Ayurveda and Yoga- Philosophical Foundation and Applications

The book dwells deep into philosophical foundations of the two ancient sciences of India Ayurveda and Yoga. The book discusses the benefits of adopting Yoga as complementary therapy to Ayurveda. Giving details of Sattvavajaya Cikitsa to establish the use, the book describes how supplementation of Yoga can help in the management of mental diseases, Management of mental imbalances through Yoga can be very useful to the current generation of people in view of rise in the stress related ailments. It also shows how Yoga has impact on various systems of the body like cardiovascular, respiratory, digestive, endocrine, circulatory, muscular, skeletal and nervous.

As the author is a practising Ayurvedic physician, she draws from the personal experience of supplementing Yoga in treatment of several diseases. The book presents such experiences as case studies which give strength to the conclusions of the research work This book is expected to serve three purposes. One is to common reader to understand the two ancient sciences of India and the complementation of one to the other Second is to the practitioners of Ayurveda to include yoga supplementation as part of their preventive and curative prescriptions. Finally, the third is to researchers to explore the subject further to find more effective and efficient combinations of treatment for the betterment of health across the globe.

Dr. Gayatridevi is a practising Ayurvedic physician for about three and fall decades In order to make available the expertise she has gained through her experience, she has chosen to write books for students of Ayurveda as well as common readers Her popular books in Telugu titled Prakriti Varaalu (in 2 parts), Ayurveda Saram, Putrakameshti and Ammayi Amma Ammamma giving medical advice to people of various ages and stages in life have been very helpful in adopting natural lifestyle for overall improvement of health She has also translated a book on Asanas- Why and How into Telugu. Her text books written as Made Easy series in English on Padartha Vijnana, Streeroga, Prasutitantra and Kaya Cikitsa (in 2 parts) are proving to be very helpful and reader friendly to Ayurvedic students across the country.

In addition to writing books, she has been writing health columns in Telugu journals and magazines and giving TV programs on health for the benefit of people. She has presented her work on Yoga and Ayurveda in various seminars and conferences including the international conferences at Chandigarh, India and New York, USA As recognition of her work and service to society for the improvement of health, she has received several prestigious awards that include "Adarsa Vanitha Puraskaram", "Uttama Mahila Puraskaram and Sriramanavami Pratibha Puraskaram.

Let me begin by giving a personal account of how the thought for the work germinated and motivated me to work on the theme. My interest is on the two major ancient sciences of India - Ayurveda and Yoga - the philosophies behind them and how they supplement and complement each other in improving health to human beings in all respects. By all respects, I mean health of both body and mind

My curiosity in the subject began when I was having some unexplainable physical discomfort about ten years back. During those days, I used to feel weak and tired. Sometimes, I used to feel exhausted after a brief exertion and used to rest a while even after a light task.

It is generally difficult for any doctor to identify the cause for his or her problem by himself or herself. So I consulted an allopathic physician, who is well known to me and well known for his "less medicine" approach. He asked me if I had any emotional problems. I told that him that I would some time feel to be low in spirits, without any specific reason. I also told him that it was neither frequent nor intense. He told me that it could be a pre-menopause syndrome or the usual aging phenomenon. In any case he advised me in a friendly manner to try Yoga. He added that Yoga helped him personally to become mentally and physically better.

By profession, I am an Ayurvedic physician. Having completed my degree in Ayurveda, I have been practicing as an Ayurvedic consultant since 1984. I have been dealing with several patients, with various ailments. In addition to prescribing medicines, I have been counseling them about importance of healthy mind in maintenance of body health. Though I was aware of Yoga, I was associating its benefits more with body and not so much with mind.

Yet I took the advice of my physician on trying Yoga quite seriously and joined one month course on Yoga at a reputed Institute. The Institute offered a bouquet of sessions that included theory, demonstration and practice.

**Contents and Sample Pages**