FROM WIKIPEDIA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ayurveda:
Dhanvantari, the god of Ayurveda, worshipped at an Ayurveda expo in Bangalore.
BEWARE OF AYURVEDIC MEDICINE
BY DAVID CLOUD
SEE: http://www.wayoflife.org/free_ebooks/beware_ayurvedic_medicine.php; republished below in full unedited for informational, educational, and research purposes:
Many Christians seek help from Ayurvedic practitioners. This is especially true in South Asia, but it is a dangerous practice.
Consider the example of a young man with blood cancer (leukemia). The medical doctors wanted to give him modern medicines to possibly cure the disease, but his family was told by Ayurvedic practitioners that their treatments could cure it. The family believed them and chose to give him the Ayurvedic medicine and not to give him the modern medicine. For several months he was given Ayurvedic medicine. For a little while, he seemed to be getting better, but then he became worse and worse. Finally, in desperation, the parents took him back to the hospital. The medical doctors said that while the patient was taking Ayurvedic medicine the disease had advanced rapidly and now it was too late to help him.
When the medical doctors at the hospital first counseled the family, they strongly advised against using Ayurvedic treatment. They said that they have been working with blood cancer patients for many years and they have never seen one healed by Ayurvedic. They said that if Ayurvedic could heal cancer, it would be written about in medical journals all over the world.
This type of thing has happened countless times. Instead of seeking proper modern medical treatment, the patient seeks help from Ayurvedic practitioners, and instead of getting better they get worse. Many times they die because they wait too late to seek modern medical care that could have helped them.
What Is Ayurveda?
1. Ayurveda is Hinduism.
Ayurvedic practitioners claim that it was received from the Hindu gods by gurus through yogic meditation. Note the following quote from the Ayurveda Encyclopedia:
"The knowledge of Ayurveda was handed down from Brahma to Daksha Prajapati, onto the Ashwin twins (the divine doctors), then passed to Indra. Sage Bharadvaja volunteered to go to heaven to receive this wisdom from Indra, and so became the first human to receive the knowledge of Ayurveda" (The Ayurveda Encyclopedia, published by Health Harmony, New Delhi, 2006, p. xxiii).
"The methods used to find this knowledge of herbs, foods, aromas, gems, colors, yoga, mantras ... came through Divine revelation. ... Originally four main books of Vedic spiritually existed. These are known as the Vedas: Rik, Sama, Yajur, and Atharva. Ayurveda was used along with Vedic astrology (called Jyotish, that is, one's inner light). Eventually, Ayurveda was organized into its own compact system of health and considered a branch of Atharva Veda" (The Ayurveda Encyclopedia, p. 3).
So we see that Ayurveda is Hinduism.
2. The goal of Ayurveda is to teach the individual that he or she is God.
Ayurveda is based on the false doctrine that God is all things (pantheism) and that man is God. Again we will quote from the Ayurveda Encyclopedia:
"According to the Vedic philosophy, life is Divine and the goal of life is to realize our inner Divine nature. Ayurvedically speaking, the more people realize their Divine nature the healthier they are.
Thus it is the responsibility of the Ayurvedic doctor to inspire or help awaken the patient to their own inner Divine nature. ... When patients are taught they have this Divinity within themselves, they feel a connection to life and God (however each patient defines God)" (The Ayurveda Encyclopedia, p. 8).
This goes back to the devil's lie to Eve in the Garden of Eden that she would be as God (Gen. 3:4-5).
3. Ayurveda claims that spiritual energy flows throughout the universe and can be manipulated for health.
This energy is called prana, and the flow of energy must be balanced for good health.
According to the Bible, there is no such thing asprana.
4. Ayurveda claims there are three body types.
Ayurveda practitioners prescribe remedies to bring each body type into good health.
"According to Ayurvedic medicine, there are three body types: Kapha, Pitta and Vata. The Kapha body type is individuals who tend to be of larger build with equally wide shoulder and hip regions. The Pitta body type is a medium build person and the Vata type is more slight or petite. Body types, according to Ayurvedic medicine, have a tendency to suffer from particular ills and complications that can be addressed by countering with specific types of foods" ("Ayurveda Medicine," EmaxHealth.com, Mar. 2, 2012).
There is no scientific evidence for the three body types or for the Ayurvedic remedies. This is Hindu mythology.
5. Ayurveda uses idolatrous practices to achieve its goals.
In addition to Ayurvedic herbs and medicinal remedies, Ayurvedic practitioners prescribe idolatrous practices, such as yoga, mantras, acupuncture, aromatherapy, color therapy, gem therapy, astrology, psychology, architectural harmony, and yagya (ceremonies soliciting the aid of Hindu gods).
Yoga is a major part of Ayurveda. There is a lengthy section in The Ayurveda Encyclopedia on Yoga. Yoga means union and its goal is to achieve union with the Hindu concept of god.
What Is the Error of Ayurveda?
1. Ayurveda is demonic in origin.
The Bible warns the believer to avoid anything that is of the devil and that is associated with idolatry.
"Neither be ye idolaters, as were some of them..." (1 Corinthians 10:7).
"Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry" (1 Corinthians 10:14).
"But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils. Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils. Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?" (1 Corinthians 10:20-22).
"Be ye not unequally yoked together with unbelievers: for what fellowship hath righteousness with unrighteousness? and what communion hath light with darkness? And what concord hath Christ with Belial? or what part hath he that believeth with an infidel? And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty" (2 Corinthians 6:14-18).
"Little children, keep yourselves from idols. Amen" (1 John 5:21).
There is no doubt that Ayurveda is of the devil. We have seen that it is pure Hinduism, and Hinduism is a religion of the devil.
The Bible teaches that idolatry began at the Tower of Babel after the global Flood of Noah's day. This was about 4,200 years ago or 2,200 years before the coming of Christ.
The building of the Tower of Babel is described in the following passage:
"And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD: wherefore it is said, Even as Nimrod the mighty hunter before the LORD. And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar. ... And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech. And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar; and they dwelt there. And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter. And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top may reach unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth. And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded. And the LORD said, Behold, the people is one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do. Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city. Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth" (Gen. 10:8-10; 11:1-9).
This was the beginning of the world's idolatrous religions. It was led by a proud kingdom builder named Nimrod. The desire to build a tower to heaven had a religious meaning associated with astrology (worship of the sun and moon and stars). The ancient Babylonians weren't trying to build a tower that could reach the stars physically. They were building a tower that could reach the stars spiritually. They wanted a religion that would connect them with "the gods" through idolatrous rituals and pagan philosophy.
Revelation 17:5 says that Babylon is the mother of all false religions. That is where the false religions originated.
What happened in those days after the worldwide flood is described in Romans 1:21-23.
"Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things."
Hinduism is a direct descendent of Babylonian religion. The following Hindu practices can be traced back to ancient Babylon: idol worship, plurality of gods, goddesses, mother goddesses, sun worship, moon worship, astrology, serpent worship, curses and hexes on one's enemies, seeking good fortune through rituals, using drugs to connect with God, rituals for the prosperity of the dead, and the promise of perfect health through religious practices.
2. Ayurveda makes false promises.
Ayurveda promises perfect health and long life.
The Ayurveda Encyclopedia is subtitled "natural secrets to healing, prevention, and longevity."
Deepak Chopra, the most prominent practitioner of Ayurveda in America, claims that aging can be reversed. Actress Demi Moore believes she will live to age 130 through Ayurveda.
The Bible teaches that sickness and death stem from man's Fall. We live in a world that groans under a curse, and even those that are born again are subject to it (Rom. 8:22-23). We live in a body of death (Rom. 7:24). Our bodies die because of sin. "The wages of sin is death..." (Romans 6:23).
God didn't always heal sick believers even in the early churches. Paul had a sickness that God didn't remove (2 Cor. 12:7-10). Paul's conclusion to this matter was the opposite of those who claim God's will is total health. He said: "Therefore I take pleasure in infirmities, in reproaches, in necessities, in persecutions, in distresses for Christ's sake: for when I am weak, then am I strong" (2 Cor. 12:10). Paul understood that God has not promised perfect health in this present world, and he accepted God's will.
Timothy was physically weak and often sick (1 Tim.5:23). Paul did not heal him and did not instruct him to practice Ayurveda!
Trophimus, Paul's co-worker, was left behind in Miletum because he was sick and God did not heal him (2 Tim. 4:20).
The New Testament Christian faith does not teach us to expect total health in this present world. It teaches us to live by hope, and hope that is seen is not hope. In the following passage, the apostle Paul taught that the believer is subject to all sorts of trouble in this present world, but in the next life we will have a resurrected body and will no longer have sickness and death.
"For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God. For the creature was made subject to vanity, not willingly, but by reason of him who hath subjected the same in hope, Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. And not only they, but ourselves also, which have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting for the adoption, to wit, the redemption of our body. For we are saved by hope: but hope that is seen is not hope: for what a man seeth, why doth he yet hope for? But if we hope for that we see not, thendo we with patience wait for it" (Romans 8:18-25).
The Bible says that this present world is under God's curse because of man's sin, and there will not be complete freedom from sickness and trouble in this life.
So we see that Ayurveda makes false promises that deceive people.
The Bible says the devil is a liar and the father of lies (John 8:44).
3. Ayurvedic medicine can be dangerous to your health.
There are no controls over Ayurvedic medicine. There is no way to know whether the ingredients are even safe.
Tests have shown that a large percentage of Ayurvedic medicine contains harmful levels of poisons such as lead, mercury, iron, and arsenic.
To combine these metals and minerals such as mica with herbs is called "rasa shastra." The mixtures are called bhasmas. It is an ancient Hindu practice. According to this doctrine, a combination of metals with herbs results in health cures. Although Ayurvedic practitioners believe that their mixing techniques make these formulations safe, the scientific evidence shows this is not true.
This is a myth, and the practice can be hazardous to one's health, because heavy metals are poisonous if used in large dosages or for extended times.
"The result of Ayurveda rasa shastra medicine in the U.S has resulted in multiple instances of heavy metal poisoning. Children are especially at risk of developing neurological problems due to heavy metal poisoning."
Studies were published in the Journal of American Medical Association in 2004 and 2008. "The researchers concluded that several Indian-manufactured products could result in lead and/or mercury ingestions 100 to 100,000 times greater than acceptable limits" (U.S. Food and Drug Administration's caution alert about Ayurvedic medicine, Oct. 16, 2008).
During 2011-2012, the New York City Department of Health found six cases of lead poisoning in pregnant women who used Ayurvedic medicine. Lead poisoning can damage the brain, kidneys, nervous and reproductive systems, and can injure the developing infant.
Cases of poisoning by Ayurvedic medicine have been found in Canada.
One adult male was admitted to a hospital with vomiting and diarrhea. He had been poisoned by taking one tablet daily of an Ayurvedic medicine he had purchased in India "to increase vigor." The level of lead in his blood was nearly three times what it should have been. An analysis of the medicine found that each tablet contained poisonous levels of lead, mercury, and arsenic ("Heavy Medal Poisoning from Ayurvedic," British Columbia Medical Journal, March 2008).
In another case, a young man was admitted to a hospital with nausea, vomiting, and abdominal pain. He had been taking an Ayurvedic powder to manage his diabetes. He had purchased it from a temple in India. An analysis of the medicine found that it contained poisonous amounts of lead.
The Canadian government banned the sale of Ayurvedic medicine in 2005 because of the high levels of metals like lead, mercury, and arsenic.
The European Union banned the import and sale of Ayurvedic medicine in 2011.
One of the supplements prescribed by Ayurvedic practitioners is Guggul, a tree extract. It has been linked to severe organ damage in some people. "In 2011, an article in the Canadian Journal of Gastroenterology reported a case of an otherwise healthy young woman who developed complete liver failure after taking a dietary supplement fat burner containing usnic acid, green tea and Guggul tree extract" ("Ayurveda Medicine and Supplement Hidden Dangers," EmaxHealth.com, Mar. 2, 2012).
These are just a few examples. There are doubtless thousands and thousands of cases in which people have been poisoned and have even died because of Ayurvedic medicine.
4. Ayurveda is filled with liars and quacks.
The field of Ayurvedic medicine has always been populated by quacks and deceivers who make false promises and sell worthless remedies.
It is not uncommon for Ayurvedic practitioners buy cheap drugs and mix them with other things to make concoctions that they sell for a lot of money.
One pharmacist told us that Ayurvedic practitioners buy cheap medicine from him in large quantities, grind it into powder, add flour and powders to it, and then sell it expensively as Ayurvedic medicine. It is a hoax, and multitudes of people spend their money on this type of thing.
Consider Prakash Barvaliya of Ahmedabad, India. He bought generic ointments such as anti-bacterial creams and mixed these with other things and put his own label on it ("Ayruvedic quack's clinics raided," The Times of India, Aug. 14, 2012).
In 1995, Jonie Flint sued Deepak Chopra and other Ayurvedic practitioners because her husband died after being treated by them for leukemia. He was told that he had "heat" in his spleen and bone marrow, "wind" in his stomach, and pressure on his nerves, and he was put on an Ayurvedic "purification" treatment that included herbal products and a mantra. He spent $10,000 on Ayurvedic services and products. In December 1993, Flint was told by the Ayurvedic practitioners that his leukemia was gone, but he died of leukemia four months later. Deceived by the Ayurvedic doctors, he did not seek proper medical care.
In 2012, Mahadeo Mahadik died of kidney disease after spending Rs. 5 lakh (US $7,500) on Ayurvedic doctors. They had promised that he would be cured ("Two ayurvedia quacks cheat 65-year-old of Rs. 5 lakh," DNA India, Aug. 16, 2012).
This type of thing has happened literally millions of times over the centuries to people who have relied on Ayurvedic practitioners.
Conclusion
Christians who seek help from Ayurvedic medicine are disobeying God and are placing themselves in spiritual and physical danger. They are also a bad example for others.
Modern medicine is a blessing from God. The Bible says that in the last days "knowledge shall be increased" (Daniel 12:4). God is the one who controls the times and gives knowledge to men.
"Daniel answered and said, Blessed be the name of God for ever and ever: for wisdom and might are his: And he changeth the times and the seasons: he removeth kings, and setteth up kings: he giveth wisdom unto the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding" (Dan. 2:20-21).
Modern medicine is part of the explosion of knowledge that has happened in the last 150 years in fulfillment of Bible prophecy. Modern inventions include electricity and the light bulb, telephone, radio, railroads, automobiles, airplanes, atomic power, rockets, television, computers, and mobile phones.
During this same time, God has also given men new wisdom about the human body and healing.
Doctors have discovered that microscopic germs cause diseases. Modern microscopes were invented so that doctors could examine germs that cannot be seen with the unaided human eye. Doctors invented vaccinations to prevent many diseases, including rabies, smallpox, cholera, and polio. They discovered that wounds would heal better if they were kept clean. They discovered anesthesia so that patients could be put to sleep and not feel the pain of surgery. Doctors invented the X-ray and CAT scans so that they could see things inside of the body such as the bones and the lungs and the heart. Doctors discovered antibiotics such as penicillin, which have saved countless people from dying by infection. They invented amazing surgical techniques, such as open heart surgery and heart transplants. They invented hip replacements and knee replacements. These modern medical practices have been a blessing to people all over the world.
Typically, modern medicines and procedures are rigorously tested for years. Before medical companies are allowed to sell a medicine and doctors are allowed to use it, it must be repeatedly and extensively tested on animals and people. They have to know whether the medicine will cause bad effects and whether it will interact with other medicines in a negative way. They have to determine the proper dosage. Modern medicines are subjected to hundreds of tests before they are approved for use by the public.
Consider what was required to gain approval of RotaTeq, a rotavirus vaccine that has saved the lives of multiplied thousands of children. First, the product had to be tested in animals. Then it was tested in ever-larger studies on humans. Finally, it was tested in a massive study called Phase III. The following account is given by Paul Offit, co-inventor of the vaccine.
"The Phase III trial for one rotavirus vaccine, Rotateq, included more than 70,000 children from eleven countries, tested for four years at a cost of about $350 million. If stacked one on top of another, patients' records from the trial would have exceeded the height of the Sears Tower in Chicago. The FDA allowed the manufacturer of RotaTeq to make claims about safety and effectiveness only after those claims had been supported by rigorous scientific studies; otherwise, it wouldn't have licensed the product" (Offit, Do You Believe in Magic? p. 95).
Ayurvedic medicine is not subject to any of this type of testing. Ayurvedic practitioners are a law unto themselves. In fact, as we have seen, Ayurvedic medicine often contains very harmful ingredients.
In sickness, the wise believer will first seek God and ask for healing, as Paul did.
"And lest I should be exalted above measure through the abundance of the revelations, there was given to me a thorn in the flesh, the messenger of Satan to buffet me, lest I should be exalted above measure. For this thing I besought the Lord thrice, that it might depart from me" (2 Cor. 12:7-8).
The wise believer will also use the resources that God has given us in these end times, and that includes modern medicine.
This does not mean that the believer blindly follows modern medicine and puts himself unquestioningly into the hands of medical doctors. We should pray for wisdom in all situations.
"Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths" (Proverbs 3:5-6).
But the wise believer will stay away from anything that is associated with idolatry and demonism and deception.
