Rooted in the principles of balance and harmony, Ayurveda guides individuals to achieve holistic wellness

World Ayurveda Day, celebrated each year on the auspicious occasion of Bhagwan Dhanvantari Jayanti, offers a profound opportunity to honour Bharat’s rich heritage of health and well-being. This year, on October 29, 2024, we come together to recognise Ayurveda—not just as an ancient healing practice but as a living tradition that continues to inspire and transform lives worldwide.

Rooted in the principles of balance and harmony, Ayurveda guides individuals to achieve holistic wellness by understanding their unique mind-body constitution and aligning with nature’s rhythms. Its timeless knowledge promotes preventive care, natural treatments, and a lifestyle that supports physical, mental, and spiritual health. Ayurveda’s reach has grown from ancient India to touch people across the globe, embodying Bharat’s gift of wellness to the world.

As we celebrate Ayurveda Day, let us commit to embracing and preserving this invaluable heritage. Ayurveda, the revered “science of life,” represents one of the oldest and most comprehensive systems of holistic medicine.

Originating in ancient India, Ayurveda focuses on achieving balance within the body, mind, and spirit. In recent years, Ayurveda has gained remarkable global recognition, a testament to PM Modi visionary approach to integrating AYUSH practices, including Ayurveda, with modern healthcare.

His leadership, underscored by the establishment of the Ministry of AYUSH as an independent entity in 2014, set the stage for Ayurveda’s transformation into a mainstream, globally respected healthcare approach. The government has since pioneered several initiatives to promote and expand Ayurveda’s reach. Through partnerships with research institutions, academic centres, and healthcare organisations worldwide, India has emphasised evidence-based studies, technological advancements, and policy support to bring Ayurveda to a broader audience.

Moreover, the government’s efforts to encourage innovative collaborations and cross-cultural exchanges have fostered an international appreciation of Ayurveda’s preventive and holistic benefits. As we witness Ayurveda’s evolution on a global scale, its emphasis on wellness, natural healing, and preventive care resonates more than ever, addressing modern health challenges and reasserting Bharat’s invaluable contribution to the world of medicine and wellness. Ayurveda, often regarded as the “science of life,” is deeply rooted in ancient Indian philosophy, drawing from the foundational ideas of Sanatan philosophical schools around the 2nd century BCE. Its development was heavily influenced by the Vaisheshika school, known for its focus on natural principles and the categorisation of elements, and the Nyaya school, which emphasised logic, reasoning, and structured analysis.

These schools laid a framework that allowed Ayurveda to develop a systematic approach to health, emphasising diagnosis, observation, and inference based on natural laws. Furthermore, Ayurveda’s conceptual foundation aligns with Samkhya philosophy, a school that delves into the nature of existence, consciousness, and the duality of mind and matter. Samkhya’s insights into the interaction between Purusha (consciousness) and Prakriti (matter) provided Ayurveda with a comprehensive understanding of the body-mind connection, integral to its approach to health and wellness. Together, these philosophical influences cultivated Ayurveda’s holistic view of human life, wherein health is perceived as an intricate balance between mind, body, and environment.

This synthesis not only strengthened Ayurveda’s theories of doshas (biological energies) but also fostered an awareness of how lifestyle, diet, and mental states directly impact physical well-being. Thus, Ayurveda emerged as an interdisciplinary science, rooted in empirical observation yet deeply philosophical, ultimately offering a framework of healing that remains both relevant and insightful in understanding modern health.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi has been a pivotal force in promoting the integration of Ayurveda with contemporary health sciences, fostering a healthcare model that values both preventive and holistic approaches. His vision underscores a sustainable healthcare framework where traditional systems of medicine, such as Ayurveda, play an essential role in enhancing the quality of life.

This approach aligns with his broader agenda of sustainable health solutions for all, recognising Ayurveda’s unique preventive and curative strengths rooted in millennia-old wisdom. Central to this vision are initiatives like the National AYUSH Mission and the establishment of Ayush Health and Wellness Centres (AHWCs), now known as Ayush Arogya Mandirs. These initiatives aim to reshape India’s healthcare landscape, making AYUSH a socially viable, affordable, and complementary alternative to allopathic medicine.

(The writer is Minister of State for Health and Family Welfare of India; views are personal)