Panchakarma & Therapies

A warm oil massage is not a spa indulgence. It is abhyanga, and in classical Panchakarma it is a preparatory phase: it mobilises the metabolic residue stored in the tissues so the body can clear it afterwards. Skip the preparation and the cleanse goes nowhere.

Panchakarma means five actions, and it is Ayurveda’s deep cleansing procedure. The therapies now sold separately across the West all come from it: shirodhara, basti, nasya, abhyanga. They work better when you understand where they come from and in what order they make sense.

This section takes each one apart: what it does, who it suits, and when it is a bad idea. Start with what Panchakarma is and whether it is for you. Abhyanga is the one you can do at home tonight. And shirodhara is the treatment with the most interesting research behind it, for anxiety and for sleep.

To find out which therapy fits your constitution, book an ayurveda online consultation.