Ayurveda has two systems of treatment. One is to pacify the aggrevated Doshas by using appropriate diet, natural herbs and minerals and the other is to purify the body, by eliminating the increased Doshas from the body.

For purification of the body, five different procedures have been described by the Ayurveda texts. These five procedures are basically known as Panchakarma (etymologically, five actions). But Panchakarma, the purification therapy expounded in Ayurveda is perhaps the most misunderstood of all the Ayurveda practices. Due to ignorance, it is often perceived as just another system of oil massage. Oil massage (Sanskrit: abhyanga) is an important treatment in Ayurveda. While a person may perform massage on his own as part of his daily routine, trained masseurs are required to perform this therapy when it is used for disease management. As part of the treatment, medicated oil is massaged all over the body. A massage that is part of the daily routine lasts for five to fifteen minutes. But when it is performed for treating diseases it may take about 45 minutes.

Treatment massages can be effectively done with two therapists working on either side of the patient who lies on a wooden bed called Droni in Sanskrit. The patient is made to lie on the bed while undergoing the treatment. Since the foot are considered sensitive, special care is to be taken for foot massages. The nerve nodal points (called Marmas in Sanskrit) on the soles of the feet are closely related to certain internal organs. The sole of the right foot is massaged with clockwise movement and the left foot with anti-clockwise strokes.

During the treatment the patient is made to recline in seven standard positions. This begins with the person seated in an upright position, supine or flat on the back, turning to the right side, supine again, turning to the left side, supine once again, and finally sitting as in the beginning, Sometimes the position of lying face down is also adopted.

Last update: 05-07-2008 17:36