Āyurveda's Three Pillars of Health

You know about gravity, right? Pretty much everyone over the age of two knows about gravity, even if it’s just instinctive. But did you know that Nature has a whole host of other laws that apply specifically to our health? Traditional medicines, like Āyurveda, study and practice these laws.

We may not know the laws. But ignorance of them doesn’t exempt us from their consequences.

Like gravity. Gravity exists and acts upon us whether we know about it or not. Nature’s laws outlined by Āyurveda are the same.

The laws are simple, but not easy. Especially in the cultural context of living in the US (or any other part of the western-influenced world) in the 21st century. We want our ice cream and pizza, no matter what the season or how we feel.

Back in ’08, when I was in the early stages of Chronic Lyme Disease, the food that I ate was limited. No wheat, cow’s milk, butter or cheese. No chicken, chicken eggs, or refined sugar. No mushrooms, blueberries, pineapple. Ugh. I carried a list that I gave to servers at restaurants and to friends and family when I was invited to dinner. I felt painfully self-conscious and sometimes paralyzed by all of my restrictions.

So, I started a list of all the things that I could eat. Duck eggs, goat milk, goat cheese, ghee, bison. Sweet potatoes, butternut squash, zucchini, fennel, apples, pears . . . you get the idea. The new list helped me to stop thinking of my restrictions as a prison and, instead, focus my attention on the choices that I did have.

Even now that I can eat anything, I still follow Āyurveda's rules about eating. The rules give me support and strength. And also, ironically, make me feel free.

Maybe you already know this about me but in case you don't: I’m a huge nerd. I like to know things. I study, read, and learn constantly. I know many of Āyurveda's rules. Because I’m also a bit of rebel, I like to bend and occasionally break the (Āyurvedic!) rules as well. As a rebel nerd, I understand the consequences and know the best times to break the rules. That knowledge gives me the freedom to make informed choices.

Rather than having a bunch of rules that may seem restrictive thrown at us, Āyurveda gives us a framework named the Three Pillars of Health. The Three Pillars of Health are sleep, food, and discernment.

In the same way that a foundation and frame provide structure for a building, the Three Pillars of Health provide structure for our lives. The rules of sleep, food, and discernment support us and give us strength.

Why is knowing and following The Three Pillars important? For me, and many people who live with Chronic Lyme Disease, the answer is optimal health. People living with Chronic Lyme Disease need all the support, structure, and strength we can get.

Which leads to another question: Why do we care so much about optimal health? Beyond the obvious reasons of feeling good?