Stay healthy in India.

Srila Prabhupada was very particular about devotees maintaining good health. Many times he used suggest diets and precautions to be taken to avoid sickness. So it is our duty to take care of our health, so that we can work more efficiently in the Sankirtan movement which was started by Srila Prabhupada.

By the mercy of Srimati Radharani, I have been helping devotees in Vrindavana for last six years. For all these years I used to organise a regular clinic in the ISKCON Gurukula on every Sunday. Lot of you might have seen me there, specially during the festivals (Kartik and Gaur Purnima) when I stayed longer to help the devotees, so that they could stay healthy and enjoy the spiritual mood in the Holy Dham. As my engagements have increased over the years, I am not able to visit Vrindavan so regularly. As the festival is approaching, many of you might be ready to leave for the annaul spiritual event. Unfortunately I may not be able to make to the Vrindavan festival this year as I will be busy giving some important seminars organised by the Government of India (Health Ministry) during the same time. I will still try to find time and come over as helping the devotees of Krsna is the biggest service I can perform in this life.

During all years of working with the devotees, I analyzed some points, which I

feel, are the causes of problems that devotees face while they are in

Vrindavana, specially during festivals. I would like to share these points with all of you who are coming to Vridavana festival.

COMMON PROBLEMS:

Stomach disorders like diarrhea and dysentary, stomach ache, vomitting etc. are some the most common problems. The most common reason for getting sick in Vrindavan is the water, which is heavy and is difficult to digest. Although many devotees use the bottle water, the water used for cooking or making lemon juice, lassi etc. is the regular water. Another important factor is the changing weather during Gaura Purnima festival. It is generally the spring season and the climate starts getting warmer but its still cool in the evening, late night and early morning (mangala arti time). The climate seems quite pleasant but if proper care is not taken, devotees can catch cold, cough and flu very easily. According to Ayurveda, there is a natural aggravation Kapha dosha during the spring season, which is also responsible for problems relating to mucus, cough, cold and flu etc. Another reason of catching these common problems is the week immunity of the body, as devotees have already exerted a lot in the Mayapur festi l. Improper eating and over eating is another major cause. The prasadam is so nice that one can not control the tongue. Mosquitoes are also another cause sometimes, although the frequency of occurrence of malaria has decreased during last couple of years.

HOW TO AVOID SICKNESS:

As the reasons are already listed above, if simple precautions are taken, one can stay in good health and enjoy the devotional mood of Sri Vrindavana Dharma. Here are some precautions which can be followed and thus the sickness can be avoided.

1. Eat according to your digestion power/fire (Jatharagni). It's always best to eat less and according to your Ayurvedic constitution.

2. Don't eat too many fried, oily, greasy and heavy foods at one time.

3. Avoid eating too many sweets at one time. Taking a small amount at each meal is OK.

4. It's always good to take some Ayurvedic digestive powder, even if you are healthy. Lying down on your left side for about 20 minutes, after meals, also helps to digest the food easily.

5. Its nice to take a teaspoon of Chyawan Prasha everday, to keep your immunity strong and thus avoid small problems. Taking a teaspoonful of honey is also equally beneficial.

6. Be careful with drinking water. Its nice to boil the water before drinking it.

7. While on parikrama, it's nice to avoid direct exposure to the sun and heat.Use a cloth or hat to cover your head.

8. On returning from parikrama, one should take rest for a while to regain the energy. It's nice to put your feet in warm water with salt.

9. Wear warm clothes during night, early morning and evening. Make sure that the head and the feet are kept warm by using woolen cap and socks.

10. Don't delay in taking medicines. You can stop the disease easily while it is in the initial stage, otherwise it will become difficult to overcome. So consult the doctor as soon as you feel uneasy or abnormal in any of your systems.

11. Try to help the sick devotees so that they don't feel insecure, anxious or depressed. Even encouraging them would help. I have seen many times devotees feel that there is no one to help them and that makes them more sick.

12. Maintain proper cleanliness and hygiene in your rooms, clothes, eating etc.

13. Don't use too much fan during the night. As mentioned earlier, it might be pleasant to use the fan due to the spring climate but it can cause trouble.

14.If possible, use a mosquito net or some mosquito repellent to avoid mosquito bites. Eating some Neem leaves or Neem tables also helps.

15. Maintain a regular daily routine specially for eating, sleeping and waking

up.

I hope these points will help you maintain a good health and avoid sickness.

For any further assistance and free consultation, please feel free to contact

me.

Hare Krsna and best of health!