There is more to yoga and Ayurveda than just asanas and medicinal plants ! Both of them encompass all of the human life and the entire universe. Both Yoga and Ayurveda are historically closely related and have developed in tandem with each other since ancient times. They have diverged in modern times, over the last hundred and fifty years, particularly outside of India, in which Yoga without Ayurveda was for a long time the norm. However, Yoga and Ayurveda are becoming reconnected again, not only in India but across the globe.
The genesis of yoga dates to the age of Mantra Yoga of the Rigveda; the ancient Vedic text that came into existence five thousand years ago. The term Yoga itself means to connect, combine, balance, or integrate. A genuine yogic approach is characteristically an integrative approach, orchestrating body, prana, senses, mind, and consciousness. It can’t be minimized to the body alone. A yogic way to healing isn’t a specialization or a side-line procedure but involves a combination of all levels and aspects of healing. That is the reason classical Yoga has an eightfold approach from lifestyle practices and values through asana, pranayama, to samadhi. If we lessen Yoga to asana, we are not practicing Yoga or an integrative approach but rather falling into a similar trap of principally concentrating on the external material reality and forgetting about the inner reality of prana, mind, and consciousness.
Pranayama can be known as the ‘inward medication’ of Yoga. It brings prana or essential vitality straightforwardly into the body and can be utilized to coordinate prana in different ways as required. Pranayama straightforwardly impacts the doshas or organic humors of Ayurveda (vata, pitta, and kapha), which are modifications of prana. Pranayama basically treats states of the respiratory, circulatory, and nervous systems however through these it has a powerful impact on all physical and mental conditions. It is vital to reintegrate Yoga and Ayurveda in order to get the complete healing and spiritual prospective of each. Bringing Ayurveda into Yoga gives a yogic and Vedic arrangement of medication to take into account the full healing application of all facets of Yoga. Ayurveda imparts suitable life-style recommendations for Yoga Practice and provides a complete background to uncover the complete healing potential of all facets of Yoga. Yoga provides the spiritual and psychological basis for Ayurveda and its higher applications.
Both Ayurveda and Yoga are required for a truly encompassing and profound way to deal with medication and recuperating, but with Ayurveda giving the medical foundation and Yoga, the spiritual objective and practices.