Ayurvedacharya Ipsita

Japanese Hara hachi bu and Ayurveda

Hara hachi bu is an old and common saying in Japan which says about filling up the stomach up to 80% of its capacity, which is repeated before or after every meal . They repeat, remind and follow the rule of 80% while eating and this is proved to be one among many secrets of Japanese healthy and long life.
Now let's discuss its relation to Ayurveda.The shloka given in the photo has been taken from Ashtanga hridaya where Maharshi Vagbhatta clearly mentioned the type of food and its quantity as well for a sound digestion .
According to the shloka two parts of the stomach (i.e '50%) should be filled with solid food, one part by i.e 25% by liquid and the remaining one part i.e 25% should be kept vacant for air etc. So filling stomach with 50% solid and 25% liquid, i.e total 75% will benifit the digestive system resulting in overall good health. More over Ayurveda also dictates on what to , when to and how to eat and drink, and even how to prepare food for a healthy life. It is also proved that over eating or junk food etc account for lengthy and tiring digestive processes that accelerate cellular oxidation resulting in ageing. So eating up to 75% to 80% is just like antioxidants for body.
Ayurved has many more rules in the form of Sutras for a healthy lifestyle. (Note :all the Sutras are for healthy individuals or individuals having minor health issues, so before practicing any sutras take advice from an Ayurvedic doctor). Thank you.🙏

Definition of Health according to Ayurveda
The Shloka written in Devanagari script is from Sushruta Samhita. Here, Maharshi Sushruta, the first sage surgeon has given a clear and accurate definition of health.
According to Maharshi Sushruta a person is known to be healthy (swastha) if he/ she has balanced or co-ordinated state of all Doshas (bio-energy) , agni ( factor responsible to for digestion and metabolism), dhatu(body tissues), malas (gross and subtle waste products) and above all pleased , happy or balanced state of soul , senses and mind.
Now let's elaborate the second line of the Shloka. It's depicting about mental fitness, the equilibrium and coordination between the subtle elements of the body, like a healthy person must have psychological, emotional and social fitness.The 3 subtle elements are indriya (senses) , Atma (the soul) and mana (mind), the 3 should be prasanna means delighted and in coordination.
In my view Maharshi Sushruta has defined health similar to WHO's definition of health, even finer than that, that too thousands of years ago.

Ayurveda and Prescriptions :

Many Ayurvedic medicines are being sold over the counter (OTC), people are buying and having it as per their wishes. For some people it works and for others it doesn't. Here prescription plays an important role.

According to Ayurveda how a disease progresses is determined by body type (prakriti/prakruti) of an individual .Same rules apply on medicines too.So according to body type a medicine works. One medicine can be given in so many different ways ,in different conditions, with different anupaan (vehicles). An Ayurvedic doctor applies Yukti ( evaluate prakriti, dosa, dusya, doses, anupan etc) to give you a perfect set of medicine which would work holistically.We not only prescribe medicines but also advise appropriate diet and lifestyle according to body type, disease and season.Thus it's very very important to have a prescription for an Ayurvedic medicine.🙏

Ayurveda, the ancient medical practice of India is the oldest of all medical services.It not only treats diseases, but it has the beautiful principles to stay healthy, it not only subsides the symptoms of illnesses but treats the whole body, mind and soul, thus it's the holistic science, our own eternal Ayurveda.