Suppression of Urges As Origin Of Disease
Every scientific process, and especially the Vedic sciences (i.e ayurveda and bhakti-vedanta), include items to be done (yamas) and items to be avoided (niyamas). The prevention of disease not only relies on engagement with proper action, but disengagement with improper action. Many times when people experience some imbalance / disease without a clear causative factor - it is the suppression of one or more urges that must be corrected.
Blocking the natural biological processes in the body that are there to maintain health will result in vata aggravation, and eventually disease. This is why many medications that block biochemical reactions produce side effects that arise via vata imbalance. We may repress biological urges due to western social stigma, but the result of such consistent repression is damage to the body / mind.
Ayurveda describes fourteen vegas, or urges that arise from the body / mind - and which should be controlled and which should be expressed. Practically every disease, whether caused by internal or external factors, has supression of one of these vegas as a key player in its manifestation. It is said that one who does not suppress or force the expression of urges will almost never fall sick.
Two ways in which disease can occur:
prak abhava: disease is in seed form - to be thwarted
pradhvamsa abhava: recurrence of disease after it has been cured - prevention of relapse
Some may ask - “Why is it that some people may follow all of the proper lifestyle habits and still fall ill, while others are very unregulated and remain healthy - and what is the use of following these rules if sickness is not dependent upon them?”
The answer is that above everything else we do in life to try to improve our material condition (health, wealth, status, beauty, etc) there is something called daiva or destiny / nature, which plays a crucial role in our evolution as beings on this earth. Even with the best medicines and physicians some do not survive chronic illness, yet others may have no access to any treatment and make a recovery - so it is neither the physician, nor the medicine, that is doing the curing - but rather the divine hand of the Supreme, which goes by many names, that is the doer of all activities in this world.
Vegas - the natural urges
The natural urges or vegas are the method by which the body eliminates unwanted doshas (faults) and malas (wastes) in the body. The thirteen physical urges to not be suppressed can be classified as follows:
Langhana (depleting) - making the dhatus (tissues) work more (i.e heavy breathing after exhaustion, discharge of semen)
Brmhana (nourishing) - i.e hunger, thirst, sleep, yawning
Sodhana (cleansing) - i.e. flatus/belching, bowel movements, urination, cough, sneezing, tears, vomiting
This does not include urges like speaking, fighting, etc because those are simply urges of the mind that are expressed through the body, and restricting those items will not cause vata imbalance.
It is said in Vedic literature that the tongue is the most important and difficult sense to control. What, how, and how much we eat dramatically affects our consciousness. When we overeat, the stomach creates pressure on a nerve below the nabhi marma (navel plexus) - which connects to the genitals / anus and agitates those senses - further causing us to overeat, use drugs, overindulge sexually, etc due to the physical/emotional link of the genitals. One can release this tension using marma therapy.
What we speak is generally a result of our thought world, which then forms our actions, habits, character and destiny. It is said a saintly person can be distinguished by their ability to never speak any nonsense, but to only engage in transcendentally elevating topics. According to Vedic thought - sound vibration is the most powerful medium for transforming the consciousness.
Adho vata (Apana Vayu)
Adho vata means that vata which is flowing in the downward direction - less scientifically, we call it gas.
Suppression of gas causes: udavarta (pathological movement of vata upward, can cause haemorrhoids), pain (in GI tract), fatigue, urinary obstruction, constipation, loss of vision (because of the eyes intimate link with agni), destruction of digestive fire, severe indigestion, and heart disorders.
Supression of defacation causes: cramping in calf muscles, running nose, headache, belching, pain when passing stools, feeling of obstruction in the heart, and disorders mentioned in previous verse.
There is a marma (vital point) in the middle of the calf named Indrabasta that is intimately linked with both the colon and menses function, hence the link here with blocking defecation. The colon is also intimately linked with mental function - clear colon = clear mind, and yet most people are extremely blocked up with compacted waste. Press this marma to promote healthy function.
Many times those experiencing an untraceable cold, running nose, or congestion are experiencing this because of the upward flow of vata due to constipation - this must be addressed before relief can be found.
Treatment: drinking hot water, natural laxatives such as aloe vera to break down compacted feces, also mentioned: barley, whey, pigweed
Suppression of urine causes: cutting pain in body, genitals, bladder or pelvic region, and almost all disorders listed previously.
Treatment: cleanse urinary bladder with coconut water
In general all three can be treated via abhyanga (oil massage), svedana (steam from neck down / sweating), vasti karma (medicated enema)
Suppression of belching causes: anorexia, tremors, a feeling of obstruction over chest/heart, distention of abdomen, and cough like pathology. Treatment is same for hiccup.
Suppression of sneeze causes: headache, weakness of the senses, rigidity of the neck, and facial palsy all due to prana vata. Treated via sequence of rasanjanam (collyrium), nasya (nasal oils), gandusha (oil pulling), and dhumapan (therapeutic herbal smoke) as outlined here, and also by gazing at the sun (induces sneezing).
Hunger / Thirst / Sleep
Suppression of thirst causes: drying up of the body, fatigue, hearing loss, loss of consciousness, giddiness, epigastric distress. Thirst is a mechanistic reaction caused from heat in the body, when left unsatisfied the heat only increasing, causing complications.
Teas and juices have different guna (qualities) and thus do not satisfy the need for water although they are composed of water.
Drinking ice-water or cold water actually heats the body, as the body must bring it to normal temperature before it can be digested. Drinking too much water can also cause disorder.
Hot water melts ama (toxins), clears the srotas (channels), increases agni (digestion), and is easily absorbed.
Suppression of hunger causes: body aches, anorexia, weakness, emaciation, abdominal colic, giddiness.
Food that is laghu (light), snigdham (unctuous), and usnam (hot) should be given in small quantity
Excessive fasting depletes dhatus (tissues), but moderate fasting increases agni and digests toxins in the body, one should not feel weak when fasting
Acid reflex also occurs when we do not eat at regular times, or sit calmly and eat with peaceful mind
Suppression of sleep causes: confusion, heaviness in head/eyes, laziness, yawning, body ache.
Sleep is one of the three pillars of health. Loss of sleep causes ojas (vital life force / vibrancy) to become depleted, and prana vata - which regulates mind/senses is disturbed.
Urdhva Vata
Suppression of cough causes: further aggravation of cough, breathlessness, loss of appetite, epigastric or cardiac distress, dryness, hiccup.
Suppression of heavy breathing (panting) causes: gulma, cardiac disorders, and confusion. Rest and vata-pacifying measures are recommended. One should not work or exercise to the point of panting, but rather rest and stabilize breath as this breath is a result of dhatu sosa or tissue depletion and vata will exert force on srotas (channels of body).
Suppression of yawning causes: refer to repression of sneezing. Do not repress this important function due to social embarrassment.
Suppression of tears causes: running nose, eye disorders, diseases of the head, cardiac disorders, rigid neck, loss of appetite.
In certain communities people hire professional wailers to cry at the funeral of a loved one so that others, who may be suppressing their sorrow and tears may cry. This is very good for physical and mental well-being as repression of such grief surely causes much mental and physical disorder.
Madyam - a strotosodana (clearing the channels), a vata pacifying type of alcoholic beverage
Priya katha - one with suppressed emotions should have priya katha, or counseling done with great affection
Suppression of vomiting causes: skin inflammation, eye disorders, itching, dyspnea, and edema. Yoga can be done to normalize udana vata, as well as fasting. One should definitely vomit if poisoned by food or if too much alcohol has been consumed.
Suppression of ejaculation of semen causes: exudation of semen, edema, jvara, epigastric/cardiac distress, impotency, increase in size of scrotum, hernia, cutting pain, nighttime emission, bladder issues, etc.
Treatment: abhyanga (oil massage), vasti, taking warm bath (best with herbs in water), affectionate sexual intercourse, drinking coconut water (to purify bladder).
“** suppression of orgasm in both males and females blocks apana vayu and will create related disease in time. Another common vega to withhold in modern times in menstruation via usage of hormonal drugs. “This suppression of the artava pravritti (menstrual flow) also is found to result in many complications in due course of time.” ”
— ASHTANGA HRIDAYA
