Cultivate Health Through The Yamas and Niyamas
An important component of health is contentment of the soul and the mind. Anusha Sehgal BAMS M.D, a classically trained Ayurvedic physician, shares how the yogic principles of the yamas and niyamas can be cultivated to support our everyday life, bringing balance and stability as well as support to navigate life’s inevitable challenges.
Dr. Anusha Sehgal is a classically trained Ayurvedic physician with over 20 years of experience in teaching, practice, and research in the field of Ayurveda. She is currently working as the director of Boston Ayurveda Inc. in Massachusetts, as adjunct faculty at Kripalu School of Ayurveda as well as lead instructor of the Advanced Ayurveda Practitioner Training (AAPT) and Ayurveda Doctor programs at Boston Ayurveda Inc. She also served as the former Editor in Chief of the Ayurveda Journal of Health, and founding chair of the NAMA (National Ayurvedic Medical Association) Certification Board. For this program we are referencing the talk she offered for the Kripalu Institute’s Amplify Voices of the Global Majority conference in May, 2024.
Click here for Dr. Sehgal’s Talk
WEBSITE: BostonAyurvedaInc.com
#kriya yoga #ayurveda #yamas #niyamas #gunas
THE YOGA HOUR TEAM COMMENTS: Dr. Sehgal is an Ayurvedic physician who told us that she began to study yoga philosophy as a "hobby" when she was in India studying Ayurveda. This led her to understand the connection between the two sciences. The eight limbs of yoga and especially the first two limbs, the yamas and niyamas helped her to realize how important living an ethical life through the practices of the yamas and niyamas supports both our physical and mental health. She has a practical way of describing these practices and how they work to give us more mental and physical vitality, resilience and support us through the ups and downs of life. Living these practices are supportive for those who have an interest in deepening their spiritual practice through yoga philosophy, but also for those who just want to live their lives in the highest and best way. I highly recommend this program.
DR. TRUJILLO’S COMMENTS: I appreciated the opportunity to discuss the effect of the gunas on the mind: how sattva guna invokes mental clarity, rajas guna can manifest as a state of agitation, and tamas guna can present as being stuck. Dr. Sehgal’s correlation between following the ethical principles of yoga, the Yamas and Niyamas, and the resultant states of mind was quite interesting to me. I also enjoyed the Ayurvedic view that these ethical practices are rejuvenating: they require little energy, and even increase our energy as following them is consistent with our highest true Self.