Question: I have heard that by harnessing all the senses, bath time can be used to heal body, mind and spirit. Can you offer some suggestions for doing this?
Answer: Ayurveda considers bathing more than just a simple cleansing ritual. The therapeutic ayurvedic bath offers a wide range of benefits — it enhances circulation; elevates energy levels; rehydrates the skin; relaxes tense muscles; promotes better sleep; and balances the emotions, the mind and the nervous system.
All the five senses and sense organs can be used to enhance the healing benefits from your daily bath.
Choose from the following suggestions, or devise your own ways to create a blissful bath:
- Place pads of cotton soaked in pure Organic Rose Water over closed eyes while you relax in your bath. Organic Rose Water is cooling and will help soothe away stress.
- Keep your bathroom sparkling clean, free of clutter and visually pleasing, so that a sense of private peace steals over you as you enter for your morning massage and bath.
- Live green plants offer both beauty and a purified environment.
- Practice deep breathing while you are waiting for your massage oil to soak in, and while you bathe. Deep breathing opens up the channels of the body and infuses the lungs and the body with oxygen. This helps dispel fatigue and enhances mental clarity.
- Get fresh air into your bathroom by opening a window when you can.
- Gentle aromatherapy can enhance the therapeutic value of the bath. You can diffuse your favorite Aroma in the bathroom while you do your massage and bathe. You can also add 3-4 drops of aroma oil to your bath water or use an aromatherapy bath salt. Through the sense of smell, the aroma quickly transmits a healing message to the brain, nervous system and mind.
- Play Gandharva Veda music softly. Close your eyes and let the healing strains of the music wash over you, filling your body, mind and spirit with harmony. Pick a melody appropriate for the time of day, or one like the Rain Raga that helps dispel stress and disharmony any time of day or night.
- Sip a cup of soothing herbal tea. Choose Organic Vata, Organic Pitta or Organic Kapha for personal balance or Worry Free to help balance the mind and emotions.
- Don't skip the daily abhyanga — the ayurvedic warm oil self-massage is the ultimate pampering treatment for both mind and body. The Sanskrit word for oil, Sneham, also means love. Abhyanga helps recharge your mind and body, enhances circulation, dislodges toxins so they can be easily eliminated from the body, and leaves your skin feeling silky-soft.
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