BALAM – Immunity

Immunity is described as “Balam” in Ayurveda. The literal meaning of Balam is strength. Charaka has used the word “Vyadhi” and “AvyadhiKshamatva” in this reference. 

The term Balam means good VyadhiKshamatva, that is good immunity against disease.

Three types of immunity

There are three types of immunity (Balam) according to Charaka :-

1.   Sahajam :-Sahajam means congenital. It comes through inheritance, mostly from the mother and father. Therefore it is of two types – Matraja(maternal) and Pitraja (paternal).

Ayurveda has described a principle of genes and chromosomes under the heading of Beeja and BeejaBhagaAvayava. Beeja means seed, and BeejaBhaga means part of the seed, and BeejaBhagaAvayava means a very tiny part of that part of the seed. It effects the hereditary system by the Anga- Pratyanga and Anu – Parmanu level. Anga means gross organs like hands, legs, trunk, head, chest, etc. Pratyanga means small organs like heart, brain, kindey, liver, spleen, stomach or arteries, veins, nerves, etc. and Anu is molecular where Parmanu is a still subtler part of that Anu and is undetectable by known technology. The BeejaBhaga or its part affects these organs. If they are affected in an healthy manner, the same health is seen in the children. If they are affected in an unhealthy manner, the same disorders will be carried over into the next generation.

2.   Kalajam : Kala means time. Immunity developed according to timing is called Kalajam. It is seen that cold weather is better than not time. Strength is better in winter than in summer. Too extreme cold of course is not good. There are more diseases in tropical countries than in nontropical countries. Childhood is a little more susceptible to disease. Youth is more resistent and old age is again susceptible .

We often see that a particular person has an allergy to a particular season and time according to his Prakriti. Kapha people have allergic tendency in cold damp climates and good resistence in hot climates. Pitta people have good resistence in cold and damp climates and allergy in hot climates. Vata people have and allergy to dry, cold, windy climates and good resistence in unctuous and hot climates. Mixed persons behave in a mixed pattern.

3.   Yuktikratam : Acquired immunity. This is the most important type of immunity in which we have a large field of things to do. Yukti means planning. “Yuktihi yojanadravyasya” means to take the help of other things and plan to defend against the disease problems. It is said that failing to plan is planning to fail. Everything should be done with planning.

Ayurveda recommends three plans for obtaining this Balam (strength or immunity).

(A)         Rasayana is a health promoting treatment on which a separate chapter is written giving all details .Rasayana produces resistance power against disease in two ways. One, by acting on the physical level, making physiology compact like the core of a mountain, and then if a virus or bacteria or any agent of disease enters the body, the boy itself deactivates it. Secondly it acts on the mind and makes it more strong. If the mind is strong, a very severe disease appears like a  minor disease, and this may be due to some hormonal secretions released by a strong mind.

Rasayana is implemented by three different methods.

1.   KutiPrakeshika :- Patient is hospitalized in this type for 1 to 3 months or more if required.

2.   VataTapika :- Patient uses a home program that can be taken in any type of environment.

3.   AcharaRasayana :- Patient follows the code of good conduct in life that is called behaviouralRasayana.

How it helps ?

Your physician analyses your body and makes sure that understands what are the demands of your body and what is Satmya for you. If your body doesn’t react in a healthy way to these substances he starts these preparations in small doses with some allergy eliminating preparations, which makes your body tolerate them. After one week he gives a little increased dose of that substance to you and your body tolerates it. He continues to increase the dose very week and after 4-8 weeks you have good tolerance to that substance without the allergy eliminating supplement. This way your body develops immunity against many of the factors of disease. This is called acquired immunity by Yukit, i.e. SatmyaPrayoga.

The factors which produce Balam (immunity) in the body

The following factors are described in Ayurveda as Bala producing.

1.   Birth :- Birth in strong men’s place and strong men’s time. (BalavatPurusheDesheJanma). If the mother and father are strong, children become strong. If birth is in the time when many strong people are born it creates an influence in the environment for others to be born with naturally strong physiology.

2.   Comfortability of the time:- If you live in a house where all comfortable things are available, it helps to produce immunity (Sukhascha Kala Yogah).

3.   Strong genes (BeejaSampat) :- Actually this relates not only to a strong and stout body in parents but to their strong healthy genes.

4.   Uterus :- Uterine condition (KshetraSampat) at the time of conception and circulation of nutritional elements in pregnancy.

5.   Qualities of diet :- (nutrition after birth) If food is balanced with good qualities of all six rasa (sweet, sour, salty, bitter, astringent, pungent), the Gunas (qualities like cold, hot, heavy, light, dry, unctuous, etc), the virya (active principles), vipaka (substance after digestion) and Prabhava (extraordinary property of food to nourish a particular Dhatu) immunity is increased.

6.   Body (ShareerSampat) :- People who are very fat, very thin, not compact in muscle, blood, and bones, and underdeveloped by Asatmya (Unwholesome food) are not developed in immunity in comparison to other who are opposite in these factors.

7.   Strong mind (Satva) :- A strong mind produces immunity to certain diseases.

8.   Nature (Swabhavasamsidhi) :- Many times nature organizes a particular type of immunity. The phenomenon of this is still unknown.

9.   Youthful age (Yowvanam) :- In our youth one is more naturally immune to disease from childhood or old age.

10.       Karma – Daiva :- (good deeds) Ayurveda is a strong believer in Karma (action). If actions are good, they develop good Balam against diseases. That means good daiva is not only a tactor of fortune . But it results into physical changes that is to say in BhouticaParinama.

11.       Bissfulnessof Being, mind, and senses (Sampraharsha) :- if mind, being and senses are happy and in a blissful condition, this increases good Balam against diseases. This condition can be increased quickly and easily with meditation such as T.M. Siddhi programme as taught by maharshi Mahesh Yogi, and by Ayurvedic seasonal treatments to paitent’s body – Panchakarama. 

by 

Dr Sonika Nadda