Ayurveda Workshop to be conducted in Nine US Schools

April 6 , 2007

(Ayushveda.com) - The United States of America is one of the strongest global markets of Ayurveda in the world. Though Ayurveda is an Indian alternative medicinal therapy, the amount of finance and resources pooled by the US into its research is about forty times greater than what India itself has invested. That is the reason why Ayurvedic practitioners back home in India feel that if there is any development to occur in this brand of medicine, it will mostly occur on the American shores due to the improved infrastructure that they have.

Ayurveda is a five millennia-old science. It is grouped with the other alternative branches of medicines such as siddha, unani and homeopathy. But while the other alternative medicines have evolved greatly in modern times, Ayurveda has remained largely stagnated, and that is the reason why most people are quite wary in accepting the methods of this orthodox medicinal therapy.

Dr. Navin Shah, the founder and ex-president of the American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin in the US has recognized this drawback. He is not intent on taking great measures to spread the knowledge of Ayurveda in countries which have the infrastructure to make developments and conduct research. Currently, he is planning on a six-week Ayurvedic workshop in nine schools of the US , which will include highly reputed schools like Rutgers and Harvard. The doctors called for this US workshop will be highly-qualified Ayurvedic doctors from the Mumbai and neighboring Pune cities of India .

From the Indian side, this workshop is being conduced by the AYUSH, which is the India-based Ministry of Health (AYUSH stands for Ayurveda, Yoga, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy). The project will be conducted prominently by two Ayurveda professors who have been selected by AYUSH, namely H. S. Palep from Mumbai and Tanuja Nesari from Pune.

Dr. Navin Shah has been very particular in his dealings with the Indian AYUSH. His prime intention was to get the best Ayurvedic proponents for the US workshop. Dr, Navin Shah is aware of the several so-called Ayurvedic preachers who speak a lot on theoretical lines, but cannot substantiate their claims with evidential studies. Dr. Navin Shah has taken care to select people who will be illuminating the US audience only with Ayurvedic principles that have been practically proved with research. This is because the US public is very skeptical to alternative medicines like Ayurveda and they would right away reject anything that seems to be illogical. Dr. Navin Shah is confident that he will be able to present Ayurveda in its most justified manner at the workshop.

Even common lifestyle diseases of modern times such as heart diseases, hypertension, diabetes and arthritis will be tackled in great detail at the workshop. The Americans will be made cognizant with the extremely effective Ayurvedic treatments to keep these diseases at bay, such as the Panchakarma process, which is a method of detoxifying the entire human body. The US audiences will be acquainted with the various rasayanas and Ayurvedic herbs that are beneficial to these conditions. Needless to say, all therapeutic methods will be substantiated with scientific claims from the medical fraternities from all over the world.

The program is being thought of as being a medium of exchange of students in future times. There is a possibility of getting US students interested in Ayurveda and inviting them to join the prestigious Indian schools on the subject. The US education system already has a subject known as the CAM (Complementary Alternative Medicine), which already includes acupuncture and acupressure. If things go well, then Ayurveda could well land being incorporated within this subject. Dr. Navin Shah's ambitious project is an attempt to bring about globalization in Ayurveda.