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may/june 2017yogajournal.com.auThere are lots of detox retreat options
in Bali and around the world, but I felt
especially drawn to an Ayurveda
Panchakarma retreat. Ayurveda is a
Sanskrit word derived from ayuh (life)
and veda (knowledge), and is also
known as the ‘science of life’. Vedic
medicine is considered one of the oldest
systems of medicine in the world. In
Ayurveda the five elements condense to
form three bioenergies (called doshas):
Vata, kinetic energy; Pitta; thermal
energy/biochemical energy; and Kapha,
potential energy/biocohesive force. An
Ayruveda detox is called a Panchakarma,
a group of five therapeutic procedures
designed to remove imbalanced doshas
from the body and to bring the doshas
back into equilibrium.
I had dabbled in Ayurvedic
treatments before but had never tried a
Panchakarma detox. The day I book in,
ONEWORLD emailed saying they would
provide clothes for treatments and après
treatment wear and they would pick me
up at Denpasar Airport. No need to
worry about packing resort fashion and
no need to organise transport to Ubud –
check, check! Two days later I was on a
plane, feeling excited and slightly
nervous about how serious this detox
would be. Would it mean no coffee?
I am taken by car straight off the
plane in Denpasar, through the traffic to
the oasis that is ONEWORLD Ayurveda,
at the edge of the famous rice fields
about 30 minutes outside Ubud. The
centre supervisor, Tekok, gives me quick
tour of the dining area, yoga shala with
views over the rice fields, the treatment
centre with rooftop herb gardens and
water features and my spacious room set
in lush gardens full of butterflies. I know
I am going to be very happy here in this
peaceful, beautiful place surrounded by
trees, birds and water sounds. Tekok tells
me before dinner he will take me to the
local Pura Tita Empul Temple for a
water purification ceremony. He shows
me how to tie my sarong for bathing at
the temple and provides a long white top
for me to wear over the top of it. He
prepares our temple offering of flowers
and incense and leads me through the
ritual of prayers and salutations under
the waterfalls of spring water. The
prayers are for gratitude, letting go of
things we don’t want in our lives and
opening the chakras. I am touched by
the loving patience and attention to
detail he shows, like a ‘spiritual butler’
of sorts.
Feeling remade in my sarong and
shininess, I descend for dinner. At the
long table with white table cloth and
steaming rose-coloured drinks in tall-
stemmed wine glasses, sit five glowing
guests in white tunics. It is an elegant
scene and I suddenly feel a little shy and
conscious of the rice grains still stuck to
my forehead, a remnant of my blessing
by the temple priest. But I needn’t have
worried because I am immediately
welcomed by Sam from Australia who
suggests the drink isn’t what I am
thinking it is. She asks if I’ve just comefrom the temple or face-planted in my
airplane food. I immediately relax. The
drink is a delicious herbal tea.“He prepares our temple
offering of flowers and
incense and leads me
through the ritual of
prayers and salutations.”Dr Ninnu arrives and Sam tells me
this is the man who does nasty stuff to
us. I wonder what she means. Dr Ninnu
is the resident doctor who has been
headhunted from where many say is the
centre of Ayurveda: Kerala, India. He is a
big smiling soft bear of a man, so I find
it hard to believe he could do anything
nasty. He does warn me that I won’t be
able to do strenuous exercise whilst I’m
being treated, so I promise myself an
early morning swim tomorrow before
treatment begins. Then mung bean soup
arrives and everyone piles in, but Natalie
from Canada seems slightly bored with
it. She has been here for 28 of her 35 days
getting treatment for a form of Crohn’s
Disease. She says at first she was
sceptical because she didn’t feel better
for the first two weeks, but since then
she has seen rapid improvement.
I like the soup. It has so many tastes,
which later I discover is a hallmark of
Ayruvedic cooking. The flavours include
sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter and
astringent tastes in a single meal.
Normally a fast, distracted eater, I find
myself eating slowly, savouring each
taste as it delights my taste buds.
After an exquisite lasagna dish we
receive our individual programs for
tomorrow: I am thrilled to see mine
includes an Abhyanga massage in the
morning and an afternoon Sirodhara
treatment. Abhyanga is a synchronised
full body oil massage given by two
therapists, and Sirodhara is where
medicated oil is poured in an even
stream across the forehead, said to be
great for sleep. Along with my morning
consultation with Drs Ninnu and
Aparna, two yoga sessions and a guided
rice field walk, it looks like a full and
luxurious day.
I go to bed the first night hoping for
my first uninterrupted sleep in years, but
I wake at 3am, my body still on Sydney
time. I’m at first disappointed, but then I
remind myself, what do I have to do