The Vedic calendar in yoga practice

SOLAR and MOON calendar

In the West the rhythms are marked by the Gregorian calendar which is a solar calendar. The sun, however, is not the only star with which we can mark the passage of time and months. In the East in fact in many cultures of the present and past (Babylonian, Chinese, Indian, Jewish) relied on the lunar calendar. 

Among these is the Hindu culture that is linked to Ayurveda and yoga practice. The moon is attributed by both science and folklore many influences on the Earth and its inhabitants.

The moon exerts a strong attraction in particular on the liquids of the earth, especially by raising and lowering the tides. Since our body is mainly composed of water, it is easy to see how the moon exerts an influence on us as well.

We asked Rossella (@io_sono_red), our guide to the world of ayurveda, to explain more about this link within the Vedic calendar.

THE VEDIC CALENDAR

THE EKADASHI

The Hindu calendar, also called the Vedic calendar, is an instrument of ancient knowledge that is used, in particular, to study the phases of the moon.

In some schools of yoga, according to tradition, according to this Vedic calendar is practiced a regenerative fast.

According to ayurveda, our constitution is made up of doshas, or a sum of natural elements (water, ether, air, fire and earth) that are influenced by the environment around us and the seasons, consequently, the passage of the lunar phases changes our elemental balance.

Particularly during the Ekadashi phases of the moon, which in Sanskrit means Eleven, there is an increase of water and air upwards, as a result it is easy to feel weighed down and tired, and it is for this reason that many yoga practitioners engage in Upavasa fasting. 

EKADASHI AND NUTRITION

Foreword

It is important to remember that any fasting practice should be done only and exclusively by adults who are in good health, who do not have problems in the area of the second and third chakras, that is, problems in the digestive and urogenital tracts. Children are not subject to these practices.

FASTING

This practice is part of the growth path of the yoga practitioner and anyone else who wishes to embark on a spiritual journey and reconnect with nature. According to Ayurveda the periodic practice of Upavasa must be carried out, following the Ekadashi, twice a month, coinciding with the eleventh day of the waning moon and crescaent moon.

During those days of the month the organism prepares the body to receive the experience of reconnection with the energy of the moon, producing a transformation of the lymph in the body that aims to purify the body channels that will serve to relieve us of excess air and water.

If you practice fasting for the first time, it is recommended to take fresh and juicy fruit if you feel too much hunger pangs, to switch in a second time to take only liquids and finally be ready for a third and fourth time with a dry fast. But if you don't feel a good response from your body to fasting you could simply lighten your diet during those days by not taking animal proteins and legumes, consider herbal teas, soups and velvets for example.

The following day the reintegration of the diet must be gradual in order not to burden the body again, in fact it is appropriate, after having performed oral hygiene, to start with a light fruit, and then during the day to resume in small doses the remaining foods.

 

EKADASHI AND SPIRITUALITY
From the spiritual point of view the EKADASHI is the perfect day to practice a deep meditation with high vibrational frequencies, for example selected from mantras, personally in this case I would recommend the mantra of Shiva (Om - Na - Mah - Yes - Va - Ja) being the one that best represents the Ekadashi.

EKADASHI AND YOGA PRACTICE
Finally, with regard to the practice of yoga from the Ayurvedic point of view, I would recommend practices suitable to eliminate the dosha Vata (air + ether) and to develop calm, stability and mobility of the column, therefore asanas from sitting, back bending, twisting and opening of the heart and pelvis.

The author of the article is Rossella of @io_sono_ross in her page you can learn more about the world of ayurveda

 

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