Dravya Guna

Dravya Guna is a nifty little topic that delves very deeply into the secret life of plants. We are lucky enough to have this topic covered by a sweet, older woman named Turulata, (it means tree climber, she announced on the first day of class, proudly) who walks her talk...She wears saris appropriate for the color of the day. On Monday she wears white, on Tuesday it's red, Wednesday, green, Thursday, yellow (she looked great in yellow), on Friday it was blue and on Saturday, the day of Saturn, it was black or dark blue. Sunday was a holiday and she said she could wear whatever she wanted (something that wasn't dirty, I suggested, if you teach all week). She laughs easily and shares her knowledge with us just as easily. She is probably in her late 60's or early 70's, wear her gray hair pulled back tightly into a knot and has no problem hiding any of her rolls. She announces to us, with an air of satisfaction in her voice, that she takes no Ayurvedic herbs or medicines, is in excellent health, NEVER eats "outside" (the polite way of saying that they don't eat in restaurants) and is content with her life. It shows.

She laughs, with great glee, when she tells us that no, the book on plants that all the students are now coveting, is NOT available in English and she has no time to translate it. When she's at home, the tasks of her home fill her time and when she's at work, the tasks of her work fill the rest. I love the way she holds it; making no excuses for having a life that requires her attention.

She shares gems of information that turn my life upside down and my belief system inside out. LIKE, the Gujarati people NEVER eat rice or any grain fresh. EVERYONE knows that they are more easily digestible after a year. So, there are special stores where you can go to buy your dried goods in bulk, because then of course you will save them for a year. OF COURSE... (and me, only here for three months and having to eat 'new' rice!)

She knows, as do they all, the value of good digestion and eating wisely. She fasts for a day, twice a month, on liquids, 11 days after the full moon and 11 days after the new moon. It reminded me of Yogananda and his valuing of fasting in order to give your digestive tract a rest. I went to the calendar, counted out the days and was going to join this regime, only to find out that I had counted wrong...she counted as the first day, the day of the full and new moon. Back to the drawing board.

I love her and her classes and look forward to the day she will take us into her lab and identify plants for us. She has also promised to take us to her home to teach us to make sonji. And for those of you who have had the courage to go into a restaurant and order your desert first (We were RIGHT, Jackie, when we ordered our key lime pie first, in Mexico!), YES, you DO start the meal with a sweet little morsel... I knew it. Her recipe for good health is, start with a sweet (Dr. Acharya's wife started the meal I was invited to, in the same way), then move on to a vegetable and chappati and then have rice (a year old of course). And, finishing your meal with a glass of buttermilk is a must...It works for her.

You might also enjoy the short list of the three main causes of illness from another teacher who was teaching us the Principles of Ayurveda:

1. Do not go against your own mind,

2. Do not overuse your sensory organs and,

3. Be appropriate for age and time (yours and the life).

Namaste, Phyllis