Self-Care with Rasayana

A rejuvenating self-care ritual is known in the system of Ayurveda by a really sweet-sounding term, a “rasayana”. From “rasa” which means gold, the term referred to the historical process of alchemy in India long ago. These days, Rasayana is an Ayurvedic term that, translated to English, suggests rejuvenating actions from drinks like teas or simple self-care rituals that turn out to be a means of regaining energy.

Usually, the detoxification procedures are personalized to fit each person’s needs. They include purgation, sweating, emesis, etc. The process, pancha karma, takes time (4-6 weeks) and is undertaken at the hands of an experienced team of Ayurvedic health practitioners.

Fast-forward to these days, and see that we are apt to forgo lengthy processes in favor of a quick fix. This is not always a bad thing. Because the idea of rejuvenation therapy is now a part of our everyday vocabulary, we are assuming the idea of rejuvenation to fit our situation at a micro, or very basic, level. Without the whole progam, but with a positive affect on the whole person.

Instead of taking medicine, make a Rasayana the focus of your ritual or practice. Rasayana supports and reinforces, bringing you back to yourself when feeling depleted, or lost among so many competing distractions, such as the heat of late summer.

Basically Rejuvenate

If we slow down, we can appreciate our very selves. Sight, touch, hearing, taste, and smells are basic since it is our senses that create our personal world. In slowed-down mode, we’ll restore our senses with the goal of fewer distractions and arrive at a stronger association with the present moment.

Once your energy has been restored, you can pick yourself up and go. Like crazy, if you must. You’ll have a renewed sense of yourself minus the distraction of self-criticism and doubt. You’re calmer, less fearful.

Seasonal stress can work against our energy, our very vitality.

Our energy, our sense of being ourselves, can be seriously challenged during seasonal transitions, in personal relationships, at work, and in our personal goals and ambitions.

A ritual can make big differences in how you feel, how you approach daily challenges.

Rituals of rejuvenation with pure intention, or rasayana, can help marshal your strength and bolster you up when you feel down, not your best. To wit, I’m hoping you’ll try a self-care ritual in your daily routine.

All your intentions and your reasons for activating them become beneficial in ways to notice, to be grateful for. You have daily, seasonal, and yearly objectives. Why not support them with intention?

Our Rituals for Self-Care

Certain practices or rituals can be at hand when you need them. When seasonal stress makes us uncomfortable and unwilling to be our best, the rituals to use are simple and elegant, eminently doable. Their materials are as purely natural as possible.*

Right now, it’s late Summer and I’m experiencing the rejuvenation — the boosted, almost airy feeling — that’s possible with my chosen practices.

For example, I’ve discovered that if I stop whatever I’m doing, and take an intentional deep breath, or a few deep breaths, I am practicing rasayana (rasah-yana) or rejuvenation as a self-care ritual.

Easy enough, right? But really basic to just being. Like any self-care routine you engage with, these are special due to the ingredients and your intentions.

So important to transitions as well as routines, rasayanas support the rituals that carry me through the rough spots. These rituals are an acquired habit and create an offering to well-being, preparing my senses to positively receive and give back.

Rejuvenate Your Skin

Summer is the healthy time of year, right? Is summer the time to rejuvenate your skin?

I say, make your best effort now.

One reason to choose replenishment with rasayana teas and washes is, Summer season is when our pores are open more often and we sweat more. Did you know that through the sweat glands in our skin, we can lose up to liters of water when sweating that contains toxic matter? The organ of our skin helps our bodies detoxify. And skin can benefit from care in the form of facial and body washes.

In summer I add a bit of pleasure to self-care, especially to daily routines of washing and cleansing.

A wash is a blend of components which goes on my skin like water with all its benefits! A rejuvenator of skin health, this mixture encourages cleanliness and balances pH. I’ll wash-on and wash-off this remedy anytime to lessen the day’s stress, beginning and ending my day with it as well.

Its lovely scent comes from one of the components—for example, rose hydrosol. Mixed with witch hazel and brewed tea, it feels deliciously cool.

The blend of hydrosol, brewed tea and witch hazel makes this blend a versatile face wash or refresher. Pour it into a bottle with spritzer or pump, and use it by spraying into your cupped palm, or washcloth before applying it to your skin. Rinse off skin with clear water. Or, let it dry slightly and layer on a facial serum to keep skin moisture at an optimum throughout the day. Find a recipe for this facial wash, here.

Believe it or not, a blend of two ingredients, witch hazel and tea, is recommended by clean beauty advocate Jana Blankenship as a cleansing wash. Use it now during hot weather when skin is responsive to a light serum and you are eager for a cool splash. It’s a bit of rasayana for well-being.

End Notes

We can get really bogged down in the Heat of Summer.

During this time, we may lack energy and our capacity to deal with stress is greatly hampered. Just by cooling down a bit, we can better handle seasonal stress and regain our vitality.

Drinking a refreshing Rasayana tea and treating your skin to a rejuvenating face wash are two ways to meet the heat of the season.

The face washes in this post are suggested for daily cleansing. After using them, continue with your daily routine, applying moisturizer, etc.

At least once a week or more often, depending, I use a powdered herbal cleanser or paste made of herbs that’s nourishing to my skin and cleansing at the same time. The paste provides additional cleansing but doesn’t strip the skin of its natural oils. Pratima Raichur, author of the book Absolute Beauty, and founder of Pratima Skincare in New York, advocates making a paste of dry milk powder and almond meal.

References:

Absolute Beauty: Radiant Skin and Inner Harmony Through the Ancient Secrets of Ayurveda, by Pratima Raichur, 1997. Published by William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins.

Wild Beauty. Wisdom & Recipes for Natural Self-Care, by Jana Blankenship, 2019. Published by Ten Speed Press.

* Reference is made to pure ingredients, signifying the whole, unadulterated plant material. However, in many cases unpreserved plant material is only available for immediatel use as the material once exposed to the air is contaminated very quickly by ai-borne microbes. A water-based liquid is next in line for contamination and must be preserved if immediate use is not practical.

This post is for informational purposes only and is not intended as medical advice.

Self-Care Rituals with Rasayana