SOMA: 100 Heritage Recipes for Self-Care

By Indu Arora

SOMA - 100 Heritage Recipes for Self-Care, is an homage to the fragrant years of my childhood spent with my grandmother. It is an offering to her tender, yet strong hands that made those bitter, yet healing concoctions, pastes, and oils. It is in gratitude to my mother (and all those who mothered) whose nurturing and caring hands made those healing salves and healing soups. It is a collection of those secret recipes that are passed on from generation to generation.

It is so that those heritage formulas shared by my Guru, which have transformative and nourishing properties, benefit many. It is so that her Yogic revelations are not lost in the crease of time. It is to live by and open the doors to the heritage recipes of kitchen pharmacy and Yogic Wisdom. These are the fragrant flowers that I picked in my childhood and growing years, it is these drops of nectar that I still yearn to collect, live, and pass on.

Each of these 100 recipes is picked carefully for you, dear reader, to bring ease in pain, peace to an ailing heart, and rest to the tired bodies. May each recipe open the doors of healing, self-empowerment, peace, and rest for you. May you pass on this book as a heritage to the generations to come. May we never hoard the pearls of wisdom, but share them responsibly and tend to the eternal flame of life.
My humble bows to all those who mother, who insist on sharing, and those who keep this ancient healing wisdom alive.

SOMA means tender, soft, radiant rays of the moon. It is the nectar of the moon. When the mind is peaceful, it called saumya which means “moon-like.” The tender, gentle, benevolent, kind love and nourishing care of someone who mothers is called saumyata. 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Yogsadhna
• Release date: Nov 11, 2020
• ISBN: 9780578729435

Book preview

Author

Preface

SOMA is an homage to the fragrant years of my childhood spent with my grandmother. It is an offering to her tender, yet strong hands that made those bitter, yet healing concoctions, pastes, and oils. It is in gratitude to my mother (and all those who mothered) whose nurturing and caring hands made those healing salves and healing soups. It is a collection of those secret recipes that are passed on from generation to generation.

It is so that those heritage formulas shared by my Guru, which have transformative and nourishing properties, benefit many. It is so that her Yogic revelations are not lost in the crease of time. It is to live by and open the doors to the heritage recipes of kitchen pharmacy and Yogic Wisdom. These are the fragrant flowers that I picked in my childhood and growing years, it is these drops of nectar that I still yearn to collect, live, and pass on.

Each of these 100 recipes is picked carefully for you, dear reader, to bring ease in pain, peace to an ailing heart, and rest to the tired bodies. May each recipe open the doors of healing, self-empowerment, peace, and rest for you. May you pass on this book as a heritage to the generations to come. May we never hoard the pearls of wisdom, but share them responsibly and tend to the eternal flame of life.

My humble bows to all those who mother, who insist on sharing, and those who keep this ancient healing wisdom alive.

SOMA means tender, soft, radiant rays of the moon. It is the nectar of the moon. When the mind is peaceful, it called saumya which means moon-like. The tender, gentle, benevolent, kind love and nourishing care of someone who mothers is called saumyata.

I

Dancing to the Tune of Circadian Rhythms

Solar Routine/A.M. Care

No. 1. I Wake up Grrr…oggy

We have rituals and routines for after we wake up, but how do you actually wake up?

Groggy, tired, and heavy?

Most of the time, we wake up with the sound of an alarm, a list of things to do, fear of missing out, or just because we have no other choice.

Cultivate the ritual of waking up consciously. How?

Atma Tattva Avalokanam—the practice of waking up with awareness of the real Self.

Atma means Self, tattva means the substance, and avalokanam means the act of witnessing.

As you are in the process of waking up, observe if it is touch, sound, thought, emotion, fragrance, or light that catches your attention. You will be surprised to observe that this process began long before you actually opened the eyes.

Now, consciously bring your awareness to the seat of the soul—your heart—and just stay there—thinking nothing, feeling nothing, wanting nothing—simply witnessing the quiet, still, content presence.

Let this experience guide your day. Let it become your baseline to return to when anything goes south; bring the conscious awareness to this seat of the soul. Bring yourself to balance. Within a matter of one week you will notice a remarkable shift in your waking up process. Just do it!

No. 2. Did You Wake up with the Wrong Foot?

Different cultures have different expressions for it:

I woke with the wrong foot.

I woke up on the wrong side of the bed.

I don’t know whose face I saw first thing in the morning to have such a day!

What if all of this actually has some meaning? Have you heard about Swara Yoga, the yoga of rhythms (of breath)?

According to this practice, we can change our mind, emotions, health, and experiences by making slight, but precise, changes in our breath. Now, it is a very complex subject and I hope that you will look it up after reading this.

Breath is the most loyal, sincere, ever-present, ever-willing, selfless, dedicated companion that we can have in this lifetime. It is present from the first heartbeat to the last. Once we are sincerely interested in our breath, we show the first signs of interest in knowing Self.

For now, I am sharing a very simple but effective practice so that you don’t have to ever say or feel this way: I woke up with the wrong foot.

Swara Yoga: Right upon waking, after opening the eyes, check from which nostril you are dominantly breathing. Place your index finger under the nose by extending it horizontally. Become aware (with the sense of touch), from which side of the nostril you feel the active flow of exhalation.

Now, close the dominant nostril and actively inhale and exhale from the blocked nostril for about 1-2 minutes. This will switch the breath activity. Now, you have balanced the flow of energy in your body. Step down from the bed and have the best day ever!

No. 3. Poop Stories

I know it sounds weird, but we all have one or maybe many!

According to Ayurveda, a healthy bowel movement is an important sign of health. Ideally, one must have a bowel movement right upon waking up or at least in the morning hours.

A lot of times, we bypass, suppress, or postpone nature’s call; the reasons are many: due to busyness, hurrying to get ready (self or family), or to get into a meeting. When we respect this natural rhythm of the body and start our day by eliminating what we do not need, it is a fresh start of the day.

Usha-Pana: Soak 8-10 ounces of water in a copper¹ cup overnight. Drink this water first thing in the morning. It helps in flushing out the internal organs and stimulates the muscular contractions (known as peristaltic movement) in the large intestine as a precursor to bowel movements. This practice is called Usha-pana; that means drinking (pana) the golden nectar (usha).

If there is a tendency for constipation, follow the above with 2-3 rounds of Agnisara Kriya (repetitive upward and downward movement of the abdomen in breath suspension). For more information, please refer to page 92 of my book, YOGA Ancient Heritage, Tomorrow’s Vision to refresh your memory of the practice. (See Resources Used in Soma.)

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1. If you have excess copper in your body or are allergic to copper: Soak the water in a terra-cotta water bottle and drink that water next morning.

2. According to Ayurveda, each one of us has a unique elemental DNA. If the term pitta is new for you, consider scheduling a consultation with an Ayurvedic Counselor/Practitioner to get to know your physical and mental constitution (known as prakruti) and to eat, sleep, and exercise according to your unique Ayurvedic DNA.

No. 4. Who Eats Breakfast, Anyway?

Do you experience a variable appetite in the morning hours? What does variable appetite mean?

Here is an example: you skip breakfast at some times and other times you go to sleep thinking of the breakfast you will have in the morning, or perhaps, you wake up with a ravishing appetite.

There are three signs of healthy metabolism: healthy hunger call, healthy elimination, and consistent energy levels. So, what should you do if you do not feel hungry at all in the morning or your hunger is variable? Here is one solution that Ayurveda has to offer.

Vyayama: It means exercise or the expenditure and distribution of energy. According to Ayurveda, one must exercise every morning to boost the metabolism, and to maintain a healthy mood, healthy tissues, and longevity. This exercise could be stretching, walking, running, swimming, or practicing Yoga asanas. Ayurveda considers multiple factors while prescribing the physical activity such as Prakruti (constitution), age, sex, the diet of a person, Ritu (season), type and stage of disease, and other concurrent therapeutic procedures.

Here are six rules of Vayayama:

Sweat: The body should experience mild sweat as if the pores are just opening up.

Increased Respiratory Rate: A tolerable increase in breath pace

Increased Heart Rate (pulse rate): A tolerable increase in heartbeat

Feeling of Lightness in the Body

Increase of Thirst

Exertion: A feeling of healthy exertion and effort

Also, these rules must be applied according to the season:

Mild exercise in summer and rainy season

Moderate exercise in autumn, dewy conditions, winter, and spring season

Intense exercise should not be performed in any season

So, what are you waiting for? Go hit your Yoga mat, gym, or simply go for a walk!

No. 5. I Need a Lucky Charm

Jewelry matters!

In Ayurveda, wearing jewels in the form of rings, bracelets, amulets, necklaces, and pendants is suggested with metals based on your constitution (dosha) and your birth chart (janma patri). This practice is called Mani Dharana, which basically means

Reviews for SOMA

[radiodoc678 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

These are Excellent tips from Ayurved/Yogic/Indian tradition.Can be easily followed.Very useful.Great.