Ojas is a liquid substance in the body responsible for energy, enthusiasm and overall health. Though it can be quantified, it can’t be seen. Without Ojas human body will perish. Ojas dwells in the heart. The form of Ojas in human beings has the colour of ghee, taste of honey and smell of fried paddy. Ojas is collected in the body by diet and habits and also by actions and qualities of human beings. Let’s get little deeper to understand what is Ojas, meaning of Ojas and its importance in the human body.
Meaning of Ojas – In human body
If we want to actually understand what is Ojas or the meaning of Ojas, we should also need to know about the Agni & Ama. Let’s understand about Agni & Ama in accordance with Ayurveda.
Agni: Jatharagni or the ‘digestive fire’ is the most important principle in Ayurveda. It basically refers to our ability to process all aspects of life, including food, experiences, memories, and sensory impressions. Agni actually absorbs the nutrients and essential elements the body needs, while burning off the waste products. If Agni is weak, body won’t digest well, and instead it creates toxic residue, called as ‘Ama’ that lodges deep in the cells.
Ama: According to Ayurveda, strong ‘Agni’ leads to exceptional health and well-being, while the accumulation of ‘Ama’ results in the slow weakening of the body and diseased. The inability to absorb emotions produces just as much toxic residue as undigested food. In fact, repressed anger, long-held sadness, and haunting guilt are more devastating for most people than problems with physical digestion.
Hence, if we desire perfect health, it’s crucial to eliminate the ‘Ama’ or toxic waste from our body and focus on producing Ojas, which is the essential life energy.
Now let’s get into a deeper meaning of Ojas. Ojas is the pure and subtle substance that is extracted from food that has been effectively and completely digested. Ojas circulates throughout the body tissues to nourish, and brings clarity to the mind by balancing the emotions. In Ayurveda Ojas is called the vital nectar of life. Ojas is a special substance in the body that governs physical strength, digestion, sleep, vigor, immunity, mood, aging, radiant skin and spirituality.
Ojas is one of the three vibrant substances that together promote and sustain our physical vitality, mental clarity, and overall health. The three vital substances are Prana, Tejas, and Ojas. These are again the positive forms of vata, pitta, and kapha doshas, respectively. We know that an increase in the doshas has the potential to create sickness, where as an increase in these three (Prana, Tejas and Ojas) vital substances tends to support wellness. So we need to understand that increasing, balancing, and paying attention to these wholesome, subtle forces is a meaningful effort.
How do we know if our Ojas is lacking?
According to Ayurveda, when Ojas is diminished the person looks very fearful, weak, and always worried. The person may seems to have possible disorders in the sense organs, and unbalanced mental ability. In more modern terms, if we catch every cold that comes around, wake up feeling dazed and exhausted, push ourselves through our day without any vigour and heartiness, then our Ojas needs some serious attention.
How do we nurture and build Ojas?
Now that we understood that the meaning of Ojas is the end product of perfect digestion, it makes sense that building Ojas will necessitate us to take a look at what we bring into ourselves and how we metabolize and assimilate it. In General we need to increase sattvic foods, activities, and impressions and bring this into our daily life. Mentioned below are the few possible ways to increase Ojas.
- Foods that we choose to eat
We need a good diet focused on pure sattwic food. Sattwic foods mainly include organic (cow) milk and ghee, almonds, sesame, honey, brown rice, red rice, fresh fruits and dry fruits. We need to create a nurturing atmosphere to make the body happy during the meal time, paying attention to all of the senses- taste, smell, sight, sound and touch, because ojas is the by-product of all the signals our body receive.
- Daily Activities
The way we structure the day, the manner we work and interact with family and friends, like Loving others, Laughing, doing all activities (work) with passion, giving and serving others, being in with the nature, eating fresh wholesome food in a relaxed and happy atmosphere, getting deep rest(sleep) This as well helps in building good quantity of Ojas.
- Daily Yogasana, Pranayama & Meditation
Yogis recommend proper practice of Asana, Pranayama and Dhyana on a regular basis to increase and maintain levels of Ojas. One should carry out a slow and focused asana sessions with a gentle move, stretch with awareness on the entire thoracic area and the heart center. Giving due time to consciously living in this space is nurturing and brings about a feeling of satisfaction and serenity which are the signs that Ojas is present and flowing.
Now that you have understood the meaning of Ojas and its importance, if you feel that you are storing toxicity into yourself, you can choose now to begin to nourish yourself and enjoy increasing levels of joy and well-being in your life.
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