Gardens of SOMA to Stay Cool & Composed! – 10% Off
Soma is the cooling, nurturing, materializing, vibrational energy of nature that helps us stay grounded so we can “be” and grow. It’s the foundation to great health and happiness. Without soma nothing would exist! Without soma, Agni would not exist, because Agni burns, and it burns up soma. Without Soma and Agni there would only be an endless space of vacuous ether extending infinitely….
In the summertime, it is important to have fresh easy to digest delicious somagenic food: fresh juicy sweet fruits, yoghurt, grains, milk, and other prepared foods. However, ironically, in the summertime, Agni goes low because pitta goes high! It’s a beautiful SVA teaching that requires more delving into with Vaidya Mishra. But this is one of the reasons why in high climates, traditionally, such as in South India, the consumption of somagenic foods – and coconut is a great example – is a staple in the diet. However, it’s also heavily spiced! To help in its digestion and absorption.
This is on the internal side of things. On the external side, it is also important to use somagenic oils, lotions, creams, that help pacify without freezing and therefore clogging the pitta in the skin – bhrajak pitta. The key, as Vaidya always reminded us, is to cool things off without putting out the fire, or Agni. Most of the time this subtle yet central distinction between Agni and pitta is lost in mainstream Ayurveda, and a pleiad of problems ensue. High Pitta people applying bushels of coconut butter on their skin to cool off, or being told to eat watermelon or melon right after meals to “cool off” digestion and/or heartburn in the stomach. What happens is things get worse because in response, the body produces even more pitta to help burn the heaviness off, but it perpetuates the problem because Agni, the digestive flame (in the stomach and/or in the dhatus/tissues) is off! You can’t start a fire without a flame! High pitta people end up with trapped heat, specially if they are strong by constitution and shleshak kapha kicks in to buffer the extra pitta heat! There are so many ways to balance things out. Vaidya Mishra’s teachings are a vast and deep ocean of ayurvedic knowledge. But here’s a good place to start if you are new to Ayurveda and want something simply you can do daily. Blaine Watson, Jyotishi by training and expertise, an old friend and great follower of all things Ayurvedic with Vaidya Mishra has shared this delicious recipe in his newsletter list. We share it all with you all.
Vaidya Mishra’s Cilantro Chutney: Cool Off and Detox Daily & Safely!
“I’ve sent out this recipe for cilantro chutney before but thought it timely to send again since it has been a while. Vaidya Mishra prescribed cilantro chutney often and almost always prescribed coriander or cilantro seeds as part of his herbal infusions. Cilantro and its seed have a cooling AND detoxifying effect. The leaf has the ability to detox heavy metals from the tissues of the body according to Ayurveda. Coriander seed infused as tea will remove toxins from the blood stream and pass them out through urine. When used in tea, it is good to add Punarnava root (“Spreading hogweed) as well in order to protect the kidneys from getting overloaded with the toxins being passed with the urine. Coriander – dhanyakam in Sanskrit – is described by the Ayurvedic canonical scholar, Bhava Prakash, as being: pittanashanam – removes pitta);tuvaram – penetrates deeply into the body; snigdham - lubricates the channels & binder amavisha toxins; mutralam – diuretic.
One of the first prescriptions Vaidya Mishra ever gave us was a recipe for a chutney that will bind and remove heavy metals from the body. Heavy metals cause toxicity and burn off the tissues and soma.
He explained that one of the more serious issues we deal within our modern age is that of heavy metals accumulating in the body. Aluminum which is everywhere, and mercury – these are two of the most common ones. For example, anyone who has ever been vaccinated will have a good quantity of both in their systems, and we all are unless we’ve grown up and live in an Amish or some such exclusive community!
To detox these and other heavy metals, we have been using the following chutney at our noon meals every day for the past 20 years. All ingredients are organic – to use ‘conventional’ ingredients would completely defeat the purpose…
Ingredients:
One bunch Cilantro – fresh organic
Lime juice
A couple of slices of ginger or more if you like it hotter
Soma Salt to taste
A spoonful of walnut oil
If you want to soften the effect you can add a couple of medjool dates, or a handful of raisins
All all together, blend and serve. Very simple! We use a spoonful or 2 as a condiment with our main meal at lunch every day. Best to make fresh everyday – it will have more prana and taste better too! It’s easy enough to assemble. Enjoy!”
Blaine Watson,
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Your “best friend” this Summer will be Vaidya Mishra’s
Surya Shanti Cream can be used whenever your skin is hot and burning. The Sanskrit word, surya, mean “sun.” And shanti means “pacification.” Surya Shanti Cream pacifies the heat generated by too much exposure to the sun. This cream was designed to be an Ayurvedic sunscreen substitute, but it has not been tested by the FDA – results may vary depending on usage and the individual. It balances brajaka pitta, the pitta located in the skin. It helps reduce hot burning sensations on the skin, whether caused by internal toxins, like amavisha, or by sunburn, or by touching hot objects. Because it cools brajaka pitta so deeply, it can be a good preparation for exposure to the sun’s hot rays.
Many people who have used it find it very helpful for preventing sunburn.
We suggest that you test it for yourself in a way that will not overexpose you to the sun’s rays. Try it on a section of skin for a moderate exposure time. If you replace your regular sunscreen with this product be cautious so you don’t get sunburnt. You may need to keep applying several times during the day. Please note: it is not waterproof.
Sunlight heats the skin dramatically. If your skin is cooled by this cream prior to sun exposure, your skin’s own natural resistance to sunburn is strenghtened. It is also great to apply after sun exposure. Many people have reported that it can remove the redness caused by sunburn in just a few minutes. We invite you to test it for yourself.
The formula contains no chemicals or preservatives and delivers lots of cooling soma to the skin. It not only cools the skin, but opens the skin’s reception to soma in the environment.
This cream will not block the good things you need from sunlight. Your skin will receive what it needs to make Vitamin D from sunlight without getting imbalanced by the sun’s burning quality. Get Vaidya Mishra’s three hour course on Vitamin D to learn more about the importance of how you treat your skin if you want to get maximum Vitamin D from the sun.
If you are a high pitta type, you may experience burning sensations anytime for no apparent reason. This cream can be useful for restoring balance quickly. You may want to apply it on the neck or even the scalp whenever it starts to burn. It can also be helpful for cooling the body before sleep.
This product comes in two strengths: regular coolness – Surya Shanti - and strong cooling – Surya Maha Shanti.
