Rasayana: The Ayurveda Therapy of Rejuvenation

Smiling Woman Outside

Rasayanas are the ‘wonder’ drugs that aid in increasing your natural immunity, enhancing your general wellbeing, improving the functioning of all fundamental organs of the body, and keep the signs of early aging at bay.

The word rasayana is made up of two words: rasa, which means humor of the body, and ayana, meaning source. Rasayana is therefore regarded as the source of all the body humors.

This therapy occupies a prime position in Ayurveda and abides as a distinctive branch that deals with maintaining and ameliorating the body functions, including those of the brain.

Types of Rasayana

Herbs in PotsRasayanas have been categorized in two basic types:

Dravaya Rasayana: This type of Rasayana therapy includes some herb and food types that are indeed beneficial for the optimum functioning of the body as well as the brain. There are four types of dravaya:

  • age-promoting rasayanas: Some herbs and diets are believed to be of great help in providing stability to life, vitality, and stamina by helping with body and mind fatigue and by augmenting the power of all the five senses. Not only this, these rasayanas provide glow to the skin, sweetness to the voice, and virtually tend to enhance the life span of an individual. Chyavanprash is a popular rasayana, which can be cited as an example, the use of which had restored back youth to Rishi Chyavan.
  • brain power enhancing rasayanas: Regular intake of cow’s milk and ghee (clarified butter) is an effective brain tonic. There are herbs like bramhi, vacha, and shankhpushpi, as well as Ayurveda medicinal formulations like bhrama rasayana which can be taken for long periods of time so as to increase the mental powers of intelligence and memory. Also, these have a stimulating action on the entire central nervous system. Guduchi rasayana is also intellect-promoting and has shown results in promoting powers of grasping, concentration and retention, and also in fighting mental fatigue.
  • eyesight promoting rasayanas: There are some Ayurveda herbal formulations categorized specifically for the benefit of the proper functioning of the eyes (for example, aamalki rasayana). These not only aid in providing clear vision, but also are great of help in problems of decreased eyesight.
  • disease combating rasayanas: In this type, specific rasayanas are given to the patients suffering from some particular disease so as to help eradicate the disease from its roots. For example, bhallataka rasayana is used in diseases of skin and leprosy and pippali rasayana is for respiratory diseases.

Smiling Woman OutsideAdravya Rasayana: In this type of rasayana therapy, there is no conventional use of medicines. Only the general rules of living and natural regimen of seasons is to be followed. This therapy works in accordance to the science of naturopathy. Man and nature are regarded to be maintaining maximum similarities. Therefore, the laws of nature are inherent in human body. This is the basic idea behind the use of this rasayana therapy.

Let me suggest that for the overall accomplishment of the merits of rasayana therapy, it would be best if both the dravaya and adravya rasayanas are used concurrently.

How to Take Rasayana

Indoor Arrangement: The rasayana therapy is made available to the patient while he is staying in a sanatorium or a health resort. This type of arrangement is extremely beneficial as the general rules and principles in taking the rasayana can be easily maintained here. And as this method strictly abides by the laws of nature, positive results can be obtained in shorter period of time. In Ayurveda, treatment provided in this type of health spa is regarded as kuti rasayana, with kuti meaning “a hut.”

Outdoor Arrangement: Because of scarce availability of time, resources and finances, staying in health resorts may not be suitable for most of us. In this case, natural living would all by itself work as a rasayana for you. The use of sunlight and fresh air for long periods of time is the easiest available source of rasayana therapy.

Benefits of Ayurveda Rasayana Therapy

Rocks and Herbs LeavesThere are many advantages to rasayana therapy:

  • Rasayana therapy aids in reviving the health of a healthy person as well as in combating the disease of the diseased one.
  • It enables the body to develop its own vital energy or the defensive mechanism against disease.
  • Rasayanas are believed to build a barrier against stress and infection.
  • These act principally by strengthening the immune system of the body acting as both brain and body tonic.
  • Clinical studies have proved rasayanas to be anti-toxic and anti-infective drugs.
  • These are perhaps the only ‘wonder’ drugs that can be taken safely for long stretches of time, even in a healthy state, without any specific contradictions.

Some Important Rasayanas

Herbs and medicinal plants: aamla (emblica officinalis), harad (terminalia chebula), guduchi (tinospora cordifolia), ashwagandha (withania somnifera), nagbala (grewia hirsuta)

Natural resources: loha (iron), swarn (gold), shilajit (black bitumen), praval (coral ore), mukta (pearl), tamra (copper), rajat (silver)

Food ingredients: honey, cow’s milk, desi ghee (clarified butter)

Ayurveda medicinal formulations: chyanprash avleha, amrita rasayana, abhya rasayana, bhrama rasayana, punarnava rasayana etc.


Dr. Sonica Krishan is Ayurveda and Natural Lifestyle Healer and Consultant based at Chandigarh, India. She has authored the natural home cure books Herbal HealersHome Remedies, and Healing Through Ayurveda. Dr. Sonica is presently writing for national and international publications. She may be contacted at drsonica@herboveda.co.in or visit http://www.herboveda.co.in/.