Since Covid’s appearance in the world, many businesses and also systems such as Ayurveda, Yoga and TCM were affected, due to the ‘contactless’ worldview imposed upon us. Yet, even before that Ayurveda started to decline in a wholesome manner, in three variants:
1. ‘Ayur-Yoga’.
This system was/is nothing more than yoga in the guise of Ayurveda, relative to a few palliative massages and generic herbs used in studios, in the name of Ayurveda, with at best, some generic evaluation quizzes, which don’t really help either the practitioner, nor the individual, unless they know what they’re doing with the information – or rather, how to apply it!
2. American ‘Hippie Ayurveda’.
This variant took the name of traditionalism, yet incorporated everything from Solar-dances, taking ayahuasca and Native American shamanism to Reiki, Pranic-Healing, Chakra-Balancing and fusing it with herbalism.
It became a rather confused system that was streamlined as American Ayurveda, yet it was critical against true shastric Ayurveda that spoke about suitability, surgery, meats and substances, alchemy, in addition to elaborate practices and teachings ignored by this school.
3. American Allopathicised Ayurveda.
This system rejected much of yoga, vedanta and remains anti-Brahmanical in tone. Whilst it has some good points such as discussing the scientific aspects of Ayurveda, it ignores the bulk of tradition, as it is. Relative to examination, it also prefers more allopathic methods or measures, as well as a combination of pan-Naturopathic methods.
Hence, these have left students feeling somewhat confused within these systems – and also, each wishing to vehemently defend their own system.
The major problem is that true Traditional Ayurveda never really made it to America as such, due to a plethora of issues such as the culture of superficiality, FDA regulations – and also the litigious nature of practicing any form of medicine in the United States – let alone modalities such as Ayurveda.
Schools decided to ‘redact’ texts and teachings as a result, creating a generalised and pasteurised system of one of the above tributaries, in addition to the fact that, just as the world recovers from the toxic effects of Covid-19 and its economic, as well as psychological impact – so also, to be honest, Ayurveda as a science has been constantly afflicted by the generalisations of the Hippies in the ’70s – ’80s, of which were simply further re-appropriated by modern trust-fund babies in more ‘Hipster-Ayurveda’ trends.
So – what’s next for Ayurveda, and where do we go?
Well, we are soon having an open discussion relative to this, based upon a return to the Vedas and the original Ayurveda as in India. It is a bold move, and one I have pushed, often alone, in my books, for those who would lend an ear.
Yet, now, the time has come to make this a reality and return it back to its roots, for its survival in the modern world and climate in the west!
Auckland Ayurvedic Wellness 