Ayurveda is the “Science Of Life” which covers all aspects of life right from the conception of an individual to his very last moment in this material creation.
In this article, I will focus on
that aspect of life which is called ‘death’, ‘passing away’, ‘leaving the body’
etc.
Ayurveda emphasizes and teaches
us to live our life in such a way that our last moments, closure of life, do
not cause any pain for us and we can leave this body and the world peacefully.
According to Ayurveda, our life
passes through 3 main stages viz. childhood, adulthood and old age. At each stage our system is influenced by a
specific dosha. In childhood “Kapha” is very strong, resulting in
continuous growth; “Pitta” governs
our adulthood, making us ambitious and giving us energy and drive; where as “Vata” becomes the main controller of
our whole system during old age, causing stiffness of the joints, disturbed
sleep etc.
If we learn and follow the
Ayurvedic system then we can easily maintain balance amongst the three doshas
ie Vata, Pitta & Kapha, at all
the three stages i.e. childhood, adulthood & old age; can live a healthy
life and die peacefully.
Besides teaching us the technical
points regarding the doshas, their effects, how to maintain balance amongst
them etc., Ayurveda also teaches us about the subtle and fine aspect of life
eg. theory of Karma, trigunas (three
modes of nature) and their importance from the material & spiritual
perspective.
According to Ayurveda, our
activities are influenced mainly by the 3 doshas and 3 gunas (modes of nature)
namely : Sattva (mode of goodness), Rajas
(mode of passion) and Tamas (mode of
ignorance)
So, besides maintaining good
health, Ayurveda wants us to adopt good habits, perform activities which are sattvic, (in the mode of goodness), free
from the contamination of Rajas (mode
of passion) and Tamas (mode of ignorance), and create good karma which not only can be beneficial for us at the personal level
but also for others at a social, global and universal level.
If we are able to raise our
consciousness to the level of mode of goodness, then it is possible that we
leave our body also in the mode of goodness.
According to Ayurveda, all creatures
are part and parcel of the whole universe.
Human beings are the topmost and the best of all creatures because their
consciousness is more developed and evolved compared to the consciousness of
other creatures. So the responsibility
of human beings is also the highest. It
is our responsibility to create and maintain a healthy environment for the
benefit of all living beings in the material creation. A philosopher named “Kabira” has said :
“ When we take birth in this
world, we cry and people around us become joyful; we should live our lives in
such a way that at the time of our death, we feel peaceful and people around us
feel sad and cry”.
To conclude, I would say that it
is very important for us to make our last impression, an unforgettable
impression on peoples’ minds - A LAST
IMPRESSION in the truest sense.
