Ayurveda Day: Health, Harmony And Hope

As India marks the 10th Ayurveda Day on 23rd September 2025, there is much to celebrate: not only the deep roots of an ancient medical system in our culture, but also its unfolding relevance in today’s health and environmental crises. The Government of India has declared that Ayurveda Day will be observed on a fixed date from this year forward, accompanied by a theme full of promise: “Ayurveda for People & Planet.”

Origins And Why September 23

Since 2016, the Indian Ministry of Ayush has observed Ayurveda Day (formerly called National Ayurveda Day) usually on Dhanvantari Jayanti (also known as Dhanteras), the day linked to Dhanvantari—the mythic god of medicine. What has changed this year is significant: the date is now fixed to 23 September every year, following a gazette notification issued in March 2025.

Why 23 September?cBeyond logistical convenience, the date holds symbolic power. It is near the autumnal equinox—a time when day and night are in balance. This aligns well with Ayurvedic philosophy, which emphasises harmony between the body and its environment, as well as the mind and matter. A fixed date permits planning, global coordination, and stable observances rather than shifting them from year to year.

Discover your natural balance with Ayurveda (Image Credits: Canva)

What Ayurveda Day Means For India

Ayurveda is much more than herbal remedies: it is a life science, woven into our culture, our daily rhythms, and our sense of being. But in modern times, it's been rediscovered (or sometimes rebranded) as a tool for wellness, prevention, sustainability, and ecological balance. Ayurveda Day is meant to highlight all those dimensions.

Key Purposes Of Ayurveda Day This Year

• Promote the holistic strengths of Ayurveda—body, mind, diet, and lifestyle—not merely as alternative medicine but as a preventive and integrative system.
• Raise awareness among citizens, especially youth and rural communities, about Ayurveda’s benefits and evidence base.
• Integrate with modern medicine and research, thereby improving credibility, efficacy, and outreach.
• Address planetary health—environmental sustainability, medicinal plant conservation, and balance with nature.
• The theme “People & Planet” signals that Ayurveda is being viewed not just for human health but as part of ecological well-being.

What Has Been Achieved So Far?

India's healthcare and cultural identity have gained a stronger foundation for Ayurveda over the past ten years. Some achievements worth noting:

1. Institutions and Infrastructure

The All India Institute of Ayurveda (AIIA), New Delhi, has expanded its reach, and more recently, AIIA Goa has become a nodal institute for Ayurveda Day 2025.

We have strengthened our outpatient services, specialized care, and Ayurveda facilities in the hospital.

2. Public Engagement

Awareness campaigns: quizzes, poster making, and essay and film competitions, especially involving students.

Medical camps, free health consultations, demonstrations of herbal remedies, and talks on lifestyles.

3. Policy And Recognition

The decision to fix a date for Ayurveda Day is itself a milestone in recognizing Ayurveda as a national and global heritage.

Integration into national health policy via the Ministry of Ayush, more research funding, and efforts to standardise quality.

4. Global Reach

In recent years, Ayurveda Day has had a presence in many countries (through diaspora, wellness tourism, and educational exchanges).

There is a growing interest internationally in herbal supplements, yoga, Ayurvedic diets, and preventive health.

These developments suggest that Ayurveda is not just a relic of nostalgia or culture but is evolving as part of India’s health diplomacy, sustainable practices, and preventive healthcare. Yet, there remain challenges.

Challenges To Overcome

To fully realise Ayurveda’s potential, several issues need ongoing attention:

Scientific validation: Many Ayurvedic claims are anecdotal or traditional; there is a need for more robust clinical trials, standardised methodologies, and better documentation.

Quality control and standardisation: Ensuring that herbs, medicines, and formulations are of consistent quality and free from adulteration or contamination.

Accessibility: Ayurveda services are still more accessible in some regions than others; the urban/rural divide and awareness are uneven.

Integration with mainstream health care: Too often, patients may view Ayurveda as a fallback rather than as complementary; more effective pathways are needed to integrate with modern medical systems, particularly for non-communicable diseases (diabetes, hypertension, etc.).

Environmental concerns: Many medicinal plants are under threat; climate change, land use change, and over-harvesting may degrade supply. Balancing demand with sustainable cultivation and harvesting is vital.

What Ayurveda Offers Today: From Prevention To Planet

The strength of Ayurveda lies in its holistic, preventive, lifestyle-based approach. As India faces rising burdens of chronic diseases, environmental degradation, and mental health concerns, Ayurveda can be part of the solution.

Here are ways Ayurveda’s wisdom can help address modern challenges:

1. Lifestyle and Daily Routines (Dinacharya)

Establishing daily habits: waking early, self-cleansing (tongue scraping, oil pulling), exercise, and an appropriate diet. These may seem small, but they add up for long-term health.

2. Seasonal Routines (Ritucharya)

Adjusting your diet and lifestyle with the changing seasons to stay balanced; for example, eating cooling foods in summer and warming, nourishing items in winter or during the monsoon. This practice aids in the prevention of seasonal illnesses.

3. Herbal Remedies And Natural Therapies

Using herbs, oils, massage, and other therapies (e.g., Panchakarma) for detoxification and rejuvenation. While not a substitute for modern medicine in emergencies, these have preventive value and can support healing.

4. Nutrition And Mindfulness

Foods that are fresh, local, and minimally processed; mindful eating; eating according to one’s constitution (prakriti). Furthermore, practices for mental balance include meditation, breathing exercises and sensory calming.

5. Environmental Connection

Ayurveda’s emphasis on the connection between nature and human health—medicinal plants, clean air, pure water, avoiding over-industrialisation—dovetails with sustainability, biodiversity, and ecological balance.

6. Community And Cultural Wellness

Ayurveda is deeply embedded in Indian cultural life. Celebrations, local knowledge, herbal gardens and folk medicine—this cultural context can promote psychological well-being, identity, and social cohesion.

What Ayurveda Day 2025 Aims To Do

With the theme “Ayurveda for People & Planet,” this year’s observance is promoting not just individual health but also global and environmental health. Some of the planned actions:

• Inauguration of new healthcare facilities at AIIA Goa, including an integrated oncology unit, central supply services, etc.
• Events across the country: health camps, awareness programs, exhibitions of medicinal plants, consultations with practitioners, and youth competitions.
• Urging citizens, scientists, practitioners, and policymakers to collaborate—sharing evidence, resources, and innovations.

What Each Citizen Can Do: Tips For Embracing Ayurveda

Ayurveda Day is not just about observing ceremonies; it’s about embedding small, sustainable habits in our everyday lives. Here are actions individuals can take:

1. Understand your constitution (Prakriti)

Everyone is different. Knowing your dominant dosha(s)—Vata, Pitta, or Kapha can help tailor diet, lifestyle, and stress management.

2. Tune your daily schedule

Wake up early, get natural light, have regular meals, rest, and sleep well. Even simple routines (like oil pulling) can make a difference.

3. Eat mindfully and seasonally

Prefer whole grains, fresh vegetables, local produce, and minimally processed foods. Adjust foods by season to support digestion and immunity.

4. Stress management

Practices such as yoga, pranayama (breathing exercises), meditation, and adequate rest can help reduce stress. Utilize traditional Ayurvedic techniques, such as Abhyanga (oil massage) and Shirodhara, if available.

5. Support medicinal plants and sustainable choices

Grow herbs in your kitchen or garden; support organic cultivation; avoid exploiting wild species without ensuring conservation.

6. Validate and ask questions

Be informed: Ask Ayurvedic practitioners about evidence, sourcing of medicines, and safety. Especially for chronic conditions or when combining with modern medicine, openness and care are essential.

The Road Ahead: Opportunities And Visions

Looking forward, Ayurveda has the potential to contribute more deeply to India’s and the world’s well-being if specific strategies are pursued:

• Research partnerships: More rigorous clinical research and collaboration with modern biomedical science to test efficacy, safety, and possible synergies.
• Training and education: Enhancing curricula in Ayurveda colleges, offering exposure to modern diagnostic tools, evidence-based medicine, and public health.
• International outreach: Wellness tourism, educational exchanges, and Ayurveda as part of global integrative health solutions.
• Regulation and standards: Ensuring quality, safety, and effectiveness of Ayurvedic medicines; stronger regulatory oversight; standardised formulations.
• Sustainability and conservation: Medicinal plant biobanks, seed banks, eco-friendly cultivation, biodiversity protection, and reducing chemical inputs.

Conclusion

On this 10th Ayurveda Day, India stands at a crossroads where ancient wisdom meets contemporary necessity. “Ayurveda for People & Planet” is not just a theme it’s a call to action. It asks us to refashion health care so that it is preventive, sustainable, equitable, and rooted in harmony with nature.

For those who have long believed in Ayurveda, today is an affirmation. For those who have been skeptical, this moment offers opportunities to examine, explore, and engage with evidence. For everyone, Ayurveda Day can be a reminder: health is more than the absence of disease. It is well-being in body, mind, society, and environment.

Let this Ayurveda Day be more than rhetoric. Let it be a habit. 

(Note: Dr (Prof) Sadhana Kala is a USA-trained robotic & laparoscopic surgeon, Uppsala University, Sweden, trained fertility specialist, Icon Endoscopic Surgeon of North India, and National Icon Endoscopic Surgeon of India. She is rated as India's Best Gynecologist by Google.)

(Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the personal opinions of the author.)