Nāḍī Vijñāna

Following on from the previous article where we explored the meaning of consciousness-based medicine, I felt it apt that we introduce the main tool of diagnosis in this realm.

Nāḍī Vijñāna or pulse diagnosis is an infinitely refined method of discerning the balance/imbalance of the various aspects of your health according to Ayurveda. If you consider for a moment that every impulse of every cell is an impulse of your consciousness and that the sum of all those infinite number of impulses gathers in your heart, at the seat of consciousness. As our blood passes through the heart, it carries this information which we read in the reverberations in the radial pulse. It is indeed a remarkable insight into the workings of your physiology in its wholeness. What it enables us to do is to measure the harmony or disharmony between the physiology and consciousness.

Note that Nāḍī translates to flow of consciousness while Vijñāna loosely translates to an inner knowing.

We say that when we are feeling pulse, we should have the desire to know everything without disregarding anything, much like reading a book. We experience everything and bless it such that it may gradually reach balance. In a similar way to a teacher calling out the student who misbehaves in a classroom, our awareness is drawn to that which needs attention in the pulse, and that aspect gets stirred up and becomes alert. This can also be seen in Yoga Asanas whereby attention goes to where it’s needed during a stretch and that area gets enlivened as it again forms a connection with consciousness (which it had lost). Herbs can also be seen in this light as these packets of intelligence travel to an area where there is an imbalance in the physiology and brings it the attention of consciousness which is what it needs to heal.

The vitally important benefit of Nāḍī Vijñāna is knowing the cause, as every expression of the pulse has its correlating cause. However, this is not second to the healing that we receive from practising self-pulse as it invigorates the self-referral quality of our physiology, as it reads itself and discerns what needs attention. This we have here is the most primal form of self-help activity at its most efficient and effective. In fact, it is instantaneous. However, we need to remember to be innocent, without expectation, this is the only way to enjoy the infinite benefits of Nāḍī Vijñāna practice. Similar is the healing received from having your pulse taken by a Vaidya or practitioner, as they say diseases line up to exit the body through the pulse as in fact they are trapped and are looking for a way out.

Each time we take our pulse, we are coming back to the Self, and knowing our Self is equivalent to knowing all there is, which is why we say Nāḍī Vijñāna or knowledge is infinite. As a practitioner, when I take your pulse, my Self is entering into the field of your Self and as the nature of consciousness is compassion, my awareness joyously leaps forth to help you.

“Knowing our Self means knowing our awareness & taking our awareness to the deepest level of our own consciousness or intelligence. That is the unified field within everyone. So, it's a technique of handling one thing whereby everything is spontaneously and thoroughly and completely handled.” - MAHARISHI MAHESH YOGI