If religions can coexist happily, so can different medicine systems walk hand-in-hand to put you on the path of health and happiness, says REENA SINGH
I have been a user of both Ayurveda and Allopathy. No, I am not using nice-to-eat over-the-counter capsules and tablets of home remedies such as turmeric, bhrami and ashwagandha. Instead, I have been a serious user of medicinal Ayurveda since the past 11 years.
I am equally dependent on Allopathy, which I use daily to manage my lifestyle ailments such as diabetes and blood pressure. After being treated by both sets of doctors, I will say that both are essential to your wellbeing.
I have often been ticked off by my friends, cousins, uncles and aunts when I tell them that I am a serious user of Ayurveda medicines. ‘Why are you making such a mistake? What if you get worse?’ echo the naysayers, almost in unison. That’s when I launch off into my own pet diatribe: I have been cured of my osteoarthritis, a condition I developed some 4.5 years ago completely by Ayurveda besides various other ailments.
I didn’t even bother seeing an orthopaedic for my osteoarthritis, apart from the X-ray my Functional Manual Therapist (FMT) suggested, whom I first approached for the unbearable pain that would shoot up my leg with every step I took.
Instead, I trotted off trustingly to Dr Parmeshwar Arora, who belonged then to the department of holistic medicine in Sir Ganga Ram Hospital in the Capital. He prescribed Ayurveda calcium, a formulation called Prawaladi, Ashw-gugulu, a popular Ayurvedic medicine usually prescribed for joint pain and a magical oil called Nilgiryadi, that I have since introduced to so many of my friends and acquaintances. The results for all have been very good.
Of course, to supplement this, I sat in the sun for 20 minutes a day, swam four times weekly and knocked off some excess weight. Soon, the pain was gone.
When I look back at that painful phase of my life when every step was a misery, when stairs could only be taken one step at a time while limping, I thank my stars that I had the backing of Ayurveda. My FMT therapist had predicted that I would need knee replacement surgery in both legs within two years, back then.
When I have had access to such miracle cures, is it any wonder that I often stick my neck out to defend Ayurveda?
While this tussle between Allopathy Vs Ayurveda always existed, it has now blown out of proportion by Baba Ramdev’s recent claim that allopathy treatment has killed more people in this current Covid epidemic than lack of oxygen or medicines.
He cited a list of experimental cures that WHO has either rejected or has asked the medical fraternity to exercise caution while using. He mentioned plasma therapy, remdesivir, steroids, hydroxychloroquine and other medicines. Allopathy doctors are upset and the Indian Medical Association has slapped a Rs 1,000-crore defamation case against the Baba unless he takes back his statements.
As I watched an impassioned Dr Parmeshwar speak in defense of Ayurveda on a news show on TV, I tended to agree with him. Were Ayurvedacharyas slapping defamation cases against Allopathy doctors when the latter described them as jhola-wallah doctors who prescribed jadi-booties that were not scientifically proven?
I have been closely associated with several other traditional systems of medicines in the ten years I worked with the country’s top spiritual newspaper before being part of a team that launched YoursPositively last year.
Allopathy is great. So is Ayurveda. One has to keep an open mind and go for treatment that works. Ayurveda has been proven over centuries of use in India. At an international conference organised by Renu Gulati, Ayurveda teacher and expert in Rishikesh in 2011, I remember meeting Dr Robert Svoboda, the first westerner to graduate from an Ayurveda college.
He speaks Sanskrit, recites shlokas and had implied back then that while allopathy is great for emergency medication, surgery and cures, it is Ayurveda that really cures ailments from its roots.
At the same conference, I also met the Coimbatore-based Indian scholar of Ayurveda, Dr V Vasudevan. He suggested an immediate cure for a skin problem I was suffering with ― one that the allopathy surgeon had suggested needed a deep cleanse, stitches, and a strong dose of antibiotics. Instead, I was cured by a paste of two churans Dr Vasudevan suggested I apply over the affected part for a month.
I was sold on to Ayurveda from that point onwards. I became a dedicated convert who took to Ayurveda treatments seriously. I can’t stop thanking Providence for showing me the way.
But for Ayurveda to cure 100 per cent, one has to eat sattvic food that is fresh, vegetarian and without excess spices. Moreover, you have to eat seasonal fruits and vegetables and eat according to your doshas ― which means that if you have an excess of pitta, vata or kapha, you eat foods that balance this.
Ayurveda is a complete system of medicine that is focused on curing an ailment from its roots by first correcting the digestive fire, and then prescribing certain herbs that cure it. It works and is totally scientific in its approach.
I also won’t deny that I still need allopathy for my lifestyle conditions of diabetes and blood pressure. The Ayurveda cure is simple ― lose 20 kg, meditate and walk daily and be stress-free. Unfortunately, it is because we can’t rise to such challenges that we are forced to seek treatment from a system of medication that works effectively given the lifestyle traps we find ourselves in.
So be open, experiment and try Ayurveda for other ailments that it cures effectively ― you will be surprised at how well it works if only you will give it a chance.
If religions can coexist happily, so can Ayurveda and Allopathy walk hand-in-hand to put you on the path of health and happiness.
Reena Singh has more than 37 years’ experience in senior editorial positions in The Times of India (TOI) and Genpact. She was Deputy Editor with TOI’s spiritual newspaper, The Speaking Tree, where she spent nine years.
Picture of allopathy doctors by Sasin Tipchai from Pixabay
Beautiful analysis of an age old debate on the efficacy of Allopathy and Ayurveda in curing of diseases, in light of the recent controversy created by Baba Ramdev’s statement no one knows when it can abate!
During our childhood days, our village doctor whom everyone knew as Kaviraj, an Ayurvedic practitioner was the only health worker in an unbelievable radius of about 40 kilometres and only when a patient was seriously ill, he or she was advised to shift to the nearest town where a renowned Allopathy doctor called Biswal babu was the one most sought after.
Time has changed a lot since then and so also our choices, as per the market’s offer.
But one must not forget that a practice which was relevant since Ages can not be just wished away as wild, unscientific and rejecting it as just out of vogue.
Just an instant case of Ayurvedic remedy which worked like a miracle for all of us in the family. After recovery from Corona with Allopathic drugs, most of the patients are suffering from nagging and irritating cough. In our case, we tried lot of syrups and expectorants to release cough but to no avail. And then I resorted to my village doctor.
Here is what he prescribed: Take cinnamon, clove, pepper & dry ginger (sonth) in equal proportion, fry a little and make its powder.
Then heat a lump of jaggery till it is sticky, mix a teaspoon of the powder completely into it and take two times a day, hot.
We did it and lo! The Ayurvedic remedy worked like a miracle which a whole lot of Allopathic syrup could not!
So, I don’t think it is at all good to outrightly negate either Allopathy or Ayurveda. Facts on the ground often say otherwise. Experience says, Synergy and Synthesis often works better. This is how not only in the field of health and sanitation, but in every field we grow as a civilised society along with our respectable culture.
Best Wishes to Allopathy as well as Best Wishes to Ayurveda practitioners. Cheers!
Fantastic and timely article, raising and making a valid point.
Very well expressed Reena. Totally agree that both streams go hand in hand. Loved the article