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    Ayurveda is a science of life that deals with problems of longevity and suggests a safe, gentle and effective way to heal diseases afflicting our health. It is believed to be the oldest healing science in existence and is the most holistic and comprehensive medical system available. Sages received their training of ayurveda through direct cognition during meditation, i.e., through divine revelation. Guessing or animal testing was unnecessary. Human life is perceived as a microcosm or intimate reflection of the entire universe that is composed of five basic elements (ether, air, fire, water and earth) through which the cosmic consciousness manifests. Every individual's psycho-somatic constitution determined at birth (prakruti) is a unique combination of vata (ether plus air), pitta (fire) and kapha (water plus earth), also called the three doshas. Health is seen as a balance of these biological humors (dohas), whereas disease is their imbalance. Planets, stars, color, gems, food, aromas, mental ignorance (lack of knowledge about the self which is eternal, imperishable, incomprehensible, unborn and immutable) all influence the state of harmony of the three doshas. Ayurveda maintains balance by supplying deficient humors and reducing the excess ones. Surgery is seen as a last resort. Modern medicine is just beginning to realize the need to supply than to remove, but still does not know when or what to supply. On a more subtle plane of existence, each individual's consciousness (atman or soul ) shines through their mind or manas that has the attributes of sattwa (silent creation, calmly active, joyful, peaceful), rajas (full of desire, activity, restlessness, passion) or tamas (destroying qualities of laziness, inertia, hatred, jealousy, ignorance), the three gunas. Ayurveda teaches us to attain to the immortality of the self (eternal consciousness, paramatman) by first attaining to a state of sattwa, which then helps to transcend beyond the three gunas into eternal unborn, infinite, immutable self.
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