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Nature's Medicine : Ayurveda > Page 1
Ayurveda is the knowledge or science, Veda, of life or longevity, ayur. It is the medical aspect of Vedic science, (regarded as an Upaveda or secondary Vedic system). Today it is perhaps the most commonly known of the Vedic sciences. In the Vedic and Yogic system health is seen as a basis for creative and spiritual growth, not as an end in itself.
The goal of life is not just to live but to find the meaning of life. Hence we should use the time and energy our health provides for developing our higher nature. Thus Ayurveda naturally leads to the other and deeper aspects of Vedic knowledge.
Ayurveda is an aspect of Yoga and most allied most with Hatha Yoga, the Yoga of the physical body, with which it can be combined. While Hatha Yoga provides us the exercises for physical health, flexibility and the dissolution of tension, Ayurveda gives the knowledge of how to care for our body in terms of diet and medicine. Both serve as means of harmonizing the physical body so that the powers of our inner consciousness can come into action through it.
Author : David Frawley
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