Plant yoga. Ayurveda guide to herbal medicine. David Froley, Vasant Lad

Introduction
The term "yoga" has many traditional meanings. In Ayurveda, the medical science of India, yoga means "correct application", "correct combination". Thus, "yoga" is a special combination of substances that has to cause one or another specific effect in the human body or in his mind.
This coordinated or integrative use of plants is based on the ancient science of Ayurveda, dedicated to plant energy. This science has a system to determine the quality and potency of plants in accordance with the laws of nature, so that it is possible to use these herbs in an objective and specific way, in accordance with the condition of a particular patient. The use of herbs in yoga means, therefore, the harmonious use of the possibilities that the herb has.
In this book, for the first time, the science of Ayurveda about plants is applied to Western herbs, as well as to a few basic herbs of the East, both Indian and Chinese. Target
of this book is to present Ayurveda not as something belonging to the distant past, ancient and therefore alien to us, but as a system of herbalism applied practically.
We live in a very special and at the same time dangerous time, when a new global culture is being born in agony. Our time is challenged to integrate human cultures and knowledge accumulated by mankind. It is very important that this process also take place at the level of the science of healing. Healing is always a matter of unification. And if our knowledge of healing cannot be unified, then even more doomed is the task of gaining agreement with humanity as a whole.
Ayurveda is a timeless system that has already combined the eight elements of healing, from herbs to surgery and psychology. It is in this capacity that it represents a springboard for unification. Its very essence is the spiritual knowledge of the ancient seers of India and the cosmic subconscious in which they lived.
This book is not intended to present the traditional information of Ayurveda. It is an attempt to present a living Ayurveda, its creative and practical application in new conditions. It is thought of as a bridge between East and West, in this regard, it is the fruit of cooperation between a man of the East, who has a deep knowledge of the West, and a man of the West, with a deep knowledge of the East. We would very much like this book to promote the principles of integration and cooperation. As far as the use of Ayurveda in the West is concerned, most of the traditional Ayurvedic remedies fail to find practical application. Indeed, they are specific tropical herbs that are generally not available in the West, or they contain special minerals that can only be used after long and laborious preparations. This book has been conceived as a means to exploit the healing potential of Ayurveda, based on substances available in the West, with few potential side effects.
At the same time, we tried to maintain the integrity of the Ayurvedic healing system. That is why we have included a section on the specific effects of plants on the psyche, as well as
a section on the deeper psychological and spiritual aspects of treatment. Herbalism is part of this larger context of healing, and no healing process can be truly effective unless it addresses these
deeper aspects of human life.
The use of Sanskrit terms in the book is kept to a minimum, and they are provided with easy-to-understand Russian equivalents. For further clarification of some of the medical concepts and ideas that appear in the book,
the reader should refer to the book "Ayurveda, the science of self-healing", which, as it were, complements this work.
The classification of Western plants according to the system of Eastern energy is a task that cannot be solved at once. Even within the framework of Ayurveda, the classifications of plants given by different authors show discrepancies in relation to one or another species. Therefore, we welcome any comments and criticism on this issue and invite everyone who wants to cooperate with us in this matter, to get in touch with us.
We wish to express our deep gratitude to the many friends and colleagues who helped us and inspired us to undertake this work, as well as to many other colleagues of ours who are working in this direction. May their work be beneficial.
Dr. David Froley
Dr. Vasant Lad
one986, Santa Fe, New Mexico
FOREWORD
As a herbalist with one8 years of experience in using plants from the West, China and Ayurveda, I long ago came to the conclusion that without taking into account the general energy of herbs and foods, and correlating them with the characteristics of the individual constitution, our efforts are doomed to complete failure.
In such a situation, it is impossible to draw broad and useful conclusions that would make it possible to prevent and cure diseases. In this case, biochemistry by itself is insufficient. The ancient healing systems of the Eastern and Western scientific traditions have much in common. Many people who are deeply imbued with Western bloated approaches and concepts are convinced that our approaches are the most progressive and therefore the only true ones. We do not realize that there are perfect and theoretically sound medical systems in India and China, which have proven their worth for more than three thousand years. Meanwhile, our medical system has developed only over the past few centuries.
Ayurveda medicine is certainly one of the oldest systems with a holistic theoretical basis and well-established clinical practice. In this storehouse, with its rich arsenal of means, effective and wise healing, some brilliant doctors and seers have made an invaluable contribution of their most penetrating insights and discoveries.
At the same time, in order to fully appreciate the nectar of this healing wisdom of the East, Westerners must abandon their inherent, straightforward and simplistic-literal way of thinking and embark on the path of non-linear logical analysis. This is what determines the priority of the approach from the positions of a broad perspective, based on an intuitive vision of the whole, over the microscopic view of modern science.
The strength of Ayurveja lies in a broad, comprehensive view of the dynamic relationships between organic physiological processes, external factors including climate, occupational profile and diet / diet / when taken into account
internal, emotional stages. In contrast, Western science approaches from more specific positions based on specific molecular structure and chemical aspects.
paradoxical is the fact that both approaches describe the same state in such different terms and from directly opposite positions.
At present, many are attracted to Eastern systems of treatment and Eastern herbology, since these approaches open up the prospect of a system of treatment that, while highly effective, is at the same time very mild and poses a minimal risk of side effects. These people correctly believe that the disease does not occur as a completely random
phenomenon, but is due to certain causes which, if properly understood, can be used in healing, and, more importantly, can serve the purposes of prevention.
Ayurveda, with its tridoshas or three humoral systems, makes it possible to understand the cause of health in terms of metabolic balance. The disease, from these positions, is only an imbalance between the nervous energy /vata/, the catabolic fire energy /pitta/ and the anabolic nourishing energy /kapha/. All types of food consumed by a person, as well as his experience and experiences, have
influence on the general balance of these three humoral environments. The legitimacy of this concept is proved by the fact that only by restoring dietary balance is it possible to eliminate many pathological conditions (unfortunately, this circumstance is not yet realized as a reality by most medical doctors brought up in the Western medical tradition).

Herbs are used as "special foods" intended to eliminate excesses and compensate for deficiencies. Although they can have a very powerful effect on a weakened body, their main action is aimed at stimulating specific organ functions. This is the most difficult energy aspect of herbs, and indeed of all medicines, preparations and nutritional factors, to be mastered. Along with the specific function of one or another therapeutic agent or food, a more general effect is also observed, which consists in the fact that in persons who have a corresponding predisposition, they can, generally speaking, either increase or decrease the overall metabolism, stimulate or, on the contrary, reduce energy of the nerve, nutrient factor and fire, which are part of the humoral system tridos.

The fundamental mistake of Western medicine is that it treats the disease and not the patient. If medicines were prescribed with fine selectivity, according to the individual nature of the patient, as is the case with the prescription of herbs in Eastern systems of healing, then it would be possible to avoid many side effects. The value of using plants and food is determined to a particularly large extent by their relatively non-specific action, or their "softness". If medicinal herbs are misused, the consequences are relatively minor and usually disappear after a short time, about a day - the time required for the body to remove the remnants of the corresponding plant from the body. This elimination process is more difficult in the case of synthetic preparations or extracted concentrates. The liver may not be able to eliminate this or that drug from the tissues and cells of the body, because it has not "decided" how to neutralize it for assimilation or removal from the body. When there is no possibility of complete processing of the corresponding substance, it is deposited in the liver or tissues, or circulates