Wellness Trends: Ancient Methods in Contemporary Wellness
These days, the wellness industry is booming with all sorts of unique practices and products promising better health, spirituality, and self-actualization. But many of the trendiest methods are actually borrowed from ancient cultures and civilizations. Let’s explore how some of these time-honored traditions have found new life in modern wellness circles.
Forest Bathing
While the Japanese term “forest bathing” or “shinrin-yoku” may sound vaguely mystical, it simply refers to the practice of immersing yourself in nature through extended periods of mindful presence among trees. This preventative health practice can reduce stress, boost immunity, improve mood and concentration, and increase feelings of awe and gratitude.
The concept emerged in Japan in the 1980s as a form of nature therapy. But connecting with forests has been instinctive for indigenous peoples worldwide for millennia. Now science backs up the restorative effects of unplugging from urban environments and absorbing the sights, sounds and smells of wilderness.
Breathwork
Most of us unknowingly take shallow breaths all day, depriving our bodies of optimal oxygen intake. But certain breathwork methods that play with different inhalation and exhalation patterns can shift your mental, physical, and emotional state in powerful ways.
Various forms of pranayama breathwork originate from the ancient yogic texts and philosophies of India and Ayurveda. Today’s breathwork classes and apps guide students through specific breath ratios and visualizations to enter euphoric, transcendent, and deeply meditative spaces.
Medicinal Herbs and Mushrooms
Plants and fungus have been revered for their medicinal properties across many ancient cultures. Now there’s renewed interest in these natural remedies and supplements. For example, powdered mushroom extracts like reishi, lion’s mane and cordyceps claim benefits from boosting immunity to improving cognitive function.
Other rediscovered herbal remedies gaining popularity include CBD, ashwagandha, rhodiola, and cannabis. Many search out ancestral indigenous plant knowledge to cultivate a more sustainable, holistic approach to healing.
Cacao Ceremonies
The ritualized consumption of cacao (unprocessed chocolate) originates from Pre-Columbian Mesoamerican cultures like the Maya and Aztec, who considered it a sacred, almost supernatural beverage. The experts at Maloca Sound say that in a modern cacao ceremony, participants drink frothy ceremonial-grade cacao to experience its heart-opening, mood-elevating effects while setting intentions.
Energy Healing and Sound Baths
Many longstanding healing modalities aim to clear blockages and imbalances in the body’s life force energies. These include reiki from Japan, pranic healing from India, and traditional Chinese practices like qigong and acupuncture/acupressure.
More experiential healing arts centered on vibration and resonance are also gaining popularity, including crystal singing bowls, gongs, tuning forks and chanting for sound baths that bathe participants in therapeutic frequencies. These mystical-seeming practices may seem out there, but they tap into very real principles of energy flow.
Ancient Grains and Adaptogens
While healthy diet advice seems to always be shifting, the wellness world is circling back to earth’s original, ancient superfoods that humans thrived on long before modern processed items came around.
Previously obscure ingredients like quinoa, amaranth, maca, and reishi are now trendy superfood powders featured in energy bars, supplements, and tonics promising enhanced nutrition, vitality and resilience. Companies market them as “adaptogens” to help the body adapt to stressors.
Conclusion
Whether you ascribe to any spiritual or ritualistic aspects or not, many are finding immense value in incorporating some of these time-honored wellness practices into modern lifestyles. There’s wisdom to be gleaned from what ancient cultures knew about supporting our holistic well-being as human beings. Rediscovering and updating these traditional methods for contemporary times means we can tap into simple yet powerful ways to reduce stress, raise our vibrations, and feel more grounded and connected to ourselves and the natural world around us.
