BIOPHILE 16 — JUNE/JULY 2007 R25 - Biophile Magazine

Welcoming WinterAyurvedic tips and recipes from Dr Ram GargYou should take care of your bodyduring this period, because thechange of climate may cause problemswith your body.Love it, it is a great gift. It is a miracle— a mystery.You should wonder first about your ownbody, how the body turns the bread intoblood. We have not been able to find afactory yet where bread can be turnedinto blood.You and your body are not really seperate,but the manifestation of one. Yoursoul is your invisible body and yourbody is your visible soul.Now is the time to give it attention.Winter has arrived in South Africa andit is cold. You can help your body toadjust itself accordingly.Your body is a miniature universe. It isvast with millions and millions of cells,and each cell is alive with its own lifeand functioning in an intelligent manner.This in itself seems incredible, impossibleand unbelievable.According to Ayurveda two types ofsun positions are observed:AADDAAN KAAL:sun is taking energy from existence(Summer)PARDAAN KAALsun is giving energy to existence(Winter)This winter period is different for differentparts of the planet. In winter yourbody can always lose energy quickly. Sowe should try to save our physical andpsychic energy as much as possible.This simply means that you shouldboost your immune system during thisperiod;Drink warm liquids;Cover Head and Feet;Avoid using the car heater for shortdistances;Include sprouted grains, nuts and warmfoods in your meals.Some recipes for winterSpice Mixture for winter• 1 part turmeric• 2 parts ground cumin• 3 parts ground coriander• 4 parts ground fennelMix these spices together in bulk andstore in a jar.When you are cooking a meal,place a small amount of ghee in afrying pan on medium heat. Adddetoxifying spice mixture, measuringout one teaspoon of spice mixtureper serving of vegetables. Sauté spicesuntil the aroma is released (but becareful not to burn).Add steamed vegetables, mix lightlyand sauté together for one minute. Addsalt and black pepper to taste.Alternatively you can use the sautédspice mixture to drizzle on vegetablesor grains.Bean Soup(Two servings)½ Cup Dried Gram (ChickPeas)10 Cup Water½ Cup mung Beans½ Tsp Coriander Seeds1 Tsp Pure Ghee¼ Tsp Powdered Rock Salt½ Tsp Black Peppercorns1 Tsp Fresh Lemon JuiceWash the gram and mung beansand soak them for 5 hours in sufficientwater to cover them.Bring 10 cups of fresh water toboil in a large heavy soup pot.Strain the soaked chick peas andmung beans and add to the boilingwater, along with the salt. Coverand simmer on medium heat for40 minutes.Use a small mortar and pestle andcrush the seeds and peppercorns.In a small cast-iron skillet, heatthe ghee and add the crushedseeds. Allow the seeds to fry for a fewminutes, then add to the soup mixture.Continue cooking the soup for an additional20 minutes until the chick peasand the beans are soft and crumbly.Remove from heat and let it sit undis-Gingeris usedso widely inayurveda that itis an entire medicine chest in itself.There is an ayurvedic sutra (verse)that says that everyone shouldeat fresh ginger just beforelunch and dinner to enhancedigestion.In ayurveda,cinnamonis used to balancethe digestion and to pacifystomach disorders. Combined withother warming herbs and spices likeginger and black pepper, it can beboiled into a herbal tea to soothediscomfort associated with colds.Mung beans are one of the mostcherished foods in ayurveda.They are tridoshic: they can beeaten to balance all three doshas,especially when cooked with spicesappropriate for each dosha. Theyare very nourishing, while beingrelatively easy to digest.50 Biophile Issue 16