For the uninitiated, Ayurvedic massage comes as a surprise. It’s not every day after all that your body – not you or the massage therapist – gets to decide what massage oils will be used. But ensuring that your body receives the right treatment at the right time in the right way is key to Ayurvedic treatments. And there is no better way to do so than by tuning into your body’s own wisdom.
For those unfamiliar with the term, Ayurveda, Sanskrit for “the complete knowledge for long life” is a millennia old system of traditional medicine from India. At its centre is the knowledge that everything in the universe is made of five elements (space, air, fire, water and earth) including humans. And that is where matching products to the needs of your body comes in. In Ayurvedic treatments, constitutional imbalances are determined first. Does an individual have too much fire, water or earth? If so, what products might be needed to restore natural balance?
Local company Face to Grace, located in Wakefield Quebec offers Ayurvedic treatment and products to soothe out of balance constitutions and in the process tame the most stressed out soul. Products are created with natural oils and elements with the constitutions in mind. There are three main constitutions – Pitta, Vata and Kapha. Pitta is associated with fire, Vata with air and Kapha with earth. Each person has elements of each but some are more predominant than others – and the element can be out of balance.
To calm down frazzled constitutions, Face to Grace produces a variety of hand crafted heavenly scented all natural products. The products are used for different types of Ayurvedic treatments from facials, to foot massages and all body massages. Like the body massages, Ayurvedic facials involve the use of products to cleanse, exfoliate , detoxify and nourish skin depending on need.The type of product and treatment required are determined by an Ayurvedic practitioner trained to tune into the vibrations and needs of each constitution. Face to Grace also offers courses on how to make luscious Ayurvedic products such as making moisturizing creams designed to meet your personal needs. As beauty comes from the inside out in Ayurvedic philosophy, Face to Grace also offers self development courses to promote harmony between the emotions, mind and body.
Last month, I was fortunate enough to have an Ayurvedic massage from Face to Grace owner Samyukta Blanchet. After determining I had a Pitta constitution (Ayurvedic code for a Type-A Personality) massage products designed to calm down the fire in my system were selected. While I stood with my eyes closed Samyukta held various substances such as vanilla and mint essence next my liver area. An inclination toward the substance or a veering away determined if my body needed the product – or not.
The massage then began with Samyukta placing her hands above my body to determine which areas were in need of special attention. The massage was light and unobtrusive unlike a traditional Swedish massage where reaching into and soothing muscles is the aim. After an hour or so, the massage ended resulting in one highly relaxed human being. The secret? As Samyukta puts it “We need to remind our body, mind and soul of its original health and beauty, we need to use the awareness and intelligence of our body, of nature and of the environment.” In the course of an hour, the Ayurvedic massage did that and more.
To find out more about Face to Grace products, services and courses, please visit the Face to Grace web site at: wwww.facetograce.com or visit the blog of Face to Grace owner Samyukta Blanchet at http://facetograce.blogspot.com.
