My two weeks of rejuvenation, deep relaxation and Ayurvedic healing treatments, combined with yoga and meditation was wonderful.

Somatheeram Ayurvedic Health Resort far exceeded my expectations of what Ayurveda as expressed in the mother land could be. Kerala, the south westerly state in India is the home of Ayurvedic bodywork and the resort really lived up the history.

I learned many things but not with my intellect but with every cell of my body responding to the daily massage and oil treatments. I surrendered to ten days of rejuvenation which lasted for two hours each day. Some days as many as three therapist were involved in the treatment.

The food was doshically correct, the climate was a tropical paradise and the grounds were immaculately kept. Ayurvedic medicinal plants with labeling in three languages lined the walk ways. I'm entering a bliss state just recalling this now.

It is really amazing what two weeks of totally unplugging from one's life and surrendering in an Ayurvedic tropical paradise can do. I have a new benchmark of what my low vata feels like. Perhaps, you should try it sometime!

Ekhart Tolle's recent book, A New Earth was the #1 New York Times best-seller in March 2008, and was chosen by Oprah Winfrey for Oprah's Book Club selection in January 2008, followed by a 10-week Web seminar with Oprah Winfrey and Eckhart Tolle, starting March 3, 2008. Over Two MILLION people downloaded last Monday's webcast. Do I detect a planetary shift in consciousness?

Eckhart Tolle is not aligned with any particular religion or tradition. However, in the book Dialogues With Emerging Spiritual Teachers by John W. Parker, he has acknowledged a strong connection to J Krishnamurti and Advaita Vedanta teacher, Ramana Maharshi and that his teaching is a coming together of the teachings of both those teachers.

The first of his four books was The Power of Now, a #1 New York Times best-seller that has been translated into over 33 languages. Influences which are alluded to in The Power of Now are the writings of Meister Eckhart, Advaita Vedanta, A Course in Miracles, mystical Islam, Sufism, and Rumi's poetry and Zen Buddhism's Lin-chi (Rinzai) school. The book also interprets sayings of Jesus from the Bible.

Advaita (nondualism) is all about waking up from the dream of the false 'self', to the greater truth of who we are - consciousness itself. Eckhart Tolle naturally distills and expresses this ancient and timeless wisdom in a way that is culturally neutral and more easily digested by people in the 21st Century. Quite an extraordinary achievement!

A client recently asked what would Ayurveda recommend for tender bleeding gums. Gandusha or oil pulling immediately came to mind. The thin tissues are a sign that vata has effected the tissues of the gum. The main therapy for reducing vata almost always involves oil somehow. In this case oil is swished about the mouth and spit out after a period of time. Over a period of time the gums will be restored to their healthful state.

The benefits of gandusha include strong gums, prevention of oral cavities, no bleeding during teeth cleaning, no bleeding during dental care, fastening of loose teeth, whitening of teeth. Others have reported to have been cured from: migraine headaches, bronchitis, diseased teeth and women's hormonal disorders.