Ayurvedic medicine has been the traditional medicine of India and Sri Lanka for at least the past two thousand years. It is a combination of philosophy and science. As such, it takes into account every aspect of a person's life and requires a large degree of patient involvement, and even belief. Because it is a holistic system, it concentrates as much on the individual's mental and spiritual well-being as it does on physical health and seeks to guide individuals to their natural, inner harmony.

Ayurvedic medicine seeks first to prevent disease by keeping an individual's constitution sound and strong, since good health is a means to attain a meaningful life. When a person does get ill, the Ayurvedic practitioner tries to discover what has put his or her constitution out of balance. As a total system of healthcare, Ayurvedic medicine goes far beyond any single type...