Why I Started the Business and Practice of Ayurveda Professional Program

Have you spent a ton of money on Ayurvedic education and are looking for how to stay current with the practice in your own life, and to apply the knowledge to help others? I began an Ayurvedic Health Counselor Mentorship program because I graduated from an AHC school in the US ten years ago and felt terribly out-on-my-own immediately. I was teaching public classes and seeing clients and felt very unsure of how to handle some of my cases, how to keep myself organized in terms of booking, finances, and client intake forms and follow-ups. In addition, I observed the difficulty of my fellow students in staying involved with Ayurvedic practice, both personally and professionally, soon after graduating. One is so focused, and has so much support during school, then it’s suddenly over and practice starts getting real, really fast.

            This mentorship program spans 4 months of on-line calls where students can present cases for feedback, and get guidance and support for how to teach Ayurveda principles to the public, to build a client base, how to deal with money, and how to run the back end of an Ayurveda practice. You might present a workshop or training curriculum for review, or propose an idea for an online course and refine your approach with guidance from Kate, with ten years of practice consulting and teaching in a grass-roots style. In addition, you’ll gain a cohort of others building their practices just as you are, like-minded friends and colleagues to keep in touch with and bounce things off of.

            I’d love to support you on your journey, and there’s still room in the 2020 course. You can read more about it here: https://ayurvedicliving.institute/the-business-of-ayurveda

Early bird discount through Sept 15.

OM, Kate

Roasted Cauliflower & Kale Salad

The creation of this warm salad at home will transport you to a bistro, much like the one in New York City that inspired this recipe. That one had cheese and garlic on it, which I have replaced with tahini and hemp seeds, for a rajas-relieving version. What a nice way to eat cauliflower and kale!

Roasted Cauliflower & Kale Salad

1 small head cauliflower, chopped into small florets (about 5 cups)

1 tsp ground turmeric
½ tsp salt
2 Tbsp ghee, melted
1 bunch kale, destemmed and chopped into small pieces (about 4 cups)
2 Tbsp olive oil
Juice of ½ lemon
1 Tbsp hemp seeds
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbsp tahini

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Place the cauliflower in a mixing bowl, sprinkle with the turmeric and the salt, then toss with melted ghee. Transfer to a baking dish and roast for 25–30 minutes, tossing once after about 12 minutes. Remove from the oven when the florets are lightly browned.

Place the kale in the same mixing bowl, and drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice. Massage the oil and juice into the kale until coated; the leaves should begin to soften. Let stand for 10 minutes or longer to soften to taste. If in doubt, massage the oil more vigorously into the kale, and let stand for a full 30 minutes.

Add the warm cauliflower, hemp seeds, and pepper to the kale. Toss. Transfer the mixture to serving bowls, and drizzle each bowl with tahini. Serve warm.

Kale Notes: Substitute baby kale if you’d like to cut out the massaging step and eat sooner.

Recipe excerpt from Everyday Ayurveda Cooking for a Calm Clear Mind by Kate O’Donnell © 2018 by Kate O’Donnell. Photographs © 2018 by Cara Brostrom. Reprinted by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Inc. Boulder, CO. www.shambhala.com

Butternut Kitchari

This is a fall favorite of mine. The roasted squash stirs into the body of the kichari for a sweet, creamy, orange festival in a bowl. Make sure you cook this stew to an absolute puree for the best results.

Butternut Kitchari

1 small butternut squash
Coconut oil
¾ cup split mung beans, soaked overnight or at least a few hours
¾ cup basmati rice
4 cups water
1 can full-fat coconut milk
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger
1/2 tsp ground cardamom
1 tsp turmeric
2-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and finely diced
1 tsp salt
¼ cup coconut, large flakes, for garnish

To roast the squash: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Cut the squash in half, scoop out the seeds, rub a few drops of coconut oil onto the cut faces, and place face-up on a baking sheet. Roast until tender, about 1 hour. Remove from the oven.

In a large saucepan, bring 3 cups of the water and the coconut milk to a boil on high heat. Set the other cup of water aside to add during cooking as needed.

Rinse the mung beans and rice well. Add the rice, beans, spice mix, turmeric, and ginger to the boiling water. Keep on high heat until the liquid boils again. Turn the heat down to low.
Scoop the squash out of the skin with a large spoon and add, in chunks, to the pot. The chunks will break down as it cooks. Simmer, partially covered, for 40 minutes or more, adding the reserved 1 cup water as needed. It’s finished when the rice and mung beans are soft; the liquid is loose and soupy; and the butternut squash chunks are have fallen apart. Turn off the heat, and stir in the salt. Let stand, covered, for 5 minutes.

In a frying pan, toast the coconut flakes on medium heat, stirring until they begin to brown. Remove from the heat immediately. Spoon the kichari into individual bowls, and garnish each bowl with 1 Tbsp coconut flakes.

Recipe excerpt from Everyday Ayurveda Cooking for a Calm Clear Mind by Kate O’Donnell © 2018 by Kate O’Donnell. Photographs © 2018 by Cara Brostrom.

Reprinted by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Inc. Boulder, CO. www.shambhala.com

Nourishing Carrot & Dal Soup

While I do love creamy carrot ginger soup, I rarely take the time to make it because I’m still hungry after I eat it. An all-carrot base is too light for me. This soup is my answer to the hunger challenge. The quick-cooking split mung beans add creamy texture as well as protein, and they are nourishing for all body types and all seasons.

Nourishing Carrot & Dal Soup

1 cup split mung beans, soaked in water overnight
1 Tbsp ghee
1 cup chopped carrot
4 peppercorns
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/4 tsp cinnamon
3 cups water
½ cup almond, hemp, or cow’s milk
½ tsp salt, plus more to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, for garnish (optional)
Fresh cilantro or parsley, for garnish (optional)

Drain and rinse the soaked mung beans.

Warm the ghee in a large saucepan. Sauté the carrots, peppercorns, and spice mix in the ghee until you can smell the spices, stirring to coat all pieces with ghee. Add the beans, and sauté for 1–2 minutes, stirring until coated. Add the water and simmer, partially covered, for 20 minutes. Add the milk and salt and simmer 5 minutes more. Remove from heat.

Using a hand blender, puree the soup until smooth. You can also do this in a blender carafe, but the mixture must cool a bit first. The milk should help it cool.

Pour into bowls and garnish with freshly cracked pepper and fresh cilantro or parsley, if desired.

Note: Ginger-carrot lovers can simply add 1 Tbsp grated ginger to the cook pot.

Recipe excerpt rom Everyday Ayurveda Cooking for a Calm Clear Mind by Kate O’Donnell © 2018 by Kate O’Donnell. Photographs © 2018 by Cara Brostrom. Reprinted by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Inc. Boulder, CO

Chocolate Layered Ojas Bars

Dates, pecans, almonds, and coconut are all foods known to support ojas, the nutrient cream of the body. This substance is our storehouse of deep energy and immunity, and it is a major player in building energy, long-term health, and stability of mind. Here, dense, naturally fatty foods combine with spices to ensure that your digestive fires are lit and the nutrition makes its way into the deep tissues of your body. These grounding ojas bars are an excellent way to replenish your energy supply if you are drained from too much activity.

Chocolate Layered Ojas Bars

Base Layer
4 Medjool dates, pitted
1 cup raw pecans
½ cup raw almonds
2 Tbsp coconut oil
¼ tsp salt
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground ginger

Chocolate Layer
½ cup coconut oil
½ cup cacao powder
3 Tbsp maple syrup

Optional Toppings
2 Tbsp toasted coconut flakes
2 Tbsp chopped dried cranberries
2 Tbsp sliced almonds

Line the bottom of a 4 × 8-inch loaf pan with parchment paper.

In a food processor, pulse together the dates, pecans, almonds, 2 Tbsp coconut oil, salt, and Sweet Spice Mix until the mixture begins to stick together and form a ball. Press the date-nut mixture into the bottom of the pan.

Next, prepare the chocolate layer. Melt the coconut oil by standing the jar in hot water. In a small bowl, whisk together the ½ cup coconut oil, cacao, and maple syrup until smooth.

Working quickly, pour the chocolate coconut mixture over the base layer, tilting the pan from side to side so the chocolate is an even covering. Sprinkle with the topping of your choice (coconut flakes, dried cranberries, or slivered almonds). Place in the freezer for 30 minutes to 1 hour, until very firm.

Remove the loaf and parchment from the pan, and using a sharp knife on a cutting board, cut the frozen treat into small squares. Refrigerate the squares between layers of parchment papers in a sealed container for up to 14 days.

For a decadent treat, eat one square at a time and enjoy!

Recipe excerpt from Everyday Ayurveda Cooking for a Calm Clear Mind by Kate O’Donnell © 2018 by Kate O’Donnell. Photographs © 2018 by Cara Brostrom. Reprinted by arrangement with Shambhala Publications, Inc. Boulder, CO. www.shambhala.com

What is a Fundamentals of Ayurveda Training?

Our fourth class at Boston Ayurveda School begins this Friday March 15. This course meets once each month for six months. We learn Ayurvedic theory, practice yoga, cooking, and create community that supports a healthy lifestyle. This 165-hr program is also the start of an Ayurvedic Health Counselor professional track, which requires an additional 500 hours. We are happy to be offering a professional training as well as continuing mentorship for our graduates. If you get started this March, you will have the option to continue on this fall, or next year.

It's kind of a new thing. It's about getting a basic foundation for understanding an epic, ancient wisdom-tradition. This amount of study helps one to see the big picture, and slowly build from there. The sister arts, yoga and ayurveda, are so vast, a practice so interconnected, learning about one helps you understand the other, and practicing them together in the daily life is a set-up for life-long success. Be introduced to the classic texts, and know there is a deep root to what you are learning. Know this root will continue growing in you at an appropriate pace.

The word training implies a focused time spent refining a specific activity. A 200-hr ayurveda training implies devoting 200 hours of your life to studying and practicing the tradition of ayurveda.

In a course of this length you will study things like dosha, sub-dosha, Sankhya philosophy, enough Sanskrit to pronounce things correctly, digestion, nutrition, and anatomy of the body according to Ayurvedic terminology. Example: the body has 7 tissue layers, fed by the digestive tract in this order

Rasa- plasma

Rakta- blood

Mamsa- muscle

Meda- fat

Asthi- bone

Majja- nerve

Shukra/Artava- reproductive

Therefore, if the reproductive tissue is deficient for some time, the nervous system, and then the bones will suffer. You might begin to understand connections like this in your body from participating in a Fundamentals of Ayurveda training, and you will learn tools for managing early states of imbalance. You will also learn to apply this language to personal yoga practice, and promote balance through pranayama and yoga.

More importantly, you will practice Ayurveda in your own life. You will be required to scrape your tongue, oil your skin, and do some breathing and movement techniques as close to everyday as you can get (what?? Scroll down for videos on scraping and oiling). You will be encouraged to live Ayurveda in your own way throughout the training, and you will be asked to log changes in your body and mind, and be counseled in how to understand these changes.

Example: You may realize that you have a deficiency in a tissue layer, and learn a few recipes for foods that will feed that layer. Then, you will cook it, and eat it, and see if you begin to feel a difference.

Please do not do yourself, or the tradition, the disservice of expecting to practice or teach Ayurveda professionally after 200 hours of experience. The very beginning level of practice, Ayurvedic Health Consultant, requires 650 hours of study, and like yoga, is only appropriate after taking time to allow the tradition to live inside you first. Adding the burden of professional practice before leaving space for true embodiment will create stress. I encourage you to consider a Fundamentals training an investment in your own health and realization. Should you desire further education, 200 hours of training can be applied to affiliate 650 hour programs in the US. The standardizing body for ayurvedic practice in the USA, NAMA is a good place to learn more about the profession.

You can find more info about upcoming programs in Boston here.

OM.

An Open Letter For The Community

Darshan

Students of both Ayurveda and Yoga will have studied, at least a little bit, the Shad Darshan. Shad means six, and this case, the darshans are ways of seeing, or philosophies. The thing to remember about philosophies on life is that none of them are “right” or “wrong” but maybe they are helpful in our quest to understand reality, or to make sense of the human experience somehow. It is this quest, in my own life, that fuels my study of Ayurveda and yoga. What interests me most in the past year or two is how the study and practice of these systems begins to change one’s point of view. I struggle to explain it, but I can say that I understand things about yoga and Ayurveda now, because I feel them. Maybe it just takes so many years before this starts to happen, its as though the practice opens the channels for the feeling, and then the information one might read in the classics means something, makes sense.

The word darshan pops up a lot while visiting Hindu temples. To have “darshan of Vishnu” for example, means you made it into the temple, close enough to make out the eyes of the statue. The eyes are sometimes jeweled, or painted brightly. The root of the word drsh (like Drishti, for the ashtangis) means to view. The sight of a deity in temple goes two ways: one sees holiness, and is seen by it. Like the relationship between a yoga teacher and student, or an Ayurveda practitioner and a client, there is the activity of being seen, as well as beholding. It is a holy thing. yoga and Ayurveda provide opportunities in my life on a daily basis to share this holiness. There is in being seen, and seeing simultaneously, a moment of absolute presence and significance. It’s the cosmic “here we are!” moment.

The direction I would like to go as a student and teacher is more of these moments, for everyone. Through the programs I’m designing this year, a combination of in-person and online activity, I intend to create community and opportunity to experience darshan of Ayurveda and yoga. To teach and to learn together in a way that changes us. With study and practice, evolution of the self is inescapable.

Social Media and Sattva

This summer, I took a sabbatical and I see even more clearly how the way of the social media keeps getting more demanding of those who rely on it to make a living. The amount of information and marketing out there is staggering. I don’t like to think of my peeps wading through daily feeds and seeing a glimpse of what I’m up to. A far cry from darshan! What I do like is to let you all know where and when and what, so we continue to connect with one another. But what I would like to change about how it’s working, is to send a quality newsletter- and know that my peeps will see it. I’d like to give you the opportunity to connect with me, my whens and wheres, and also my current contemplations on the sister sciences, without having to troll for it. In that effect, I will be upping my newsletter to monthly, and will try to keep it short. You can expect an original recipe, probably something I’m messing around with in my own kitchen, a deep thought or two, and of course announcements about upcoming events and things like my next project, The Sattvic Living Institute. I’ll be releasing information and opportunities a little at a time over the next year or so. Please stay connected by signing up for my newsletter.

Sacred Cyberspace

In the November newsletter, I’ll be launching an experiment in keeping you all in touch with each other, to have a place where you know you are not the only one in your sphere working the yoga and Ayurveda…a place to be uplifted and inspired by your community, your peers, when you need it most and a place to share your wins and helpful hints with people who you know will appreciate it. We unveil a private space for all Everyday Ayurveda Cookbook enthusiasts, for past cleansers, Boston Ayurveda School grads, and (hopefully) for you, in a closed facebook group Sacred Cyberspace. I do hope to make this a sacred cyberspace. Until such time as we find a place that is more sattvic than Facebook, we are going to house it there. However, I want to be clear about our intentional use of social media here. We want to connect you to each other. You can inspire each other simply by sharing what you are already doing, the ways that you have already made Ayurveda part of your life. Sharing your questions and your kitchen messes can create profound community. I know, because you inspire me. I see what you are doing and I am inspired. In this group we are not constantly producing new content to market ourselves to the world of social media’s evolving trends for attention.

Stay tuned for the link to the Sacred Cyberspace for Everyday Ayurveda closed facebook group.

OM!

Kate

Book Release: "Everyday Ayurveda Cooking for a Calm, Clear Mind"

It's here! I present to you:

"Everyday Ayurveda Cooking for a Calm, Clear Mind"

now available wherever good books are sold

purchase   l  learn more

I wrote Everyday Ayurveda Cooking for a Calm, Clear Mind because when we begin to implement dietary changes, we inevitably end up face to face with behavioral patterns that underlie our food choices. Changing any one aspect of the daily life will cause a ripple effect. CHANGE is the basic activity of the mind. Knowing when to be still, when to create change, and when to resist it is the basis of mental balance. Translate that to say the right amount of work, quiet time, exercise, and rest will support mental balance.

As I work with Ayurveda and real people, I continually see that imbalances in the pace of modern life (dare I say the aim of life?), underlie a lot of discomforts in mind and body. Simply finding a natural desire to create good space in the mind, to feel at ease, happy, relaxed, is the beginning of Sattva, and I do intend this book to spark that desire with its beauty, its simplicity, its heartfelt words, images, and of course, recipes.  Finding our way towards a diet of life-giving foods, local and seasonal when possible, minimally processed, vegetarian, rich in vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains, and legumes, will absolutely change the mind-scape. The Sattvic diet is about enjoying food that connects us to ourselves and the planet, that provides experiences of beauty and pleasure, and nourishes us on all levels. It sounds like a big deal, but anyone who desires a calm, clear mind will do well to cook from this book and I am not surprised if readers find that it works.

From idea to on sale, it has been almost 4 years of effort and attention. A huge thanks to all of you who pre-ordered, because of you we are Amazon's #1 New Release in Ayurvedic Medicine. Your copies should be in your kitchen in no time.

Thank you also to Cara Brostrom, who contributes a lot more than photography and has been with the Everyday Ayurveda books since before day one. Her work makes these books look and taste so good, and her encouragement and Ayurvedic excitement is what first brought my little packets of one paragraph recipes out into the world.

Thank you to cooking superstars Risa Horn and Carabeth Connolly who handcrafted the food you'll find in these pages. And again to Carabeth Connolly, our Master Recipe Tester and the whole recipe testing team! To Allison Meierding, our all star book designer!

Thank you to the editor who started it all Rochelle Bourgeault, to Juree Sondker and everyone Shambhala Publications and Roost Books. To my manuscript readers, thank you for your time and your honesty, Dr. Robert Svoboda, Erin Casperson,

Hilary Garivaltis, Dr. Anusha. And ongoing gratitude to the faculty and students of the Boston Ayurveda School.

With dedication to the Ayur Vidya, the spirit of Ayurveda, and to all the gurus and vaidyas of past, present, and future. May the lineage of Ayurvedic study which inspired this text and recipes inspire you to cultivate satisfaction and peace of mind every day.

OM!

Ashtanga, Vinyasa, and Therapeutics

Recently my friend and colleague Karen Kirkness, founder of Meadowlark Yoga Edinburgh, asked me how I felt about the use of therapeutics in the Mysore room. This might involve research postures, or props, and general deviations from the vinyasa aspect of the system in times of injury or blockage. Here is what I replied.

The thing I'm thinking abt recently is how the magic Ashtanga can reveal to us is present in the vinyasa not in the asana. It is the unifying principle of the practice, rather than its composite parts that enlightens us. For the western mind it's so easy to fixate on the obvious, tangible form of an asana- and this is where alignment cues, while necessary for health and safety at times, tend to take center stage in the mind. When too many months or years go by without a focus on the unifying principles of Ashtanga (Trishtana and vinyasa) and the individual's BELIEF that such unification can be present in ones practice DESPITE pain and injury [which are omnipresent actually]--students may lose touch with this mystical aspect of Yoga. It is important to note that this unification of which I speak is experienced in the mind, and the body is only its vehicle.

The word vinyasa was originally used to describe the specific placement of an action in the larger manifestation of a ritual. Therefore, the concept of vinyasa, as I use the word, does not necessarily refer to jump-back jump-through, but implies instead the larger picture of self-transformation and the steady evolution of our practice as an attribute of a Life lived in touch with mystery, magic, and the depths of human experience.

OM

Repost from 2008! On butt-washers.

A conversation today prompted me to track down my old blog one-yoga.blogspot. Reading this, I see wow how much India has changed and the experience here in Mysore for yoga students. Here is a post from 2008, when butt-washers were a new thing around here! My first trip to India was in 1998- there were butt-washers in some areas then, but definitely still the bucket-flush method. I will spare you any stories of my past here with buckets... 

01/16/08 God Speaks

I haven’t quite figured out which direction to point the butt-washer to avoid spraying water all over the back of the toilet. The “butt-washer” looks just like the sprayer in your kitchen sink, but its coming out of the wall where one might expect to see a roll of toilet paper. Rather than the now old-fashioned method of big bucket-little dipper (a science unto itself) butt-washers are popping up in modern Indian homes. However, the western style toilet has also caught on, which when coupled with the butt-washer, is just plain awkward, in my opinion. I miss squatters. My Amma in Chennai said it best: “I don’t understand this western toilet. I find it much less clean to put the behind where another’s has been than to put the feet.” Amen. 
It’s things like this that make India such a unique travel experience. Confusion in the most simple, yet inescapable of arenas. In so many ways, we are all plucked from our lives here and plunked down in a land where what usually validates us is distant. We are called to redefine our routines and expectations constantly. For instance you thought you had the bowel movement thing worked out, but now there’s water everywhere. Next time. And in this, perhaps we may be gifted with the Grace we are all seeking. Validation in our own Divinity.
God speaks through Butt-washers, yes it’s true. 
Our mission here, should we choose to accept it, is to let go the need to have it figured out. The western traveler’s face is often an unmasked display of confusion. Sometimes frustration. Rarely playfulness. At the temple sites and cow-filled intersections, you see looks of amazement and sometimes delight, but rarely in line at the train station or while haggling with a rick-shaw driver. Can we keep the drishti on Grace in even these times? Challenging times are more common in India, anyone might tell you that. My friend Mahesh: “Shit man, this place works me and I’m Indian. I can’t imagine what it must be like for you guys.” Amen again.

Sharathji is working his skinny butt off with all of us in there, sweating it out as though we might gain some of that Divinity (even a sprinkle?) from the daily pursuit of asana. I have come to know for myself, its more about the “daily” part of it than how jamming I can be today and what anybody else thinks about it. A daily observance of my own evolution, a safe place to do the work, health benefits, and a really fun time (provided I am living a lifestyle of enough sleep and clean food). If I can just remember to laugh at myself; if I can just remember to smile while I move and breath… this is a good start to the day. Maybe when the phone hangs up, internet crashes, belly hurts, I will be that much closer to smiling. Life is a Vinyasa, start to finish. It’s the same thing always we are remembering, despite the shapes and sounds we are making in this world.