As always in Ayurveda, there’s a deeper spiritual significance to each tissue of the body. The Ayurvedic rishis (aka the seers of the past) recognized that the Rasa Dhatu was responsible for the spiritual qualities of:
~ Clear perception
~ Crystalline insight
~ Faith and hope for our future
~ Love and trust in god and the universe that everything is going to be okay
That means getting our lymph moving = boosting faith, hope, and TRUST! I mean with that description I think we all could use a little lymph-love 💗 This is an especially supportive time (in the northern hemisphere) for dry brushing and starting to get out your cooling oils, depending on how hot it is where you live!
Read below for why you should be incorporating these practices into your daily routine 👇
The Lymph as Rasa Dhatu
In Ayurveda, our lymph is understood to be part of the rasa dhatu, one of the 7 tissues of the body.
Rasa Dhatu consists of our lymph and blood plasma–which serves as the first line of immune defense when we encounter allergens and bacteria. (Ayurveda also teaches us that the rasa dhatu, aka the lymph, is our first line of PSYCHO-EMOTIONAL defense!)
Lymph Needs to Move
Unlike your blood, which has a pump (the heart) rasa relies on the valve system to move. The valve system is this subtle pumping mechanism through the body that we can encourage to move with dry brushing and traditional Ayurvedic abhyanga massage.
When our lymph isn’t moving we get stagnation and immunity goes down. Our lymphatic system becomes less able to handle allergens or bacteria that’s coming in.
Abhyanga and Dry Brushing
Abhyanga and dry brushing is all about circulating the lymph. The key with these practices is that you want to be brushing or massaging towards your heart in long circular motions.
This helps to move stagnation, help rasa dhatu “flow,” boost our natural detoxification system, and get a healthy natural glow on. According to Ayurveda, it also has psycho-emotional benefits, too!