The Heart is the Seat of the Consciousness – Hridaya

 At our Abhyanga massage therapist training our students learned about the Ayurvedic perspective of the heart and the importance to nurture it. 💛 

The heart is the seat of the consciousness, the seat of knowledge, intellect and the mind. The word Hridaya is the Sanskrit word for the heart.

In Ayurveda the brain 🧠 can also be called hridaya, showing us that the heart and brain interact in a dynamic relationship, regulating many aspects of cognition and emotional experience. 

I find this so interesting as in western medicine it is all about the brain when it comes to cognitive function and intellect. According to Ayurveda we have two brains. 🧠 🧠 💛💛

Think of this when making a decision in life. Our life is full of decisions from simply ones, small and inconsequential to large and life determining.

How do you make decisions? 

Do you feel in your hridaya (brain 🧠 ) by evaluating, analysing, weighing out your pro and cons, specify your objectives, understand consequences, or do you feel in your hridaya (heart 💛).

Are you less drawn to spreadsheets, risk assessments and feel your heart rather then the intellectual brain on what decisions feels right for you?

Trusting the feeling from your heart can be very powerful and helpful in fulfilling Dharma. 

Would love to hear your thoughts on this 👇 

Some more information about the heat 💛 for the students of Ayurveda from the classical ayurvedic text 📚 

Did you know those 5 facts about the Hridaya?

1. The word Hridaya is the Sanskrit word for the heart. It is derived from the 3 verbs.

• Hru – means Harati (to receive from)
• Da – means Dadati (to give)
• Ya – means Yagati (to control)

2. Ayurveda considers the Hridaya as one of the 10 important regions where the prana (life) exists (pranayatan). Ch. Su. 29/3

The Pranayatan 10 regions include the right and left temporal regions, Marmas – shiras (head), hridaya (heart), basti (bladder/kidneys), kantha (larynx and tracheal region), rakta (blood), shukra (semen), ojas (vital essence), and guda (anal region).

3. The hridaya is situated in between two mammary glands and is the essence of rakta (blood) and sleshma (kapha dosha). It has been conserved as a derivative of matraj bhava (maternal factor) by Charaka Ch. Sha. 4/15.
4. Sushruta described the shape of hridaya is a like a reverse lotus (Su. Sha 4/32). The functioning of the heart has been described as a lotus which opens at day time and closes in the night. While asleep the cardiac output decreases.
5. Did you know that all the 3 doshas are located in the hridaya? It is the seat of Vyana Vayu (responsible for our circulation), Sadhaka Pitta (represents the enzymes in the heart as well as emotions) and Avalambaka Kapha (represents interstitial fluid) and Ojas (8 drops).

Ojas is the essence of the dhatus (bodily tissues). It represents the energy required for all the functions of the body and mind. All the sense and motor organs, mind and life itself depends on ojas in their proper functioning.

The blood is nourished with oxygen in the lungs and is moved by the Vyana vayu. The heart is an organ which draws fluid including blood from all over the body and then supplies it to all the parts of the body.

A very good treatment for Hridroga (heart disease) is called Uro Vasti. The treatment involves the patient retaining warm medicated oil on a specific area of the chest over a specific period of time. The medicated oil used for this treatment are Balaashwagandhadi taila, Bala taila and Narayana taila.

The treatment is best done over a period of 7 days.

A heartfelt welcome to Lakshmi Ayurveda

* 𝘗𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘴𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘤𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘮𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘛𝘎𝘈. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘣𝘦 𝘶𝘴𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘥𝘪𝘢𝘨𝘯𝘰𝘴𝘦 𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘵𝘢𝘬𝘦𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘭𝘵𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘢𝘯 𝘈𝘺𝘶𝘳𝘷𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤 𝘱𝘩𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘯. 𝘞𝘦 𝘥𝘰 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘨𝘶𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘮𝘦 𝘯𝘰 𝘭𝘦𝘨𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘢𝘣𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘰𝘳 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘱𝘰𝘯𝘴𝘪𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘢𝘤𝘺, 𝘤𝘶𝘳𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘤𝘺 𝘰𝘳 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘪𝘯𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘴𝘦 𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘢𝘭𝘴.