10 Things you might want to know about
Ghee
Ghee- A good way to start the day
In ancient India, Ghee was the first thing brought to a king in the morning and usually in a golden bowl. He would look at his face reflected in the Ghee and his ghee-colored vision would be auspicious, causing his life circumstances to be as well. Vedic India was a culture that noticed the interrelationship between natural events, sounds and sights and the quality and nature of one’s life. Actually, all ancient cultures noticed these omens and signs and seeing your face in a bowl of Ghee was considered to be a good way to positively influence your fate.
Ghee and a Newborn ChildThe best way to start a life
Ghee is used to augment the beginnings of a newborn child; In Tibet and many Himalayan cultures, the very first thing put in the mouth of a newborn baby is three drops of Ghee. Those drops come from either his mother, or a woman whose mother and father are alive and she must have children. This practice is said to create a very auspicious future for that child. Dr. Lobsang Dolma Khangkar, the personal physician for the Dalai Lama says, that the practice of putting ghee into the mouth of a newborn child plays a large role in creating good health for the child and contributes to the beautiful skin and good immunity of the Tibetan people.
Ghee on the Skin Into the 1970’s, there were men offering Ghee massages on the streets of Delhi. Ghee is rubbed into to the head and face of the person. In river cities such as Varanasi or anywhere people bathe, that tradition continues to this day and in the pictures below you can see people having Ghee rubbed into their bodies after bathing in the Ganges.
Ghee: a superior facial treatment for women Shata Dhaut Ghrita (100 times washed Ghee) is a traditional preparation made from Ghee. This procedure transforms Ghee into a silky smooth, cooling and moisturizing cream. Many people think it is the substance that has been sought after by makers of skin cream for women. 100 times washed ghee has been used by royalty in India for thousands of years. Ghee nourishes the skin and naturally causes it to shine. It is known to both prevent and eliminate wrinkles. Hundred times washed Ghee is prepared from organic cow milk Ghee by washing it in water, 100 times. It is a wonderful moisturizer because it literally nourishes the pores of the skin with the most assimilable fat the body can digest— Ghee. Because of its cooling properties, 100 times washed Ghee is especially useful for people with easily irritated skin. This preparation is used as a daily facial and body moisturizer and can also be used for sunburn, eczema and rosacea.
Ghee and Pakka or Superior Food
The Vedic tradition divides food into three groups: Superior cooked, Inferior cooked and Food meant to be thrown away. The Vedic tradition also has a caste system in which people of one caste may only eat food that has been prepared by food made by someone of their own caste or a higher one. Brahmins are the highest caste and a Brahmin must eat food that is ‘Superior cooked’ at all times. When he is traveling, it is difficult to procure such food, as it is often impossible to know who touched or prepared his food. However, when any food is cooked in Ghee, it becomes ‘pakka’ or Superior. Therefore, as long as it can be shown that a particular food has been cooked in Ghee, a Brahmin may eat that food. Ghee is thought to be a ‘necessity’ in all food preparations. Indians have a saying that food is incomplete unless it has been cooked in Ghee.
Ghee and Light All over India, in homes and temples, Ghee lamps are a preferred light. I remember seeing little clay pots of Ghee being set out on the Ganges River in Benaras at night. The boat would slip silently through the water as a person onboard would set hundreds of small clay pots of Ghee, each with a burning wick out to float on the water. It was a beautiful sight to behold. In temples, the lights that illuminates the holy places are always Ghee lamps and it is ghee lights that are swung in worship of the Gods at any holy festival. In South India, there are often niches on either side of the front door of houses where burning Ghee lamps are placed on Holy nights and days. Ghee is also burned in households and is said to eliminate viruses and bacteria. The light of a ghee lamp is one of the softest and most gentle of lights. It needs to be seen to be fully appreciated.
Ghee and Weddings
There is a custom amongst Hindu men to this day, involving eating Ghee at weddings. Unmarried men compete with each other to see who can consume the most ghee. To eat the largest quantity of Ghee is thought to be proof of ones’ virility, demonstrating a ‘big Agni’ or fire of digestion, not just of food but of all that life can give us. It is well known that Ghee increases Agni or the fires of digestion, but like anything, too much can do just the opposite. The ‘competition’ is to see who can take the most before it is “too much.”
100 year old ghee
Speaking of weddings, 100 year old Ghee is a very special gift that is sometime given at weddings. Aged Ghee is a gift that must be passed down through many generations. Aged ghee is only used externally, but has many healing qualities and some say can “cure all diseases.” I went to Ayurvedic Medical College in India and my teachers always qualified this amazing statement with the added requirement: “That all other factors of diet and lifestyle must be perfect.” This is a principle that applies to many of the superlative claims of the ancient texts of Ayurveda. By the way, for those who cannot wait, it is said that “Ten-year old aged Ghee is also a miracle cure for any ailment.” So, ten years or a hundred, if you eat and live right, ghee can help you quite a bit.
Ghee was used by Medieval poisoners and present day Ayurvedic Practitioners In Medieval India, poisoners used ghee to prepare their deadly potions. A small thimble with a needlepoint affixed to the tip would be dipped in a mixture of Ghee and poison. The assassin would brush past his victim in the marketplace and prick his victim with the tip of the needle. The reason Ghee was used, is that ghee is the best carrier of anything that is dissolved in it, allowing the dissolved substance to penetrate deep into the bodily tissues. Ghee is said to be the most penetrating of all substances. These qualities would insure that any poison would get the job done, quickly and effectively. It is these very same qualities that are the reason why Ghee is used by Ayurvedic practitioners and in herbal preparations.. Ghee will carry the active substances of herbs, spices and minerals deep into the tissues of the body. Another reason why Ghee is considered to be so much a part of everyday life.
A Few More Traditional uses of Ghee in India Ghee has the quality of “Ropana” or healing. Ghee is used on wounds and burns. Pots of Ghee were brought to the battlefields to treat the wounded in war. Ghee is also used internally when someone has stomach ulcers to heal the ulcers from within. Ghee is wonderful if one has been burned. Apply Ghee to the burn and it soothes the burning and heals it at the same time. Ghee can also be used to soothe and heal the eyes. In Netra Basti, a clay dam is made around the eyes while the person lays on their back and then warm ghee is poured into the dam while the eyes are closed. Then the person is told to open their eyes under the Ghee. This soothes the eyes and takes accumulated heat from the eyes. I once used Ghee when I got sandalwood oil in my eyes. It burned terribly and I tried many things to wash it out. Nothing worked. Finally, I thought, “Why not use some Ghee?” Relief came immediately.