My experience with taking the Wellness Ambassador Program last year with Ananta Ripa Ajmera has been brilliant and life-changing. What I found unique about the program was how it was specially designed by Ananta to enable us to not just learn about but also adopt the recommended Ayurvedic practices. This program gives you the Ayurvedic manual for how to lead your life to enjoy true holistic wellness.
In our very first class, Ananta went through the recommended ‘Dinacharaya’ or daily routine as per Ayurveda based on the activity of different ‘doshas’ at different times of the day. For example, I learned the ancient science behind how waking up early in the morning leads to better digestion and overall physical, mental and spiritual well-being. I pushed myself to make this change in my routine and it has been nothing short of life-changing.
My digestion has improved significantly, and I feel fresh for the whole day mentally having bathed in the sattvic energies of the early morning hours. Similarly, I learned ancient scientific principles behind the importance of winding down vs engaging in stimulating activities in the evenings between 6-10 pm as well as sleeping by 10 pm. Just following these simple practices has been a game-changer in improving my sleep quality.
This program also re-introduced me to all foods including vegetables, fruits and spices as I understand their taste, potency and post-digestive effect per Ayurvedic principles. I have now been able to develop a reasonable intuition around which foods are my friends and which are not given my individual Ayurvedic constitution and the current season. I feel empowered to heal myself with the food I’m eating. For example, I have made best friends with ghee which per the Ayurvedic principles I learned is excellent for a person with my constitution of Vata-Pitta. I also be-friended honey in a big way and it has changed my relationship with phlegm.
I also discovered many surprising revelations around the food I’d been consuming in the past and how it was harming me. For example, I would take herbal tea including honey every morning upon waking up but discovered through this program how mixing honey with water is toxic for the body. I was also a salad-lover but learned how salads are actually aggravating my digestion issues given my constitution. I have also always relished spicy food but learned how they were my worst enemy given my constitution. Making simple adjustments like dropping honey from my herbal tea, replacing salads with cooked food and reducing spice levels in my meals has made a world of a difference to my digestion.
I was intrigued to learn how Ayurveda makes recommendations even on lifestyle based on one’s constitution. For example, I learned that too much cardio was not recommended for a person with too much ‘Vata’ in their constitution and how such people should be adopting gentle yoga or walking instead.
I love how Ayurveda celebrates the uniqueness of an individual and recommends foods based on their own individual constitution vs imposing standard practices. Having done this program, I feel armed with this ancient knowledge while making my food and lifestyle choices.
I also really love how Ayurveda at its core is about spiritual living and makes all of our daily activities sacred right from eating, cooking, bathing etc. For example, I learned the beautiful art of eating per Ayurveda and its impact on our digestion. It’s not just about what you eat but also how you eat it. I learned to ensure that I remain calm and centered while eating as any disturbance in emotions whether its anger or sadness or even joy or excitement can hamper digestion in a big way. So now if I am going through any extreme emotion, I wait for it to settle down before I proceed with eating.
I learned how to engage all my senses while eating and how to not over or under-eat. I learned so many other aspects to the art of eating as well as the art of doing all of one’s daily activities. And the best part was that all these recommended practices were very simple and basic lifestyle changes that took no extra time to execute. I just needed to change just a little bit how I was doing what I was doing and the impact was amazing.
The Wellness Ambassador Program has been a transformational journey for me. Ananta is a very inspiring instructor as she genuinely embraces and lives by all that she teaches. In doing so, she really stands out from all other instructors out there. She is also very focused on the learning of students and greatly supports them in their journey to apply the practices they learn. She is in it for the impact and this purpose matters deeply to her.
Ananta used the framework of her Spiritual Warrior Certificate Program in mentoring me. The incredible stories of the 9 Navaratri Goddesses linked with the 9 chakras in our body inspired me to burn away the emotions that weren’t serving me with the fire of transformation. I replaced my old thought patterns with fresh, new and empowering narratives that I reinforced to myself repeatedly in order to create a sustainable and lasting change in my mindset.
Ananta’s Spiritual Warrior Certificate Program goes beyond the surface. It helps you heal at the deepest level, replace darkness with inner light and experience bliss and happiness from within. I highly recommend the Wellness Ambassador Program to anyone who is even remotely interested in Ayurveda or anyone who wants to embrace holistic wellness in their lives or anyone who wants to step up their physical, mental and spiritual health through simple changes in diet and lifestyle or anyone who is interested in feeling empowered to heal their own selves.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
TANVI JAIN PATYAL is a Former Management Consultant at Boston Consulting Group and Program Officer for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. She has an MBA from Harvard Business School, is a graduate of The Ancient Way’s 2021 Wellness Ambassador Program and is an Assistant Teacher in the 2022 Wellness Ambassador Program.
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