According to Ayurveda, all legumes should be soaked before cooking. They thus become more digestible, and, in addition, they become more nutritious because a germination process begins in them. This is also confirmed by modern food research. So if you are going to cook a dish with beans or lentils etc., soak them first for a few hours or preferably overnight.

Sattvic food

 When talking about food in Ayurveda, it often concerns its effects on the doshas vata, pitta and kapha. Another aspect of the food is whether it is sattvic, rajasic or tamasic. Sattva is the creative force, rajas the sustaining and tamas the destructive. All are needed in nature, but they are also transferred to mental doshas in us humans, and then only sattva is positive, while rajas and tamas are negative.

If digestion works well, Sattvic food can create ojas, the healthiest substance there is. Sattvic food is also good for our spiritual development. Examples of sattvic food are milk (organic and from healthy cows), ghee, rice and many fresh fruits. Examples of tamasic and rajasic foods are meat, mushrooms and onions. Food also becomes more sattvic if it is prepared with love and eaten with gratitude 😊

Autumn

 Autumn is here whether we like it or not. This means that we have entered the part of the year dominated by vata-dosha. Vata is cold, mobile, dry, rough, light and subtle. It controls all forms of movement in the body, such as blood circulation, breathing and the functioning of the nervous system. Vata is sensitive to stress, anxiety and excessive activity and stimulation. Therefore, it is very common for people in today's society to have vata imbalances. And since vata is the leading dosha, imbalances in vata can also lead to imbalances in the other doshas. Therefore, it is essential to keep vata in balance - especially now during autumn and winter. The key words to do that are warmth, regularity and rest. Please consider these points.

• Try to live regularly with the same times for food, sleep, etc., preferably also on weekends.

• Make sure to get to bed early in the evenings so that you get the deep and beneficial sleep that comes at the beginning of the night, especially in the hours before midnight.

• Eat hot, well-cooked, nutritious food such as soups and stews. Avoid cold and raw food.

• Never drink cold drinks. Instead, drink warm water with and between meals or warming herbal teas - and perhaps warm milk in the evening before going to bed.

• Feel free to do abhyanga, oil massage, with warm sesame oil. Sesame oil is the most vata-balancing substance out there, and vata is related to touch, so that combination is perfect. Leave the oil on for 10 minutes, and then take a warm bath or shower.

• Body contact is good for calming vata, so feel free to give those you care about little extra hugs during this time.

• Exercise is good, but you should take it easy during this time and avoid overexerting yourself – especially outside in cold and windy weather.

• Stay warm. Protect especially the ears and neck from the cold.

• Yoga and meditation are great for getting into balance.

• Do not worry about the world or the future. Your life is here and now, not in the future or the past or in some troubled part of the world but the very thing that you are experiencing right now. Enjoy the little things in life, and then they are the ones that grow.

• Try to avoid stress. I know, it's not always that easy. But there may be activities in your life that you don't absolutely have to do. Try to reduce the activity and focus on what is important - your health, your joy in life and your loved ones.

Have a lovely autumn 😊

Marmas

 According to Ayurveda, prana is our life energy that flows in the body in a large number, 72,000, energy channels - nadis. They also have special connection points where body, mind and consciousness meet and also where the connection between the individual and the cosmos is found. These points are called marma points. There are 107 such points, and together with the self, there are then 108. Three of these are overarching "mahamarmas": Sthapani in the forehead, Hridaya in the heart and Basti in the lower abdomen. Keeping the marma points healthy and robust is among the most important things one can do for good health. An excellent way to do that is to do yoga exercises. The original yoga exercises are designed to stimulate the marma points. So feel free to do yoga exercises calmly, quietly, without effort and with innocent attention to the body and how it feels.

Vastu Vidhya

 Vastu Vidhya or Sthapatya Veda is the ancient Vedic knowledge of how the forms and surroundings affect us and thus how we should construct and furnish buildings. Like much of Vedic knowledge, it has been revived and structured under the guidance of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi. Our living environment affects us more than you might think. It is, of course, about having natural and life-promoting building materials. But also directions, proportions, location and positions are essential. Modern research confirms, for example, that our brain works differently depending on which direction we face. Some crucial points in Vastu Vidhya are as follows:

• All buildings should be aligned with the cardinal points. This is how they were built a long time ago, even in Sweden, and old churches, for example, are always right in relation to the cardinal points.

• The entrance to the building should be towards the east or north.

• The rooms in the houses should be positioned according to the sun's movements in the sky. Thus, for example, it is good to have the kitchen in the southeast because the sun is in the southeast in the morning, and that is when you should cook your main meal.

• Our bed should be oriented so that we sleep facing east or south and, above all, never facing north.

• On the other hand, sitting facing north or east is good when working.

You can use the last two pieces of advice in your current home as well. And you can keep the others in mind if you consider changing homes. The best thing is to get the help of an architect trained in Maharishi Vastu Vidhya and build a new house that fully follows all the principles and thus provides an optimal living environment.

Moong dhal

 Shelled mung beans - moong dhal - is a food that is held in very high regard in Ayurveda. They are very nutritious and contain, among other things, a lot of protein. At the same time, they are easy to digest and do not form gas. However, it is essential to choose organic beans as otherwise, they may have been exposed to a lot of pesticides. Like all legumes, they become more nutritious and easily digestible if you soak them overnight before use. If you boil one part of mung beans together with three parts of water for about 40 minutes and add spices and salt to taste, you get a tasty and healthy mash. Here is also a recipe for good and healthy dhal soup for four people:

Saute two teaspoons of vata, pitta or kapha churna (or garam masala or curry) and half a teaspoon of turmeric lightly in one tablespoon of ghee or olive oil. Add 1.1 litres of boiling water and 1.75 dl of mung beans. Cook for about 40 minutes. Add 2 teaspoons of salt and one to two tablespoons of dill towards the end of cooking. Mix with a stick blender. Have a nice meal!

Summer and pitta-dosha

 Today it is summer solstice, and soon, it will be midsummer. This means that we are in this year's pitta time. Pitta-dosha is formed by the elements fire and water. This means that it is hot, sharp, oily and intense. In the body, pitta controls all forms of conversion and energy production, for example, in digestion, in the muscles and in the cells. In balance, pitta provides energy, efficiency and success. Out of balance, it causes irritation and can lead to various ailments or diseases. It is therefore essential to balance pitta during the pitta period, especially if you have a lot of pitta in your constitution or if you have imbalances in pitta. To do this:

• Avoid stress. Try to be free as much as you can during the beautiful summer. Relax and enjoy life.

• Try not to have any deadlines. Deadlines can literally be deadly for a person with pitta out of balance.

• Exercise, but not too intense and competition-oriented. Exercise in a way that you find fun and enjoyable. Run in the beautiful forest, hike through nature and swim in lakes and seas.

• Do yoga and meditate - Transcendental Meditation, TM, has been shown to be particularly effective in providing rest, calm and balance.

• Enjoy all the beauty that is found in nature in the summer. Pitta is related to sight, so seeing beautiful views is especially conducive to pitta.

• Maintain regularity with food and sleep. Do not skip meals and try to get to bed in good time in the evenings.

• Do not eat too much hot and strong food. On the other hand, enjoy eating fresh, juicy vegetables and fruits such as cucumbers, melons and pears.

• Avoid alcohol.

• Try to be “cool” and not get annoyed if things are not or will not be as you intended. Breathe calmly through your nose and enjoy everything good in life instead of irritating yourself with things that are not.

• Spend time with people you like, be relaxed and natural, enjoy their company and give them your love.

Nice midsummer!