Did you know that I was often physically immobile due to pain and full body inflammation through much of my adolescence?
I was diagnosed with an immunological disorder by a fancy western medical hospital in India that my father insisted he take me to be checked out, alarmed by his young daughter’s precarious situation…. only to be treated by an over enthusiastic physician who pronounced a diagnosis of a genetic condition, that is said to aggressively put people in wheelchairs! My father was informed that “she may not be able to bear children, nor walk, in fact….she will be in a wheelchair soon if this disease progresses any faster”….ouch!
But hello sir, check your facts again…. I accomplished all of that and more, with Ayurveda!
My Guru, my grandfather, Baba, who quietly watched my father uphold the illusion of finding fixes in western medicine, albeit briefly (and then be crushed) told me quietly, as if speaking to my soul beyond my confused mind and distressed body….if you can’t walk, then why not plan on flying…
What Baba meant in his typical philosophical language was don’t focus on what you want to overcome … disease…simply focus on what you want to become – healthy.
It was an invitation to move away from battling disease and to focus instead on cultivating health.
Sometimes disease and pain is a good thing. It makes us open the right door, the doorway to abiding heath, known as Arogyam in Ayurveda. Today I run, despite the same old genes. I teach nonstop. I live my whole life, as I want to. The sciences of Ayurveda and Yoga are my wings. And Vedanta, the science of consciousness (from the Upanishads) is my very heart, my knowingness that I can fly because my true nature is pure consciousness, and it cannot be boxed, even by genes.
And this is how I fly, crossing an entire ocean of so-called genetically doomed existence. All this time we humans had believed that genes are fixed and we cannot do anything about them. But now, there is all kinds of research (The science of Epigenetics is the study of biological mechanisms that will switch genes on and off) showing that even our genes change or can turn on and off, when we deliberately change our foods, live a healthy lifestyle and think positive and ethical thoughts!
Thank god, my Guru, my grandfather, did not need scientific evidence to believe in the truth of Self and mind over matter, nor wait for modern science to catch up with the Vedas have been saying all along… that our thoughts have the power to change our reality. He convinced me (despite my fears and resistance to Ayurveda at one point) to believe in myself and my inner potential despite the obvious tragic life situation and give Ayurveda a chance… and that health is my birthright, no matter what. This is how, slowly, despite tremendous pain, I finally went beyond self-doubt and all kinds of external pain interventions, even beyond my reliance on the so called natural pain killers (Guggul, etc), solely by changing my lifestyle and diet to align with Ayurveda’s timeless principles, and embody positive ‘dharmic’ or harmonious thoughts, again as per Vedic teaching of ‘dharma’ (that I now teach to my students worldwide).
To my surprise and great joy, I went beyond pain, all-together. My inflammation calmed down because my physical, emotional and social dimensions were in alignment with a greater, universally aligned, spiritual flow. My being was at peace with the peaceful earth, sky and cosmos….this is what Ayurveda gifted me. It gave me back my joy, my self confidence and my life purpose back to me. No wonder I am a huge fan of Ayurveda today and I consider myself its humble heartfelt ambassador…
Through the pitfalls of life and unexpected deaths of loved ones that I faced, and losses of important relationships, unexpected physical falls and traumatic accidents, I came back every time, healthy and unbroken from within…and I have helped countless humans reclaim hidden health from within.
I have now become convinced that health is our true nature, our birthright. Though death is a fact, and we also will age and our body will decay with time, but unnecessary suffering and dramatic play out of our health karma while living, can be avoided with applied wisdom, and many so called chronic or even incurable diseases (more than you imagine possible) can be cured with Ayurveda; and at the least, drastically minimized in their impact upon the quality of your life. In fact, thanks to the healing truth and wisdom of Ayurveda, I can finally drop all the masks, the masks of learned helplessness, societal bondage, dysfunctional dependence, questionable diagnosis, poisonous prescriptions, blame and shame. And in this spiritual freedom, I recreate myself, and my health, every day.
Will you fly with me?
Thanks to Ayurveda, I walk with pride. Till date, I have never sat in a wheelchair and I plan to stay out of one…I lead my life fully on my own two feet as a spiritual teacher, mother, wife and friend to the world…finding new friends, in every eye I greet.
My wisdom school Vedika Global is full of stories of healing from the grimmest of disorders (Ulcerative Colitis, Multiple Sclerosis, Stroke, Depression, etc.)
Courtesy acharyashunya.com
