Textbook of Ayurveda, Vol. 1: Fundamental Principles of Ayurveda - Hardcover

From the Author

For the last twenty years, I have traveled extensively teaching the various aspects of ¢yurveda. The great three Ayurvedic texts—Charaka, Sushruta and Vagbhata—Samhitas are quite authentic and contain several layers of meaning for the serious student. However, they are rather difficult for the beginner to follow and understand. I took an extract of these Three Greats and created a practical Ayurvedic Studies Program that I teach at The Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

I love my students. They are sincere, hardworking and study Ayurveda in both the Ayurvedic Studies Program and in the more advanced Gurukula Program. Over the years, the students have repeatedly requested a textbook for our classes. The entire curriculum is taught in an eight-month period and all of its material cannot be put together in a single volume. Hence, I have decided to write three volumes of a general textbook of Ayurveda covering the basic principles and philosophies of Ayurveda, the clinical assessment of health and disease, and the management of disease.

It gives me a great joy to write this preface for Volume I of the Textbook of Ayurveda. This book contains authentic teachings of the basic principles and philosophies of Ayurveda. I am quite sure that it will be a practical guide to all students of Ayurveda.

Love and light,

Dr. Vasant Lad Albuquerque, New Mexico March 2002

About the Author

Dr. Lad brings a wealth of classroom and practical experience to the United States. He received the degree of Bachelor of Ayurvedic Medicine & Surgery from the University of Pune, in Pune, India in 1968 and a Master of Ayurvedic Science from Tilak Ayurved Mahavidyalaya in Pune, India in 1980. For 3 years he served as Medical Director of the Ayurveda Hospital in Pune, India. He also held the position of Professor of Clinical Medicine for seven years at the Pune University College of Ayurvedic Medicine, where he was an instructor for many years. Dr. Lad's academic and practical training includes the study of allopathic medicine (Western Medicine) and surgery as well as traditional Ayurveda. In 1979, he began traveling throughout the United States sharing his knowledge of Ayurveda, and in 1981, he returned to New Mexico to teach Ayurveda. In 1984, he founded and began as Director of The Ayurvedic Institute.

Dr. Lad is the author of numerous articles and several books; Ayurveda, The Science of Self Healing, co-author of The Yoga of Herbs and Ayurvedic Cooking for Self-Healing. His book, Secrets of the Pulse, The Ancient Art of Ayurvedic Pulse Diagnosis, presents this fascinating subject for the first time. His work from Harmony Books, The Complete Book of Ayurvedic Home Remedies, is a compendium of classic Ayurvedic treatments for common and chronic ailments. His most recent book, The Textbook of Ayurveda: Fundamental Principles, is the first of a four-volume set of textbooks covering the topics he teaches in his eight-month Ayurvedic Studies Program. Dr. Lad presently is the Director of The Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico and teaches the Ayurvedic Studies Program and, for more advanced study, the Gurukula Program as well as a program in India each year. Dr. Lad also travels throughout the world, consulting privately and giving seminars on Ayurveda; its history, theory, principles and practical applications.