Month: April 2024

After celebrating the new year with great enthusiasm on Gudhipadwa, the month of Chaitra starts. The next two months are a very difficult period for the whole of India as we experience summer in this period. As India is a tropical country, the intensity of summer is more here. In addition to this, in the last few years, due to deforestation and pollution, the summer has become hotter than ever before. Therefore, in this approaching summer, we have to face the fire-burning, scorching heat of the sun. This season is called Grishma Rutu. Ideally, Grishma Rutu is expected to start in the month of Vaishakh. However, now a days this blazing summer starts earlier, from the month of Chaitra.

The intense heat of the sun in Grishma Rutu heats up the entire nature. It makes lakes, ponds, and streams shrink and rivers dry up. We experience an increase in dryness in nature. The same effect is felt in our bodies. Naturally, the water content in the body also decreases and the dryness starts to increase. As the heat in the environment increases, it also increases our body heat. This unbearable heat causes constant sweating. Due to this sweat, the water level in the body is further reduced.

In winter, we don’t experience sweating, and therefore, the heat in the body is trapped. This increases the digestive power in the body. In summer, it is the exact opposite. Constant sweating removes the heat from the body which has an adverse impact on the digestive power. Naturally, the digestive power is reduced in this season. The strength of the body also goes down due to the heat in the environment. Hence, we feel tired and weak even when we are not working hard. As the dryness in the body increases, the Vaat dosha starts accumulating. Therefore, our diet in this season needs to be determined, considering various factors such as increasing heat, reduced digestive power, reduced strength, and accumulation of Vaat dosha.

Considering all this, our diet should be easy to digest. We can include wheat roti, rice, Bhakari(Jowar roti) in our diet. There is no harm in using Red rice, Sathesali rice. We can use Jowar or Ragi(Nachani)  for making Bhakari. Bajra is considered hot and dry and is therefore better avoided. We can use wheat for making chapati. Like chapati, we should consume Fulka made of wheat in this season.

In summer, spicy, bitter and Turat(Taste of Amla is turat) foods should be consumed in less quantity, as these foods increase dryness and accumulation of Vaat dosha in our body. Instead, we should consume more sweet, salty and sour foods. These foods reduce Vaat dosha accumulation. Loss of strength in our body due to the summer heat can be avoided by consuming sweet foods. They also help to reduce the heat in the body. Considering this, instead of regular roti we can eat sugar roti, Sheera roti(roti stuffed with Suji halwa). We can consume rice dishes like sugar-rice, Kashmiri pulao. In our diet, we can consume foods made of milk and dishes prepared using milk or khoya like Barfi, Shrikhand and Basundi. However, these should be consumed in less quantity as the digestive power is weak in this season. By doing so, we can reduce the additional load on the digestive system. It is beneficial to include Kheer or Sheerkurma made from Vermicelli(Semiya), wheat, Suji. We can consume milk with sugar or masala milk(milk with dry fruits). Like milk, pure ghee also helps to reduce the dryness in our body. Hence, we should use pure ghee or ghee with jaggery. Pure ghee increases the digestive power and gives strength to the entire body. It also helps to reduce the heat and Vaat dosha in our body. We can include two to four spoons of pure ghee, butter as well as cream with sugar in our meals.

Dr Mayuresh Aagte

Please Note: The recommended diet takes Ayurveda into consideration. Individuals with any form of illness should seek medical advice before adopting the diet.

After getting drenched in various colors of Rang Panchami, we look forward to welcoming the New Year! According to Indian tradition, the first day of the new year is Chaitra Shuddha Pratipada i.e. ‘Gudhi Padwa’! On this day, we welcome the sun on the first day of the year in the form of Gudhi . We wake up early in the morning and celebrate the first day of the new year by hoisting a Gudhi tied to Neem leaves and Gathi(sugar crystal garland). The sweet food made at home adds joy to the celebration on this auspicious day of Padwa!

We have been following this tradition of Gudhi Padwa for centuries. One can observe that there is a huge difference in the way we welcome the new year as opposed to how the rest of the world does. Why doesn’t our culture celebrate the new year on December 31^st, just like many others do? Traditionally, we never welcome anyone with bitter food. Then why do we use Neem, which is bitter in taste, and Gathi (sugar crystals) to welcome the sun, on which nature’s cycle depends? Such food is not prepared on any other festivals. Then why have we been doing this for hundreds of years on the first day of Gudhi Padwa? Our search for answers to these questions led us to discovering them in Ayurveda.

The tradition of Gudhi Padwa was created keeping our health in mind. Only if our bodies are healthy, we can celebrate the new year happily. To give our year a healthy and disease-free start, foods such as Neem leaves and Gathi are used. On the occasion of ‘Gudhi Padwa’, let’s explore the science behind this tradition.

By this Pratipada in Chaitra, it has been a long time since the uttarayan(Summer solstice) of the sun has started. Naturally, we now feel the intensity of heat. During the next two-and-a-half months, this intensity goes up. Our body, being a part of nature, also gets affected by this heat. Our body heat increases with the heat in the atmosphere. This leads to multiple problems like feeling hot, heat rashes or skin rashes. The increasing heat can affect(spoil) our blood as well. It can cause problems like pimples, blisters, bleeding from nose. Our appetite goes down in summer. The best solution to all these issues is ‘Kadunimb’(Neem).

Since bitter-tasting Neem has a cooling quality, it is a great medicine for all heat related diseases. Therefore, it should be used during the summer months of Chaitra and Vaishakh. Neem powder reduces the heat of the body. Since it is a good blood purifier, it reduces blisters on the skin. It also reduces irritation caused by prickly heat. Similarly, it is also useful in problems like itchy skin. If heat causes bleeding from the body, it has the power to stop it immediately. Neem also has a good effect on the liver. It improves the function of the liver as well as increases appetite which is naturally reduced during this season. It is useful for reducing burning sensation in stomach and acidity. 

In summer, many a times we experience stomach upset/indigestion . We especially experience more when we eat outside food. Neem is helpful with such problems. Hence, ‘Kadunimb’ is important in this period.

The sweet-tasting sugar present in the Gathi(sugar crystals) is also helpful along with Kadunimb(Neem).The sweetness in sugar helps to reduce the fatigue of the body. Chewing the Gathi helps with problems such as dry mouth and frequent thirst. The sugar’s sweetness refreshes all the cells in the body. The Kadunimb(Neem) can increase the Vaat dosh in body. However, the sugar helps to prevent it. Generally, sweet foods are heavy to digest. However, sugar is an exception, though it is sweet. Hence, consuming it in this season is beneficial. All these factors about our health have been considered in this tradition of ‘Gudhi’. All our traditions have survived for centuries because they have scientific basis.

Dr Mayuresh Aagte