Tangy Paneer Recipe with Vrikshamla; PLUS: Samadhi Your Marma with Carol! – your SV Ayurveda Newsletter Nov 9, 2023 – #43, Vol 12

Hailed as the “holy grail of weight loss,” Garcinia cambogia, or Garcinia indica, has actually been a known remedy for different imbalances for thousands of years in India. In Sanskrit, Garcinia cambogia is called “vrikshamla.” It is mentioned in the ayurvedic “nighantu”-s (or glossaries) as a vata and kapha dosha pacifying dravya or food ingredient. It is known to enhance absorption due to its thermogenic potency, it also sharpens the taste buds, clearing away ama or toxic build-up in the oral cavity. With a distinct subtle sour taste, it is known to enhance the metabolic rate of the muscle and fat tissues. Taste is known to have therapeutic balancing properties in Ayurveda. Garcinia carries the following 3 rasa-s or tastes: amla (sour), katu (pungent) and kashai (astringent). These 3 rasa-s are known to enhance metabolism in general. More specifically, the amla rasa or sour taste specifically enhances and supports protein metabolism because it enhances agni in the mamsa dhatu or muscle tissue. All 3 rasa-s taken together help clear and unclog the channels optimizing circulation in general.

Overall knowledge about Garcinia Masalas or spice mixes.

Introduce these SVA Garcinia masalas or spice blends into your diet as a unique way of enjoying the flavor and benefits of Garcinia. Even though Garcinia has been introduced as a weight loss ingredient, Vaidya Mishra explains that it is actually for those who want to “regulate their weight” – whether to lose or to gain, it enhances the intelligence of the tissues so your physiology adjusts based on its own needs to maintain optimal balance. For people who are vata type or who have vata aggravation, the Garcinia Vata Masala will help enhance metabolism so the body can absorb and use more nutrients from the diet. 

This SVA Garcinia Tea is tridoshic and balancing for all three doshas. A unique blend of Garcinia with green cardamom pods to support overall metabolism and enhance protein absorption. Cinnamon adds a unique flavor supporting starch and sugar metabolism; black pepper opens the channels; nutmeg calms and soothes; and toasted fennel balances the pitta stomach environment. Regulate your weight, have a cup morning and evening to keep things in check!

Tangy Yummy Paneer!

Here’s a quick delicious recipe to satisfy your deep hunger and balance ALL your doshas this Autumn!

Ingredients:

16oz Cubed paneer

1 tsp Garcinia Chutney

1 tsp Water

1 TBspoon Fresh Cilantro

2 Thai Chilies – optional

1 TBsp Mom’s Ghee

Directions:

Cube your paneer

In a pan, lightly sautee your paneer cubes until they get a golden layer – DO NOT ADD SALT. Remove from pan and add to a dish. (You can also add a Thai chili or two to saute along with the paneer if you like).

Mix 1 tsp of Garcinia Chutney with 1 tsp water and stir vigorously to mix well.

Drizzle on top of your paneer. Garnish with fresh chopped cilantro, serve and enjoy!

The chutney will help digest the heavy milk proteins and also give a delicious tangy sauce.

Ayurveda reminds us that for total health we need to consume food ingredients that balance all the dosha-s or tissues, “samadoshaha,” and enhance metabolism overall in the body in a balanced way, in Sanskrit “samagnischa.” The Garcinia fruit carries these 2 highly desirable properties in addition to many more. It is because of these that it helps clean the fat tissue and can result in weight loss. It is because it is good for overall total metabolism and a toxin free body that it can help individuals who are trying to detox their fat tissue. And there is an added bonus here as well, because when Garcinia supports the fat tissue, it is also supporting the bone tissue since good fat is food for the bone tissue. Read more about Vaidya Mishra’s latest formulation: a delectable Garcinia chutney that will sharpen your taste-buds and support your total health.

Garcinia indica also known as Garcinia cambogia (“vrikshamla” in Sanskrit) is mentioned in the ayurvedic “nighantu”-s (or glossaries) as a vata and kapha dosha pacifying dravya or food ingredient. It is known to enhance absorption due to its thermogenic potency; to sharpen the taste buds, clearing away ama or toxic build-up in the oral cavity; and to make the body lighter because it carries the following 3 rasa-s or tastes: amla (sour), katu (pungent) and kashai (astringent). These 3 rasa-s enhance metabolism in general. More specifically, the amla rasa or sour taste also enhances and supports protein metabolism because it enhances agni in the mamsa dhatu or muscle tissue. In addition, the 3 rasa-s together help clear and unclog the channels too.

Garcinia’s first property is “amla” or sour, and we know that the sour taste is “agneya” or thermogenic. Due to this property, it pacifies kapha in all the 7 “dhatu”-s or tissues. But it also pacifies thirst because it pacifies vata in the stomach, samana vata, as well as in the chest or udana vata. In general, it is a wonderful fruit that balances the entire stomach and all the dosha-s in the stomach, enhancing coordination amongst them all: samana vata, pachak pitta, and kledak kapha – the 3 principles which support digestion: a) movement of space and air in the stomach; b) enzymatic levels; c) lubrication levels. When the stomach dosha-s are balanced, so many aspects of overall health also follow suit.

But yet another great attribute of this fruit is that it helps produce ama free rasa dhatu, or the very first dhatu or tissue that gets formed after we eat. In general, many health imbalances arise from just this, that an individual makes ama or toxins from the food they ingest. Rasa dhatu is the foundation for all the dhatus, and if it is free of toxins and balanced, all the other tissues that get built on this foundational dhatu or tissue will also be more balanced. In this sense, Garcinia or “vrikshamla” is a very balanced and balancing fruit with unique properties that optimize the healing processes in the body.

Discover the Full Line of

Vaidya Mishra’s Delicious

Garcinia Spice Blends

Samadhi

Your

Marma

with

Carol

Funny as it may sound, I wasn’t a meditator until years after being introduced to Yoga and Ayurveda. Somehow I skipped that part of the practices.

Thankfully, Meditation and I found each other and it’s been a significant part of my sadhana (practice) for over a decade.

A few years into my meditation practice, I learned the Samadhi Marma Meditation from Vaidya Ramakant Mishra, which helps calm the mind, heal emotional distress, and re-align mind, body, and spirit.

The Samadhi Marma Meditation is a very subtle practice, but so profound! Even just a few days of missing the practice, I can tell: I’m not as calm and lighthearted. I’d love to share this meditation practice with you.