AYURVEDA
PRAGYA-APARADH
Pragya-Aparadh means ‘Failure of intelligence’ or ‘Mistaken intellect’ or ‘not listening to your true senses’; it originates when the heart, mind or body loses connection with natural intelligence. Ayurvedic texts point to Pragya-Aparadh as the source of all diseases. It can affect different levels of our behavior, different levels of our body, and can occur at the cellular level as well.
When the body and mind is subjected to severe imbalances – at a physical level – the cells, the tissues and one or more of the bodily systems such as the immune system, start making mistakes. Sometimes, the mistakes are occasional, occasionally they are chronic. This is one of the causes of cell deformities and various disorders and one of the main reasons for dreaded diseases of today.
‘Mistaken intellect’ can occur in any of our decisions in life such as choices we make for relationships, food, education, career, etc.
Here we take an example of eating habits though our body and senses have the ability to tell us what is the right choice such as how much is enough or whether the food is right for us. Some of us lose touch with the true senses, and make incorrect choices – eat leftovers, overeat or consume food not right for the body without knowing that it is not right.
Leftovers: We all know that fresh food is best for us, but still some of us are conditioned not to waste food. We learn to either eat more to avoid leftovers, or we preserve it by refrigeration, and eat reheated stale food next day. Both actions are not good for health – stale food contains reduced life-force/prana and yields lesser nutrients, eating more food than necessary makes us sluggish.
Overeating: We know that our stomach has limited space. Since food has a calming effect, some of us use it to calm the emotions and eat when we are not hungry. This is known as emotional eating, which is OK if it is occasional. But if this becomes a habit, it leads to obesity and obesity-linked diseases.
Wrong food/drinks: We try new types of food or drink such as fast foods and soda even if we do not like it and we know it is not good for health. But we accept it because it is popular. Soon, it becomes a habit to eat or drink the food, which our intellect knew is wrong, but we make our intellect get used to the new taste.
Make sure to keep your body and mind clear and in balance by being mindful of your actions and following the right lifestyle and diet.
Disclaimer: The purpose of this article is for general education only, not for diagnosis, treatment, prevention or cure of any ailments. If you have any health concerns, please consult a trained health professional. Any recommendations are not a substitute for medical examination, diagnosis and treatment for any disease, mental or physical.
Mohan Govindappa, RALC, RYT is a Registered Ayurvedic Lifestyle Consultant at Satvik Ayurveda LLC, in Lake Mary, and can be reached at [email protected] or visit www.SatvikAyurveda.com
