The Symbol of Western Medicine
Healing demands that we find and clean our wounds and disordered behaviors. The subtleties of healing, to the ancients, was symbolically represented by a snake. Snakes are hidden - they catch you by surprise, just like disease. If disease were obvious everyone would avoid it.
The cunning and devious nature of the snake may represent the manipulation of the truth, the true nature of the disorder in our psyche. Our fear of snakes represents the subconscious part of ourselves we are unable to examine.
Healing requires "looking at the snake of disease", an act of bravery that brings light to overcome the darkness, affirms your physical health, and psychologically unveils the true nature of disorder.
The healing that arises from your ability to look at the snake is biblical. The Israelites, in exodus, stared at the snake on the staff of Moses in order to escape the poisonous snakes of the desert. The image of the subtle snake survives into modern times as the symbol of modern medicine: two snakes wrapped around a staff. The symbol was borrowed from Greek medicine, an ancient system of healing that shares many similarities with Ayurveda.
Body Scanning
Body scanning is one of the easiest ways to reconnect with your body. Some of the things you might experience when you start scanning your body include warmth and cold, tension and relaxation, a throbbing pulse, pain, rawness, pressure, emptiness or fullness. Note each of
these sensations.
General Method of Body Scanning
Work from top to bottom, periphery to the center, surface to interior. Pause for a moment on all structures in the body. For each structure, repeat the process from top to bottom, periphery to center, surface to interior. Generally, consider skin, muscles, joints, bones, organs in that order. Having an order, you will ensure comprehensive results with your scanning each time.
Interpreting Your Results
There are many ways to interpret your experiences and the underlying causes. Generally, Ayurvedic counselors note the following for each sensation:
- Describe the sensation as best as you can.
- Incorrect Example: After not eating, I was hungry.
- Correction: After not eating, I had a crampy (raw sensation) feeling in my stomach which I interpreted as hunger (assessment), that made me irritable (emotion).
- (Advanced) Write down the qualities (gunas), tastes, elements, dosha of each sensation.
- (Advanced) Note the dhatu, and srotamsi.
It can take awhile to sort through them. Call a medical doctor if you find any alarming symptoms. An Ayurvedic counselor is trained to help you figure out how your experiences translate to an Ayurvedic diet and lifestyle.
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