Yoga alliance took an interview of great teacher named David Frawley, he is having a great knowledge about Yoga and Ayurveda. Frawley is one of the few westerners recognized as an authentic Vedic teacher or Acharya in India. He has written more than forty books on Raja Yoga, Ayurvedic medicine, Vedic astrology, Vedanta and the Vedic sciences. We were fascinated by David’s spiritual journey and his insights on the practice of Ayurveda.

YA: How did you first discover Yoga?
DF: I discovered Yoga as the culmination of my search through the world’s spiritual and religious traditions in the late sixties and early seventies when I was looking for a path to follow. I found that the teachings of great gurus of modern India like Ramana Maharshi, Sri Aurobindo and Anandamayi Ma most resonated with my inner being. Over time, I developed contact with their representatives, learned Sanskrit, did research and explored various Yoga practices. My main interest was with Raja Yoga and Advaita Vedanta, which led me eventually to Ayurveda, Vedic astrology and translating the Vedas. It was mainly the meditation practices and the profound philosophy of Yoga-Vedanta that drew me into Yoga.

YA: How would you describe your personal Yoga practice?
DF: It is an integral Yoga that combines meditation, mantra, pranayama, devotional practices, ritual and pilgrimage. I follow traditional Yoga but with a strong orientation to the world of nature and try to see how the teachings of Yoga are mirrored in the greater universe around us. Though I have associations with many Yoga, spiritual and religious groups, my practice is rooted in the teachings of Ramana Maharshi, and his disciple Ganapati Muni. Ganapati was a great Raja Yogi who wrote his own Yoga Sutras among dozens of other Sanskrit works, particularly relative to the worship of the Devi or Goddess. I have tried to follow the inspiration of Ramana and Ganapati and teachers connected to them, though adapting the teachings to my own life circumstances.

YA: What, in your opinion, is a common misconception about the practice of Ayurveda?
DF: I think it is the view, which we often find in the West, that Yoga and Ayurveda are different healing systems, though related to some degree. Ayurveda is the traditional healing side of the greater Yoga tradition that we find in India, its chikitsa component. Ayurveda is the original system of yogic healing and yogic medicine. Traditional Yoga is a spiritual practice or sadhana tradition and is only secondarily involved with healing, largely through its Ayurvedic connections.

Modern Yoga and its healing applications may be something a little different and these may have their value. But we should not forget that Ayurveda has developed and functioned as the healing side of Yoga for several thousand years, has a vast literature, long experience and continues to flourish and grow.

Ayurveda was originally developed by taking the philosophy and practice of Yoga, including the background science of Samkhya and applying it to healing body and mind. Ayurveda provides a complete yogic system of medicine in terms of diagnosis and management of disease, treatment with diet, herbs, massage and an entire range of clinic methods as well as lifestyle regimens, in which Yoga therapies have an important place. We don’t need so much to create a new Yoga therapy or new yogic system of medicine as to restore and update the ancient Yoga-Ayurveda healing and wellness approach.

Namaste,
 Manu