CE INSTITUTE LLC BLOG

By Desiree Collazo, Ayurvedic Therapies Program Director at CE Institute LLC, Miami FL

Ayurveda recognizes 3 distinct doshas amongst all individuals.  That means that the entire population of the world is divided into 1 of 3 doshas.  We are able to maintain health when our dosha constitution is balanced.  However, when we experience an imbalance, the body can become a state of disease.

The nature of an individual is a consequence of relative proportion of the 3 doshas, which are not only genetically determined, but also influenced by the environment, maternal diet, lifestyle, and age of parents at time of conception. Your dosha is similar to a genetic code…you are born as a kapha, pitta or vatta; and that dosha classification remains unchangeable throughout the entire span of your life. 

The 3 doshas in Ayurveda are as follows:

Vata Dosha – Space/Air (Movement) dry, light, cold, rough, subtle (fine) and mobile or unsteady

Pitta Dosha – Fire/Water (Transformation) slightly unctuous, sharp, hot, light, free flowing, liquid, and foul smelling

Kapha Dosha – Water/Earth (Structure) unctuous, cold, heavy, slow and stable

We go into great depth of the 3 doshas and much more in our Ayurvedic Bodywork Classes.  Click HERE to learn more about about the available Ayurvedic Classes taught by Desi at CE Institute LLC, Miami FL.

By Desiree Collazo, Ayurvedic Therapies Program Director at CE Institute LLC, Miami FL

Panchamahabhuta is a Sanskrit term that refers to the concept of the five structural elements or five great elements.  Pancha = five and Mahabhuta = great structural elements of the universe.  The five elements in ayurveda are as follows:

1. Akasha = Space/Ether: Spaces in body (mouth, nostrils, thorax, abdomen, cells)
2. Vayu = Air: Element of movement including muscular movement (contraction of lungs, intestines, movement in cells)
3. Agni = Fire: Enzyme functioning, controls digestive system & regulates metabolism
4. Jala = Water: Found in plasma, blood saliva (digestive juices, mucous membranes, cytoplasm)
5. Prthvi = Earth: Solid structures such as bones, muscles, skin, hair, nails, tendons, cartilage, teeth

These five elements form the structural entity of the body. The Indriyas are: the mind, the five sensory organs (eyes, ears, nose, skin and tongue) and the five motor organs (vocal cords, hands, feet, genital organs and anus).

We go into greater depth of the 5 elements and much more in our Ayurvedic Bodywork Classes.  Click HERE to learn more about about the available Ayurvedic Classes taught by Desi at CE Institute LLC, Miami FL.

By Desiree Collazo, Ayurvedic Therapies Program Director at CE Institute LLC, Miami FL

Ayurveda dates back to Indus Valley civilization which flourished as early as 3000 B.C.  There is a reference of Lord Mahavir, a great saint of Jain religion, being treated by Jivak, a guru of Ayurveda, about 2500 years back.  Charak, a sage, was accounted as a great authority in Ayurveda.  A compendium by Charak is known as Charak Samhita and is the oldest literature on Ayurveda found in India.  

As Buddhism was spread in 500 B.C. to the next 1000 years to China, Tibet, Sri Lanka, Thailand and other Eastern countries, along with it, Ayurveda also spread to these countries as well.  During the 19^th and earlier 20^th centuries, the British ruled India and closed the Ayurvedic universities, although Ayurveda continued to be practiced in secret.  The knowledge was preserved by the Guru-shishya relationship (teacher-student) through oral traditions. 

All the most important of Ayurvedic scriptures existed in oral form long before being redacted in writing – therefore, writings had occurred after knowledge was in use for several thousands of years.  They include:

Charaka Samhita (Medical Compendium) by Acharya Charaka (800 – 1500 B.C.)

Sushruta Samhita (Surgical Compendium) by Acharya Sushruta (1500 – 1800 B.C.)

Ashtanga Hridaya (The Eightfold Heart of Medicine) by Vaghbata (100 A.D.)

For several thousand years the teachings were passed on orally from teacher to student and about the 5th to 6th Century BC, in elaborately detailed texts written in Sanskrit, the ancient language of India.

We share this and much more in Desiree's Ayurvedic Massage Classes.  Click HERE to learn more about about the available Ayurvedic Classes taught by Desi at CE Institute LLC, Miami FL.

By Desiree Collazo, Ayurvedic Therapies Program Director at CE Institute LLC, Miami FL

Ayurveda is a natural medicinal system born in India over 5,000 years ago. The Sanskrit term has two components ‘Ayu,’ life, and ‘Veda,’ knowledge or science. Ayurveda is the science that studies life in all aspects, physical, mental, emotional and spiritual. Understanding that all aspects of life belong to a whole, we also understand how everything we do, eat, feel, think and intend will be shaping how we live.

Ayurveda is a Vedic science. This is an integral spiritual science devised to give a comprehensive understanding of the Universe, which it sees as working under a single law. Vedic sciences include Yoga, Vastu, Meditation, Mantra, and Astrology, and sets forth Ayurveda as the branch for dealing with the physical body and the mind. Ayurveda encompasses diet, lifestyle, herbal remedies, bodywork and treatments, surgery, psychology and spirituality.

We share this and much more in Desiree's Ayurvedic Massage Classes.  Click HERE to learn more about about the available Ayurvedic Classes taught by Desi at CE Institute LLC, Miami FL.

Dr. Ben Benjamin teaches a variety of Advanced, Orthopedic, Medical & Sports Massage Classes at CE Institute LLC in Miami FL.  He has been practicing massage therapy for 50 years and has been teaching for decades.  He is an absolute master of the trade in many different subjects of our industry. 

Dr. Ben Benjamin says: "Our psyche and soma are like the front and back of the hand - one does not exist without the other. Seeing the whole person in the context of his or her life, and treating the emotions along with physical pain or injury is often the most intelligent and effective way to approach the healing process."  Here's Ben Benjamin's article in Massage Today that explains this concept for massage therapists: 

Dr. Ben Benjamin teaches a variety of Advanced, Orthopedic, Medical & Sports Massage Classes at CE Institute LLC in Miami FL.  He has been practicing massage therapy for 50 years and has been teaching for decades.  He is an absolute master of the trade and in many different subjects of our industry. 

In many cases of chronic pain, the culprit is adhesive scar tissue formation, whether the pain is in the low back; the neck; the shoulders, thighs, knees and so forth.  Here's Ben Benjamin's article in Massage Today that explains this concept for massage therapists:

Dr. Ben Benjamin teaches a variety of Advanced, Orthopedic, Medical & Sports Massage Classes at CE Institute LLC in Miami FL.  He has been practicing massage therapy for 50 years and has been teaching for decades.  He is an absolute master of the trade and in many different subjects of our industry.

Muscles should be relaxed and loose. Ligaments should be tight to support and stabilize a joint. Here's Ben Benjamin's article in Massage Today that explains this concept for massage therapists:

Dr. Ben Benjamin teaches a variety of Advanced, Orthopedic, Medical & Sports Massage Classes at CE Institute LLC in Miami FL.  He has been practicing massage therapy for 50 years and has been teaching for decades.  He is an absolute master of the trade and in many different subjects of our industry.

Referred Pain:  Muscles, tendons and ligaments regularly refer pain down the arms and legs in ways that appear similar to a nerve compression injury,  Here's Ben Benjamin's article in Massage Today that explains this concept for massage therapists:

Dr. Ben Benjamin teaches a variety of Advanced, Orthopedic, Medical & Sports Massage Classes at CE Institute LLC in Miami FL.  He has been practicing massage therapy for 50 years and has been teaching for decades.  He is an absolute master of the trade and in many different subjects of our industry.

An increasing numbers of massage therapists and bodyworkers are discovering, active isolated stretching (AIS), can be enormously helpful in reducing Parkinson's Disease symptoms and restoring normal motor function.  Here's Ben Benjamin's article in Massage Today that explains this information and more for massage therapists: