Health and Enlightenment

The Newsletter of Maharishi Vedic Health Center at Lancaster, MA

November 19, 2007

In this issue:

• December Specials on All In-Residence Treatments
• The Best Way to Prepare for Transition Between Seasons
• Recipe: Rice Pudding (Kheer)
• Contact Us

LIMITED SPACE AVAILABLE—Call
877-890-8600
today
to learn more about our December Specials! Offer valid only for treatment days in December 2007.
Promotion Code #6010

December Specials on All In-Resdence Treatments

Wouldn’t it be great to start a New Year with a renewed feeling of vitality, balance and youthfulness? Now you can! Our winter specials make it easier to enjoy the benefits of the rejuvenating Maharishi Ayurveda treatments right now.

Give yourself the gift of radiant good health and bliss and watch the New Year unfold in a whole new light. According to Maharishi Ayurveda, the Science of Life, good health is the ultimate wealth, which allows all other forms of wealth to come to you. A balanced mind and body are thus the most precious Holiday Gifts you could ever receive.

The soothing Maharishi Ayurveda treatments are individually recommended to help you restore radiant good health, energy and youthfulness.

Call our toll free line 877-890-8600 to learn more. Space is limited so please call now!
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The Best Way to Prepare for Transition Between Seasons

The time when one season changes into the next is the most likely time for illness to strike. Any change aggravates Vata dosha, and Vata leads the other doshas. For this reason, you should ease into the new season gradually over a period of about 2 weeks (one week preceding the change and one week after it). During that time a lighter diet and a good daily routine of eating, sleeping and activity are a must. This will allow your immune system to gradually adjust to the changed environmental conditions.

The most ideal way to prepare for a seasonal change is by doing a week of cleansing and balancing Maharishi Ayurveda treatments. In this short time, toxins are dislodged from the bodily tissues and gently eliminated, while the entire system is being deeply balanced and nourished. You start the new season fresh and vital, with a stronger immunity and inner balance.

Since our Holiday Season falls during that delicate transition period it is wise to take as much care as possible to not aggravate Vata or suffer the consequences of a weakened immune system. Some tips for a healthier holiday routine include:

1. Enjoy your main meal at lunchtime, ideally between 12 and 2 PM. Digestion is much stronger at that time of the day and any heavier food items will be easier to digest when consumed before 2 PM.
2. Favor lighter but tasty foods at dinnertime. Hearty soups, homemade flat breads, and baked vegetable and grain casseroles are examples of healthy evening dishes.
3. Have your evening meal early, ideally by 7 PM.
4. Structure fun activities with friends and family that don’t center around eating. This will prevent all day snacking and keep your digestive and immune systems more efficient during the delicate seasonal transition.
5. Incorporate relaxing periods of time into your day to prevent Vata imbalance. Transcendental Meditation® technique is a deeply relaxing way to restore the inner sense of peace and balance twice a day.
6. Do your warm oil massage before shower every morning—even a 10-minute massage will have a beneficial, calming effect on Vata dosha. It will also give you more energy during the day.

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Recipe From Our Kitchen

Rice Pudding (Kheer): A light dessert for the evening

Ingredients

1 Cup Water
½ Cup Basmati Rice
4 Cups Whole Milk
1 tsp. Chopped dates
2 tsp. Cashews or pistachios
3 small pieces green cardamom, crushed
1 tsp. Sugar (or to taste)

Directions:
Soak rice in water for 2 hours. Boil milk. Add rice and all other ingredients. Boil slowly for 30 minutes or more until the mixture reaches a slightly thick consistency, but you can stir it easily. It will thicken a little more when you let it cool.

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*Doshas (Vata, Pitta and Kapha): The three fundamental operating principles in our physiology. Vata is responsible for all movement in the body—circulation of blood, movement of food down the digestive tract, mental activity, etc. Pitta governs transformation and metabolism such as digestion of food and its transformation into bodily tissues, “digestion” of ideas and experiences, and more. Kapha gives solidity to the tissues, holds together different parts of the body and balances the bodily fluids.

Traditional Vedic texts associate each dosha with specific qualities. Vata is associated with cold, lightness, dryness and movement; Pitta with heat, light, sharpness and acidity; Kapha with cold, heaviness, oiliness and slowness.

Vata, Pitta, and Kapha are found everywhere in nature—wherever their qualities are present. Different foods, geographic locations, seasons, times of the day, etc. each have a predominant dosha associated with them. When a certain dosha increases in the environment it will tend to increase the same dosha in our physiology and vice versa.

Contact Us

For more information on our programs please call (toll free) 877-890-8600. You can also email us at info@lancasterhealth.com.

© 2007 Maharishi Vedic Health Center. All rights reserved.
® Maharishi Vedic Approach to Health, Transcendental Meditation, Maharishi Rejuvenation, and Maharishi Vedic Health Center are trademarks licensed to Maharishi Vedic Education Development Corporation and used under sublicense or with permission.
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