Dehradun: Harela festival is not only a symbol of environmental balance but also of all the factors related to health. During the discussion on this festival, Ayush experts also presented examples from many scriptures. In this, food and medicine are also seen in conjunction with seasonal routine and seasonal substances. According to Ayurveda expert Dr. Avnish Upadhyay, this is a festival that not only gives love for nature but also gives an immense experience of balance of body, mind and environment.
Harela is a festival symbolizing the cultural identity of Uttarakhand and environmental consciousness. At the same time, experts associated with the Ayurveda medical system say that it is not only a celebration of agricultural tradition, but also an indicator of change in lifestyle in accordance with seasonal routine and body nature.
Ayurveda research expert Dr. Avnish Upadhyay says, Harela sprouts are rich in nutrients. They are rich in chlorophyll, enzymes, fiber and micro minerals which help in improving digestion, skin and mood. Drying them, making powder and mixing it in food works as a kind of Ayurvedic tonic.
Acharya Charak has also described
Dravyaguna expert Prof. Suresh Chaubey says that Acharya Charak has written in the Samhita ‘Ritubhirhi Guna: Sarve Dravyaana Bhavayantyapi’. That is, every season changes the properties of substances like food, medicine. Harela is the festival of arrival of rainy season and to cool the body heated by the fire of summer. At this time, Vata and Pitta doshas increase. The digestive fire becomes slow. In such a situation, on the occasion of Harela, light, digestible and smooth food should be taken which is traditionally eaten.
Festival to balance the body with easily digestible food
Ayurveda expert and head of the department of Agad Tantra of Rishikul Ayurvedic College, Dr. Ramesh Chand Tiwari says that from this festival itself, it should be ensured that the food is easily digestible. He says that the consumption of mandua roti, gahat dal, cucumber, gourd, kulth, jhangora kheer, lassi, and fresh seasonal fruits balances the doshas of the body from the Ayurvedic point of view.
Harela festival is a festival of medicinal sadhana
Dr. DC Singh, director of Rishikul Ayurvedic College campus, says that the process of sowing Harela is a type of medicinal meditation sadhana. 5 to 11 types of grains wheat, barley, maize, urad, sesame etc. are mixed and sown in the soil. This mixture is called ‘Navdhanya’, which is also mentioned in Kashyap Samhita. When these green sprouts, they are worshipped as deities and placed on the head after taking blessings from the elders of the family.
Opportunity to improve mental and physical coordination
Panchakarma expert Dr. Parul Sharma says that the traditional games played by children and youth during Harela festival are all natural exercises that activate the body. They improve mental and physical coordination, which is called ‘Vyasa-Bal-Vardhan’ in Ayurveda. Planting greenery is not just an environmental work. In Ayurveda, it is a part of botanical therapy. Plants like neem, basil, amla, peepal, arjun are planted, which are useful in panchakarma therapy.
Time to bring lifestyle in line with nature
Yoga expert Dr. Ruchita Upadhyay says that Harela is the time to bring lifestyle in line with nature, when we make the environment around us medicinal and ourselves also become more capable physically and mentally. Harela is not just a festival, but a laboratory of healthy life, where there is a wonderful amalgamation of nature, culture and medicine. This festival reminds us that health is not just a condition of the body, but an art of living in balance with the mind, environment and society.
