Susan's development towards Self-Realization, the goal of life, will be more comfortable if she follows her dharma. I have found the results of such circumstances are that when one's dharma is pointed out to a client, they feel some validation of some `secret' belief they had.
Dharmic options always bring a great sense of joy and well being to the client, because they are callings. `Career' also means to proceed with great celerity or speed. If one is in a dead-end job, or a job that does not promote growth, then unhappiness and frustration develop in the person, instead of in their career.
So rather than belabor the childhood issue, we choose a more constructive and immediate approach to solve her problem. By expanding the definition of Susan's psychological makeup to include her cosmic or spiritual involvements with planets, and information of past karma, counseling is made more effective.
This gets Susan on track. Thus, incorporating Jyotish with traditional counseling, the therapist has the best of both worlds at their fingertips.
Joseph is seeing a therapist for mood swings, poor discrimination, and drug abuse. Again, whatever the personal events in his life that led to this situation, Jyotish adopts an `impersonal' or cosmic overview to instantly hone in on a non-threatening cause.
Usually the north node of the Moon, Rahu is the cause of such troubling experiences. The use of brain (tonic) herbs, gems and yantras for Rahu, etc. will begin to help Joseph make improvements in his mental health.
Most situations in life can be dealt with and explained through the planets. Relationships are usually affected by Venus and Mars, among other planets. Injury and abuse are often caused by the malefics, Mars and Rahu.
In this way the various issues discussed in the therapy session may be helped with Jyotish. It should be added that Jyotish does not replace therapy. Many people need the support and process of counseling. Rather, the Vedic tools offer the therapist a larger, more complete vision of explanations and healing methods.
Jyotish and Ayurveda, the tools of Vedic science, are deeply rooted in the spiritual or religious aspects of the ancient Vedic culture. It was a culture that predated religion. It was said to be a universal religious life, where all religions and paths of belief were accepted.
The goal of all paths was the same, realization that each person is Divine; each person is godly. Inside oneself, outside (all that one perceives), and all that lay between inside and outside is Divine.
When a person experiences Divinity in all areas of life, then there is no separation from God. As we said earlier, this allows the person to feel complete or content. Then they can be of most help to others.
Developing this faith is possible only through experience of the Divine. The Vedic sciences offer assistance on all three levels, physical, astral and causal. Ayurveda works on the body to keep it healthy. If one feels healthy, one feels the grace of God within their physical structure.
Belief and thoughts about the Divine are more likely to manifest from this experience. If astral disturbances (i.e. planetary, spirits, etc.) are cleansed and balanced, one feels Divinity in their Spiritual body.
Lastly, when one is following a true spiritual teacher, practicing their respective mantras, then the causal body is made to feel Divine. The causal body is the seed from which the other two bodies are born. All disturbances or illness occurs on one of these three levels.
Despite the specific issue, balancing or nurturing these three bodies, one's life may become more whole.
Returning to the psychological issues, here is a philosophical example of how we might reinterpret the Oedipus complex from a spiritual point of view. The outcome will yield a direct focus and a Divine feeling. It will also dissolve any embarrassment or guilt that might be associated with this complex. The story of King Oedipus concluded when he realized that he killed his father and married his mother.
Thus he chose to blind himself so he couldn't see or cause sin again. Let us look at this parable, applying spiritual metaphors for literal definitions.
Killing the father is suggesting killing or harmful action for the sake of worldly gain. Ahimsa, or nonviolence, is the Vedic term for not causing harm to anyone or any creature, in action, word or thought. By practicing peace on all three levels, one rises to a purer level of existence. Ahimsa is said to be a tool to develop Self-Realization.
Marrying his mother suggests he became caught in the illusion that nature or creation is real and eternal. Vedantic belief (a branch or philosophy of the Vedas) says that life has two aspects.
Eternal unmanifest, and relative nature. Mother nature, at her essence is actually eternal as well, as it has its birth in the unmanifest, and ultimately returns there at the conclusion of creation. The spider reveals its web from within itself, and eventually draws it back into itself.
So too this creation develops from the eternal and returns into it again. This is the only cause of creation. So Oedipus became caught in the web of maya or illusion, by believing his mother (mother nature) to be reality.
The troubles that occurred from this inaccurate vision caused him to become violent and eventually caused him great suffering. The Vedas say that we should not accept as our definition of reality what we see through our senses. It is through the opening of our third or spiritual eye that we can begin to know the Divine, eternal truth.
Our senses and the objects they rest on are both relative and transitory. Only when we close our eyes and look within, do we begin to see the ever-existent state of grace. This eternal state is passionless.
The bliss of God is beyond passion, for passion is a relative experience. By not becoming attached to our senses, we begin the journey to experience the ever-present nectar of Divinity. Oedipus finally saw that his attachment to his senses brought violence and an inability to hold onto a lasting love (i.e. other than his mother).
He realized his mistake and chose to seek the inner path, blinding his senses to the outer world.
Although this allegory is somewhat violent or gory (no pun intended), it makes its point without a residue of guilt, shame or embarrassment. There should be no feeling of hopelessness or fear associated to the story either, because one can hasten to develop their inner life. Although Oedipus' experiences were tragic, his life offers hope to all who are blinded by the illusions of relative life.
Being caught up in violence and lust in the name of temporary pleasures and gains creates suffering.
Mental illness may be caused in part by trying to achieve fame and fortune without thought for the sacred aspects of inner life. The western culture maintains a compartmentalized view of life. It treats aspects of life separately, as if they have no influence on, or are influenced by other facets of life. Life is seen by the ancients to be like the web of creation. If one shakes a part of the web, the whole web shakes.
If a person has an addiction to eating, the problem is classified as `obesity'. The western approach is to find a way for them to lose weight. I have recently been informed of independent research studies on obesity throughout the world.
Although physicians cured obesity, many clients, still died at an early age. They were at a loss for an explanation. It was assumed that `overweight' was the cause of early death. Ayurveda suggests a lack of love be the root cause of over eating.
The tissue layer, fat (called Medas Dhatu) is responsible for giving one a feeling of being cared for. It is logical then, that one lacking in love would develop more fat. This will give them the feeling of being cared for.
No matter the amount of fat, if they do not develop an inner eternal experience of grace or Divine love, they will continue to suffer. Thus, they can die of a broken heart. Nervous breakdowns can occur from trying to achieve goals that are set by society (i.e. external measures).
Of course, as discussed earlier, the person would already have this tendency due to a weakened planet like the Moon.
However, applying healing from the spiritual vantage, we can advise the person with specific meditation tools to directly aid their ability to become more internally focused. The therapist can immediately offer measures for developing one's inner gauge or measurement-stick. By following one's inner abilities, they can follow the path and pace that is right for them.
The Vedic scriptures say there are three ways for an individual to know Truth for themselves: what the Vedic tenants (or other ancient scriptures) state, what the spiritual guide or Guru suggests, and what one can experience for themselves.
Only when all three realms corroborate, does the person know something is true for themselves. Testing something on the touchstone of one's heart is very important for mental confidence. To blindly accept scripture or the Guru's word does not create an individual who can think for themselves.
Yet when one's experience confirms the former two, then one is unshakable in their resolve. Peace of mind is achieved. Mental health is peace of mind. Salvation is the state of mental peace.
Once upon a time, a holy priest (Brahmin) went to the forest to meditate, with the aim of receiving a magic stone that grants all wishes. As he sat for his Sadhana (devotional meditation), the gem instantly appeared before him. However the Brahmin thought this to be a trick, because nothing of value seems to come so simply to a person.
So thinking, he ignored the stone and closed his eyes for Sadhana. After a while, some boys who were playing in the forest, threw some pieces of glass in the direction of the Brahmin.
When he emerged from his Sadhana he saw a piece of glass before him. Thinking this to be the desired gem, he quickly retrieved the glass and returned home. He sold his home and went to a foreign land to sell the stone for a great price. When he learned he had a piece of glass, and not the precious stone, he was greatly troubled.
The moral of the story is to test everything on the touchstone of one's heart to know what is truth. If one does not intuitively `feel' something is right, then they are advised not to give away their regard.
For those with mental imbalance tendencies, they are advised to begin to listen to their inner voice of instinct or intuition. Doubts may arise from any external situation. There is a story in the Vedic literature about the monkey-god, Hanuman. He was asked by King Vibishana to hide and protect some people (Ram and Laxman) from the evil King.
Vibishana's instruction was, `under no circumstance, let anyone in the castle'.
With this, the King left the castle for a while. Shortly after that, the evil king, Ravana learned of the whereabouts of Ram and Laxman and tried to kidnap them by disguising himself as a holy priest (Brahman). Hanuman, following the King's instructions, did not let him in. Then Ravana disguised himself as Ram's father. Again Hanuman did not let him in. Next, Ravana disguised himself as Ram's mother.
Again, he failed. Finally Ravana disguised himself as the good King Vibishana. This time Hanuman let him in, and Ravana kidnapped the men. When the real King Vibishana returned Hanuman realized what had happened. It took him a long time to recover the men from Ravana's clutches.
In this story, Hanuman is the person or client. The good King, Vibishana is the Guru. Ram and Laxman are self-worth and self-esteem. Ravana is doubt. The moral of the story is that doubt comes even as family or friends.
One's self-regard is stolen away if they do not follow the instructions of the spiritual guide. So for mental health to develop and be maintained, one must always have faith in one's inner Self or inner Guru.
This inner knowing may be validated by scripture and spiritual teacher for conviction to take hold. This develops everlasting peace of mind. To reemphasize, for mental health to develop, one need heal on three levels. Action, word and thought have to be balanced to achieve peace of mind. It is not enough for one to act and speak a certain way.
True peace can only be secured if the thoughts are also healed. In my studies of nonverbal behavior, it was seen that despite what people said or did, their thoughts were reflected through subconscious movements.
Body language, facial movements and voice inflections revealed the thoughts of a person. To have peace in the body, mind and spirit, one must work with tools to develop peace on all these levels. Ignoring one level of life is incomplete healing.
Ayurveda, Jyotish and Sadhana, the tools of the Vedic sciences, offer the therapist direct ways to bring holistic, lasting peace to the client on all three levels of life. The time it takes to uncover causes of problems is drastically decreased and the measures to calm the mind are completely natural and without side effects.
They are a safe way to uncover the cause of mental illness and restore the client's self-worth, and devotion to their inner Divinity. Devotion is the balm that soothes all ills.
Devotion to one's inner God is a direct experience.
Through direct experience one matures confidence and compassion. This development enables one to move forward in life, easing the grip of fear, doubt, embarrassment and guilt.
Peace to all, in the three worlds.
Aum Shanti, Shanti, Shanti.
Case study names are fictitious.
Stories of Gem and Glass, and Hanuman are adapted and reprinted with permission, from Yoga Vani, Instructions for the Attainment of Siddhayoga, available through the Ayurveda Holistic Center.
This article is for educational purposes only, and is not intended to treat, diagnose or prescribe. It in no way is intended to substitute for care from duly licensed health professionals.
Author: Ayurveda Encyclopedia & Bhagavad Gita For Modern Times, D.Sc. Ayurvedic Research, Founder: Swami Narayan Tirtha Math