8-8-8 - The Ayurvedic work-life formula

According to modern happiness research, a healthy work-life balance is the guarantee for a healthy and happy life. If we manage to find enough time for family, friends and hobbies in our everyday lives and combine this with professional success and personal self-realization, we will be among the elite of the blessed in the modern lifestyle. The leading researchers of happiness do not tell us how we can achieve this miracle of serenity and time management. But we can find the answer in the ancient Ayurvedic knowledge for a healthy and long life.

Ayurveda describes health as the dynamic balance of physical, mental and spiritual forces. For the body, this means that we must always ensure the balance of the three doshas Vata, Pitta and Kapha in order to protect ourselves from illness. This can be achieved with simple tips from the type-appropriate nutrition and health teachings, which are individually tailored to the constitution, lifestyle and stress factors of the individual. However, the vitalizing foods and digestive spices not only strengthen physical resilience and performance. Happiness is also dependent on a healthy metabolism - a point on which ancient Ayurvedic doctors and modern neurologists agree. Because only a healthy gut and active cell structure (dhatvagni) can produce happiness hormones (ojas). These are responsible for our positive aura, immunity and sexual performance. To build up ojas, we need fresh, vital substance-rich food (rasayanas) with a naturally sweet quality (madhura vipaka), which we prepare in a loving and tasty way and eat in a pleasant atmosphere.

For mental balance, Ayurveda recommends a balance of mental tension, relaxation and mindfulness. Just as our physical wellbeing is shaped by the three doshas, our emotional state depends on the three mental powers of tamas, rajas and sattva.

For a healthy work-life balance, we should apply the Ayurvedic happiness formula 8-8-8:

• 8 hours of sleep and doing nothing in a mentally inactive state (tamas)

• 8 hours of work and purposeful effort in the mentally active state (rajas)

• 8 hours of "time for myself", family and hobbies in a mentally mindful state (sattva)

If we apply this template to our own everyday management, we quickly realize that we are far from an 8-8-8 distribution. In most cases, the volume of rajas time with daily efforts and obligations far outweighs the balancing sattva portion with the beautiful and relaxing things in life. This imbalance costs us a high price every day! The more the rhythm of life is governed by stress and a lack of free time, the greater the loss of ojas, the vital life forces that are responsible for our happiness hormones and immunity.

Our energy system and work-life balance

The reaction to a lack of work-life balance is quite different for men and women: While men tend to mutate into irritable workaholics, women are prone to depressive moods, loss of libido and increased susceptibility to illness. To counteract this, Ayurveda offers type-appropriate and gender-specific solutions that not only provide everyday life with more health and joie de vivre, but also rekindle love and lust in relationships.

According to Ayurveda, we can think of the female energy system as a battery. To recharge her batteries, a woman needs sufficient rest and time for herself. Without pressure, without obligation and without a sense of entitlement, women quickly regain access to their inner sources of strength, which provide them with a new zest for life. The caring attention of female company can be helpful here. It is often easier to relax with a good friend and the exchange of like-minded people harmonizes the emotional forces. With this in mind, every woman should incorporate fixed rituals for her feminine balance into her daily schedule: From sensual body care, yoga and meditation to a cozy evening in the hammock or at the women's regulars' table. Further support is provided by special foods, spices and herbs (rasayanas) for women that strengthen the female ojas balance. These include milk, almonds, raisins, saffron, cardamom, shatavari (Cyperus rotundus) and amalaki (Phyllanthus emblica), which are often administered in the form of tasty sweets in Ayurvedic women's medicine.

Ayurveda compares the male energy system to a dynamo. Physical exercise and positive activities relieve the male organism and help to reduce inner pressure. So while the woman recharges her battery through sweet idleness, the man gains new energy through dynamic activity through sport or "tinkering around" in the house, garden or garage. And just as women nourish each other, men also boost their energy through joint activities with friends and like-minded people. In addition, physical ojas reserves can be recharged with the help of rice, ghee, pomegranate, ashwaganda (witania somnifera) and kappikachu (mukunda puriens).

The union of male and female energy works best when both have a balanced energy system and meet each other in full strength and enjoyment. With this in mind, we should divide the 8-8-8 well so that the "time for myself" offers enough space for balancing rituals for inner balance, meetings with friends and joyful fulfillment in family and partnership.