Springtime is in full swing right now.  As Nature demonstrates her ability to shift out of stagnancy and create new life; it’s important to remember that not only are we viewing Nature; but also we are Nature.  Our deepest inner Truths are fully aligned with the Natural World around us.

The Science and Lifestyle of Ayurveda is a great way to view the World and us from the point of the ever-changing Seasons of Nature.  And, within this concept we can more easily remember what our true Nature needs, right now.

Shifting out of the stagnancy of winter is a key point in alignment right now.  The Sun is rising earlier, and setting later.  With this, our lifestyle is best served to get up earlier, step out into the rising Sun, do more dynamic practices, best earlier in the day – and seek to build a solid foundation for strength and vitality.

Here are some ideas to cultivate for this springtime shift:

• Rise early, splash your face with fresh water, cleanse your sinuses with Neti, actively use Nasya oil in your nostrils, and take extra care with your mouth hygiene. Exfoliate (garshana) your skin with an exfoliating mitt and apply a layer of oil.
• Wake up your digestive process with a large mug of warm water (a squeeze of key lime or lemon is helpful in releasing held mucus).
• Step into Nature and greet the morning: best if you can go outside, but even standing at a window works.  Take your deep morning breaths while sipping in sunshine through your quiet eyes.
• Take a moment of gratitude, honoring another day and your ability to play in this magical World yet another day.
• Cultivate a more dynamic movement and breath practice, such as 10 sun salutations. As well Kapalabhati breathing and/or Surya Bhedana (right nostril breathing) will wake up the lungs, increase the flow of Prana and help in shedding physical, emotional and mental stagnation.
• Affirm your positive actions for the day.

Springtime is the Season to cleanse.  Along with the body, the mind, the emotions, and the resetting of conscious actions in the World.

Eating a diet that includes only fresh, ideally local, fruits and vegetables.  Lots of berries and micro-greens right now are best to clear stagnancy in the digestive system.  Instead of fasting, preparing a mung bean and rice stew, called Kitchari, for one week is very effective in resetting the liver’s action potential.

Eat less of foods that increase the Kapha heavy qualities of late Winter, such as dairy products, and fried or oily foods. This is especially important in the morning and after dinner.  Drinking a tea made with Cumin, Coriander and Fennel seeds (CCF tea) helps keep the digestive and circulatory system healthy. There are also great prepackaged teas, such as Dandelion Root Tea, Tulsi Tea, and Detox tea – all excellent for the Spring time de-stagnation process.

Plan your day to include a short nervous system re-set, also called Yoga Nidra.  You can follow along with a CD, or an App, as it guides you through a full relaxation and deep unwinding of held beliefs and unhealthy patterns.  Try this in place of your afternoon chocolate or coffee and you’ll develop a more healthy immune system, as well as a long term ease of energy flow.

Seek sleep by 10 PM and wake up between 5:30 and 6AM. This will help realign your circadian patterns with Nature around you, creating a more supportive digestive process, as well as easier release of the build up of Cortisol and other unhealthy byproducts of Stress.

As you cleanse your body and mind, don’t forget to look around your home.  This is the ideal time to organize and clean.  Get rid of things you are no longer using.

Lastly, this Season is about opening to new expressive ways.  Take time to resolve lingering issues that keep getting pushed to the back burner.  Practice self-forgiveness, and from this place of loving kindness, a deeper sense of understanding, forgiveness to others and World peace can emerge.  Use your voice.  Sing, chant, yell and scream.  Find ways to express the opening of a new Season.

A La Vida…to life!

Maria Shamas has a rich history in the field of wellness, yoga therapeutics Ayurveda. She is an RN, with an MS in Community Health with extensive work in the fields of Rehabilitation and Women’s Health. She went on to receive extensive teacher training in yoga, and then yoga therapeutics, and has both a private practice in yoga therapy, ayurvedic consultation and an extensive teaching curriculum for advanced students of yoga therapy. She teaches with Inner Peace Yoga Therapy, and then with her own Maria Alive Therapeutics.