Hello,

Shubh Dhanvantari Day… simply translated it’s a Well-Being day. Dhanvantari in Indian Mythology is the Lord of Medicine and well-being. When Gods and Demons were churning the Great Ocean, He appears with Amrutam- nectar for immortality. Also He’s the God of Compassion, as the birth of oldest well-being science originated from Agnivesha’s heart, which was agonized by diseases and sufferings of humankind and prayed Lord Dhanvantari to give him science that can lessen these. In Sanskrit language another meaning of the word ‘Dhan’ is wealth. This day is also celebrated as worshipping wealth. What synchronicity - isn’t health our biggest wealth?

The science of Ayurveda or science of healthy life is very holistic and encompasses wellness before it deals with diseases. In old China, as the folklore goes, people used to pay money to local doctor to keep them healthy. They would stop paying the doctor if someone in the family falls sick. And how have times changed? History has replaced wellness with sickness. Hence the advent of modern medical sciences and related Industries that helped us only once we are sick. And the help given has created more diseases through side effects. Our modern lifestyles have accepted sickness as part of living rather than proactively seeking well-being.

Are times changing again? Are future trends going back to ancient wisdom?

World renowned economist, a multimillionaire software entrepreneur Paul Zane Pilzer has predicted the next trillion dollar industry as Wellness Revolution. According to him, this industry is being spawned by the scientific breakthroughs in biology and cellular biochemistry. The sickness business is reactive. Despite its size, people become customers only when they are forced to. No one really wants to be a customer. The wellness business is proactive. People voluntarily become customers- to feel healthier, to reduce the effects of aging. Isn’t this concept closer to Ayurveda or old Chinese tradition? I’ve come to realize through history only two forces have dominated mankind- religion and economics. If we go back to any religious tradition in the world, diet and lifestyle guidelines have been at the core of living. And now, if economics support wellness as opposed to sickness, it seems like the Heaven coming down on our planet Earth, where sickness is rarity and people are enjoying healthy lives till ripe old age.

Applying the know-choose-live principle, what is my resolve on this day? Bridging the knowing-doing gap in lifestyle, to proactively seek wellness and share it with those who seek it too. I’ve just returned from my weekend home tucked away in midst of bountiful Mother Nature. The skyline of dawn with waning moon and morning star, chirping of birds and yes, this time I had abundance of colorful butterflies humming song of life around me. In the humid hot city of Mumbai, the memories become my escape route… creating the deep longing to go back to her arms. Mother Nature smiles and laughs at all my excuses of coming back to the city. She knows, and waits till I have the courage to grow beyond all my excuses of reconnecting with wellness she offers. And bid goodbye to sickness of city life….May we all create space in our lives to reconnect with wellness...