Self Care Routine for the Senses

Ayurveda gives invaluable guidelines for self-care to keep our sense organs working efficiently and free from disease.

1. Eye Care: The eye is the most important sense organ. According to Ayurveda, this is the site of Pitta and has to be protected from the onslaught of Kapha at all times. Otherwise, there is a diminution of vision with time gradually. The simplest but very effective eye care routine you can follow is to irrigate your eyes with fresh and pure water while bathing. Fill your mouth with water and using the running tap water splash gently the open eyes with a small amount of water in your palms. Do it repeatedly till the water in your mouth tends to lose its coolness. Release the water out of your mouth and after a short break for a few seconds repeat the process twice. This procedure as per Ayurveda cleanses the eyes, protects them from the onslaught of Kapha, and increases vision.
   Foot massage is very beneficial to improve vision. Particular attention is to be given to massaging the big toes for extra benefit. Rub your palms together, and using your index and middle finger gently massages the margins of the eye orbits from the side of the nose towards the ears seven times twice a day after meals. It can have wonderful results on visual acuity in particular and the health of the eyes in general. Ayurveda forbids viewing very bright & very minute objects to protect the vision. An optimum illumination is mandatory at the place of work.
2. Ear Care: Putting 4-5 drops of lukewarm sesame or mustard oil in the ear canal on a regular basis just before taking a meal at least once a week helps prevent hearing loss, tinnitus, earaches, and blocked ear canal due to hardening of wax. It also protects us from getting a stiff neck and lockjaw or TM joint dysfunctions. The only contraindication is the perforated eardrum otherwise it is very safe and beneficial. Using oil in the ears also helps improve eyesight and prevents wrinkles on the face.
3. Nasal Care: According to Ayurveda, the nose is the gateway to the structure in the head. So, elaborate nasal therapies under the generic name ‘nas-ya’ are mentioned that take care of many diseases occurring in the head region. On a day-to-day basis, just putting 2-3 drops of lukewarm almond oil (Vata constitution) or mustard oil (Kapha constitution) or ghee (Pitta constitution) protects us from recurrent colds and coughs, a blocked nose, loss of smell, and headaches.
4. Care of Tongue and Oral cavity: The tongue should be scraped after brushing the teeth as we talked about as a part of our daily routine. The gums should be massaged with a mixture of a pinch of rock salt, alum ash, turmeric & pepper in 1 teaspoon of mustard oil. This protects the gums from infections and bleeding. In addition to this, oil pulling, or filling the mouth with sesame oil or coconut oil and holding it in helps to give strength to the gums, jaws, and teeth. It retards dental caries, and dental sensitivity and makes the enamel so strong that one can easily chew hard objects. Oil pulling also improves the sensation of taste, improves interest in food, makes the voice resounding, and improves hearing.