Water

I used to think I needed to drink 8-10 glasses of water a day! I would carry around an enormous bottle of cold water with me and chug it throughout the day. Of course, I was just trying to do what I thought was best for my body. I thought I was flushing out the toxins in my body with every trip I took to the bathroom ( which by the way was almost hourly). I had no concept of Ayurveda at this time in my life, however, now I can see why the digestive disease I had suffered from for so many years was just being aggravated by my excessive water intake. I was literally drowning in all of the water I was drinking. Now I understand that in order to destroy ama (toxicity), one must kindle the agni (digestive fire). Toxicity cannot be flushed out, it needs to burn. By drinking cold water, I was unknowingly dousing out my digestive fire, because of this my food was not digesting properly and the toxins were floating around in my body. Now that I understand the Ayurvedic perspective on water, I am no longer perpetuating this cycle. Instead, I use only charcoal filtered tap water water which I boil every morning. Not only does the boiling kill any remaining bacteria in the water, it also makes the water more easy to digest because of the fact that we are adding the element of fire. Throughout the day, I carry a double insulated with me, and only drink warm water or herbal tea, and only when I am thirsty. I have stopped drinking ice cold water entirely, and have seen dramatic improvements in my digestion.
SIt can help to think about it like water flowing through a metal pipe. Cold water will cause the pipes to contract, and hot water will cause the pipes to expand. If we want to keep all of the channels (srotas) in our body open and flowing, it is important to not constrict them by drinking ice cold water. 

IAlso, I have begun to infuse my water with the energy of the sun and the moon. If somebody would have told me 2 years ago to drink sun/moon water I would have thought they were crazy. However, once I actually tasted the difference between regular water and water that had been exposed to the sun and moon, I changed my mind... it's unreal how much energy this water contains.

 I never imagined that changing the way I drink my water could have such an impact on my physical health, but over time I have witnessed the effects first-hand, and am relishing in the benefits. 

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