Published
in Dermascope Magazine, September 1999. Reproduced with permission.
Featuring Vaidya The Council, By Patricia Jacobs
Over the years, the original knowledge of ayurveda became fragmented,
especially under centuries of British rule. But in 1980 Maharishi
Mahesh Yogi, together with Vaidya B. D. Triguna (the father of modern
ayurveda) and dozens of India's foremost experts restored the
knowledge in a comprehensive system of natural health care that was
named Maharishi Ayurvedaa. In this article, The Council of Maharishi Ayurveda Physicians shares
timeless beauty secrets with the western world, discussing The
Three Pillars of Beauty as practiced by Maharishi Ayurvedaa—the
ancient science of beautification that taps the source of beauty from
within.
Introduction
"Dugdadhara—rinsing the body for an hour-and-a-half
with saffron milk, floral water and rose buds. You can see the rejuvenation
immediately—the skin glows, the tone become supple, the face
becomes radiant. This is a traditional treatment among the royal families." — describing one of India's most impressive
skin treatments.
In the Three Pillars of Ayurveda, beautification is not so concerned
with the shape of the nose or the color of the eyes but the entire
vision of beauty that shines from within. According to foremost skin
care experts on The Council, the outer appearance reveals
the whole person—the intelligence, the personality, the emotions,
the grace. The Three Pillars approach is an ancient science of health,
beauty and longevity that enhances our natural beauty from within.
And these timeless secrets of India's royal families offer great
promise for the future of the spa industry. As The Council explains, aestheticians can
incorporate these blissful procedures into their repertoires to promote
deep and lasting beauty as well as satisfied clients who return for
regular visits.
Ayurveda and Beauty
The Council describes the differences between western and ayurvedic
skin care in the following way. While western aesthetics emphasize
treatments and applications, ayurveda considers all factors, external
as well as internal. In the west, we typically underestimate the importance
of diet, behavior, daily routine and especially going to sleep on
time, in supporting the health of our skin. And, as most of us can
testify from looking in the mirror everyday, the quality of our life
determines the depth of our beauty.
Ayurveda's Three Pillars approach fits perfectly into the spa
setting. And as The Council explains, it allows the technician to
treat not only the client's outer appearance but all four levels
of body, senses, mind and spirit. Why would we be concerned with the
mind and senses when we're treating acne or clogged pores? If
less than four levels are being considered, the results will be limited.
And when one part of life is ignored to benefit another, there can
often be side effects.
Three Pillars of Beauty
The Council describes the process of beautification as Subhanga
Karanam, transforming the client into something more than beautiful.
Making the appearance powerful, pleasing, and uplifting to the environment.
Most of us can recall meeting someone impressive who looked radiant,
special and unforgettable. Beyond beautiful. This is the inner power
that Subhanga Karanam brings to the surface through the Three Pillars
approach. According to The Council, the three pillars include 1)
inner beauty, 2) outer beauty, and 3) lasting beauty. Its firm principle
upholds that we never improve one at the expense of the others. Every
treatment should enrich all three.
Roopam is the outer beauty, the visible appearance such as skin, nails
and hair. The aesthetics industry is thoroughly familiar with outer
beauty. And having seen the contrast of ‘before-and-after,'
we know that the physical features we are born with are only one piece
of the picture. That's why for centuries, spas have provided
skin treatments and products that refine our appearance. "The
Three Pillars approach refines the
appearance from the outside and the inside. The procedures nourish
the skin as well as the senses, mind, body and spirit. We never create
disturbance or discomfort. We don't apply too much pressure.
We don't use extremes of temperature. All treatments soothe,
nourish and relax."
The Council states we often underestimate the vital sense organ called
the skin. The skin functions as a single organ, similar to the way
the heart or the liver functions as one organ. This may seem obvious.
But consider what it means. The skin on the face is not separate from
the skin on the rest of the body. If you break the skin on your knee,
the whole organ of the skin is affected. When you give your client
a facial, you're affecting the skin on her arms, her legs and
her whole body. You touch the skin in one place but it reacts all
over. We know this is true because the skin gives us constant feedback.
On a hot day the skin turns red and perspires, on a cold, windy day
it turns dry and rough. Eating a watermelon turns your skin cool.
If you eat a jalapeno your face turns red or you break out in a rash. "Whatever skin therapies we use touch the whole skin, the whole
body and the whole person," says The Council. "The Three
Pillars approach recognizes that the skin is not separate any more
than the arm or the head is separate from the body. This is why we
don't treat the skin in isolation but in the context of the whole
person."
Gunam is the second pillar, the inner beauty visible to the soul.
Inner beauty reveals the most intimate and powerful part of life,
our consciousness or inner self. Maybe you've noticed how a person's
appearance changes as you get to know her. Someone who is kind and
sincere seems to grow more attractive, while someone who is tense
and harsh becomes unattractive. Outer beauty reveals the inner life.
Therefore the Three Pillars approach never restricts itself to the
face. It addresses the whole person. The Council suggests that through
this system aestheticians can become true beauty experts in guiding
their clients to develop their own beauty from within. This includes
feeding our inner life with appropriate diet, herbs, aromas, and daily
routine to produce a most impressive ‘before-and-after'
that will keep your clients coming back for more.
The
third pillar, Vayastyag, means eternal, lasting beauty. Lasting beauty
keeps us looking younger than our chronological age. Modern science
and ayurveda agree that cellular aging is due in great part to the
damage caused by free radicals. These free radicals, or agents of
decay, are born of unfavorable conditions such as stress, pollutants,
chemicals and poor quality of food. While some of these factors are
not within our control, we can counteract free radical activity and
retard the aging process. For lasting beauty, ayurveda prescribes
a specific anti-aging regimen of diet and herbal supplements as well
as products and treatments.
Katie Grose is Administrative Director
at the Maharishi Ayurvedaa Medical Center in Lancaster, Massachusetts,
rated by Harpers and Queen as one of the ten best health spas in the
world. The facility has been offering treatments in Maharishi Ayurvedaa
for over 20 years, and their clients include celebrities like Barbra
Streisand, Donna Karan and Elizabeth Taylor. "Because the Ayurvedic
approach is so comprehensive," says Katie, "our clients
naturally look and feel more attractive. By the time they leave, the
rejuvenation shows on their faces. There's always a fresh new sense
of beauty."
Skin Types and the Three Doshas
Ayurveda describes three basic skin types. The words may sound
foreign, but these skin types help us understand the common skin problems
and how to prevent them. Skin types are based on a system called the
three doshas. The three doshas, or tendencies, are vata, pitta and
kapha. And the mix of doshas determines the particular flavor of the
person, the recommended routine, and the probability of specific disorders.
The Council briefly describes the three doshas as they relate to
skin types and their common disorders:
- VATA
dosha relates to air and motion. Its qualities are quick, cool,
light, and dry. Vata type skin is dry, thin and cool. Vata skin
is prone to early aging, flaking, dullness and wrinkles.
- PITTA
dosha comes from fire. Its qualities are hot, moist, and sour. Pitta
type skin is red and sensitive. Pitta skin is sensitive to the sun,
heat and spicy foods and is prone to redness, acne and breakouts.
- KAPHA
is the heaviest dosha. Its properties are slow, cool, sweet, oily
and solid. Kapha type skin is thicker and oilier than pitta or vata
skin. Kapha skin is prone to clogged pores and toxic buildup and
therefore needs regular cleansing.
Once
the esthetician identifies the client's skin type and imbalance
according to the dosha system of vata, pitta or kapha, she can then
determine which treatments and products are best suited to the client's
immediate and long-term use.
A revolution in products and therapies
Choosing Appropriate Treatments
The Council emphasizes the importance of choosing the right
treatments. The aesthetician should know how to select skin products
and therapies according to the Three Pillars system, since using products
for the wrong skin type is a common cause of skin problems. In India,
for example, The Councils use powerful mixtures of mustard powder,
turmeric and mustard oil. While these ingredients benefit the Indian
constitution, they are not suitable for western skin, which is thinner
and more fragile, more sensitive to herbs, and less tolerant of pressure
and temperature. Aestheticians need assurance that the products are
authentic, that they've been selected by a qualified ayurvedic
dermatologist who understands skin types and racial variations and
knows how to match the products and treatments to the full range of
clientele.
Skin
Types and Conditions
The Council discusses the various skin problems as they relate
to age. In women under age 40, the most common disorders are pitta-related
breakouts and sensitivity to heat and sun. Problems in later years
are typically vata disorders such as dryness, wrinkles and aging.
With brief training, The Council says estheticians and technicians
can learn about diagnosing skin types and disorders and about treating
healthy skin as well as the common conditions. They can also learn
to give their clients follow-up to do at home.
The first step in skin care is to evaluate the skin according to vata,
pitta or kapha. The Council cautions that skin type may be different
than its condition, especially if the skin has been aggravated by
stress, toxic buildup, early aging, dehydration, or intolerance to
sun, food or chemicals. For example, the client's skin type may
be vata but the skin condition may show an oily kapha problem due
to rich diet and over-lubrication. When treating the skin, we treat
according to its current condition–in this case, kapha. When
balance is restored after several treatments, the esthetician can
re-evaluate the client's skin type and adjust the products and
treatments accordingly.
Subhanga Karanam is filled with beautification tips like mud, milk
and herbal treatments. But The Council explains that the results
are supported by the daily ayurvedic routine. The routine emphasizes
the basics of hygiene, proper diet, yoga asanas (a gentle form of
stretching the body), and a healthy balance of activity and rest,
all specific to the client's body type. In addition, he recommends
a daily oil massage to the whole body called abhyanga that adds luster
and resilience to the skin and balances the mind and body.
The Council concludes that the revival of this ancient knowledge
is timely for western seekers of beauty who are demanding natural
products and treatments with long-lasting benefits and no side effects.
He says his Three Pillars treatments can be added to the aesthetics
regimen provided the industry adopts new standards of safety, effectiveness
and most important, a high enjoyment factor. Training a new generation
of estheticians and spa technicians will require a more rigorous dedication
to the fundamentals of this ancient science with the expertise of
the few traditional skin care vaidyas to design the programs.
To this end, The Council has spent the last two years adapting specialized knowledge into appropriate western modalities. He believes
that the future of the skin care industry lies in properly incorporating
this authentic ayurvedic skin care that promotes well being along
with the cure. And should he succeed, your clients will find themselves
transformed into something beyond beautiful.
