As the field of alternative medicine gains immense popularity in the wake of COVID-19, the ancient practice of Ayurveda with India as its land of origin can don the role of quiet yet powerful armed forces in the fight against the coronavirus, according to a seasoned Clinical Assistant Professor of Medicine from Weill Cornell Medical College in New York. Weill Cornell Medicine is the biomedical research unit and medical school of Cornell University, a private Ivy League university and according to Dr Bhaswati Bhattacharya, practicing Ayurveda is like approaching the disease from the perspective of air, water, land and time.

“This is elaborated in a chapter on epidemics known as janapada-uddhvansa in ancient classic medical texts. The daily lifestyle of a survivor includes cleaning the air, using clean water properly, cleansing the land, and becoming aware of time,” Bhattacharya told IANS in an interview.

Alongside this pillar of lifestyle guidelines are a pillar of wisdom for food (ahara) and a pillar of medicines for epidemics. According to Bhattacharya who is Fulbright Specialist in Public Health-Integrative Medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College, Ayurveda does not focus on the virus. “It focuses on the person, the host. Every seed that can grow will not grow in every soil. Ayurvedic wisdom says to empower the soil of the body so that the virus cannot take hold. This is pure personalised medicine at its best,” she emphasised.