November 21 was a milestone for the integration of Ayurveda in Europe. For the first time in history, a group of stakeholders came together at Ayurveda Day at the European Parliament in Brussels. 60 delegates from 17 countries gathered at the event. The meeting is seen as an important signal of the growing importance of Ayurveda in Europe. Both in medical circles and among the general population, the traditional medicine from India now enjoys a high reputation.
Ayurveda Day was hosted by Geoffrey van Orden MBE, Chairman of the European Parliament Delegation for Indian Relations, and Gaitri Issar Kumar, Indian Ambassador to Belgium and the European Union. Amarjeet Singh Bhamra of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Indian Traditional Sciences in the UK Parliament led the discussion. Ayurveda Day has been celebrated regularly in the UK since the APPG's inception.
Mark Rosenberg, Director of the European Academy of Ayurveda, was also invited to speak. He emphasized the high acceptance and demand for Ayurvedic treatment methods on the part of patients. Against this background, he said, it is important for politicians in Europe to make an active commitment to India to integrate Ayurveda into local healthcare systems. One of the great challenges would be to coordinate European interests with regard to this goal. In addition, it would be important not only to approve Ayurvedic products and medicines, but to bring Ayurveda to Europe as a holistic medicine with the corresponding professional competencies.
The fact that people in Europe can profit from Ayurvedic healing methods had already been pointed out by Geoffrey van Orden. Especially in prevention and treatment of chronic diseases we could learn a lot from Ayurveda. Like his predecessor Alojz Peterle MEP, the former Prime Minister of Slovenia, he called for systematic records suitable to prove the benefits of Ayurvedic therapies.
Prof. Dr. Venkata Joshi, Principal Lecturer of the College of Ayurveda UK, in his address emphasized the advantage that Ayurveda treats people individually , involving the body as well as the psyche. Other speakers pointed out that patients should have the free choice between Western medicine or traditional healing methods.
Geoffrey von Orden read out a petition that will be launched shortly. It aims to collect one million signatures to have the European Parliament examine and discuss Ayurveda and other traditional healing methods.
Amarjeet S. Bhamra called for the establishment of a high-level committee to take forward the input, findings and recommendations from Ayurveda Days in the EU Parliament. Another meeting will be convened in early 2019 for this purpose.
