"Chill Out" This Summer
We just celebrated Memorial Day, and the unofficial start of summer. It’s June, and already the heat is on. In āyurveda we call this pitta season. Dominated by the fire and water elements (think hot and humid), summer consists of hot, spreading, and sharp qualities, that when left unchecked result in an overstimulated and over heated mind, fatigue, and burnout.
The fire element associated with pitta is important for the expression of our inner radiance, and the intelligence of our body and mind, but when that fire is burning out of control we end up with a heated temper causing feelings of anger and frustration, a heated gut causing indigestion, heartburn, and reflux, and an overall sense of feeling uncomfortable and unsatisfied with life.
So, how do you keep the heated qualities of the fire element in check? Āyurveda offers a number of tools and practices for containing the inner fire, and chilling out so you don’t burn out.
“CHILL OUT” THE AYURVEDIC WAY
AVOID THE HEAT OF THE DAY
It goes without saying that if you want to “chill out” you’ll have to avoid the heat of the day. From a temperature standpoint, the hottest part of the day can come in the late afternoon. But according to āyurveda, it’s best to avoid being in the sun and heat during the pitta hours, from 10am - 2pm. This is the time of day when the hot, sharp, spreading qualities of pitta are most active
SLOW DOWN
We live in a very fast paced, demanding, and productivity oriented culture. This pitta provoking lifestyle can wreak havoc on our bodies and minds in ways that leave us feeling utterly exhausted. Remember back to the lazy days of summer when you were in school? Living was slow and relaxed, just hanging out with your friends riding bikes for hours, exploring nearby creeks, or splashing in the pool — no thoughts of schoolwork, studying, or taking tests. Be intentional about re-creating that slow and relaxed pace this summer. Give your perfectionistic mind a break, and adopt the mantra “good enough is good enough”, and give yourself a break from keeping a perfect house, planning the perfect menu, or composing the perfect work email. And for heaven’s sake……..TAKE A VACATION!! I mean a real vacation. Set your out of office email, leave your laptop at home, put your phone on “Do Not Disturb” (or leave it at home altogether). Your brain and your body need a rest from constantly processing life. Most of Europe takes the month of August off, don’t you think you deserve at least a week?
CALM YOUR MIND
Too much fire element in the mind means we are easily annoyed, easily angered, overly intense, sharp with our speech, and eventually exhausted and depleted from the fire raging through us. Scientific studies have even shown that violent crime rises when the temperature goes above around 70 degrees, To avoid a heated mind this summer, prioritize your meditation practice. Concentration practices like candle gazing, mantra recitation, or breath counting, are especially good at containing the fire. The silence meditation offers is also beneficial for keeping that fire from burning out of contro.
Learn more about how to balance the qualities of pitta with yoga and āyurveda in our upcoming Āyurvedic Yoga for Summer workshop.