Forest Fires and Jvara

The basis of Ayurveda lies in the intrinsic connection between the fluctuations of nature in correlation with the fluctuations of the body’s tissues and subtler structures. The Ayurvedic diagnosis and treatment of a patient often revolves around the reweaving of their internal energies with those external to them. This is to say, Ayurveda recommends using the natural environment as a means to stabilize the internal human landscape. Humans, in many ways, are microcosms of the Earth’s macrocosm. Thus, we use the human experience to understand the universal experience and visa versa. According to Ayurveda, the body uses the five elements, of which it is composed, to balance itself. It can be surmised then, that since the Earth is a living, macro-structure of the human being, it also uses the five elements to balance her structural proportions. The five elements, which, according to Ayurveda make up all of material creation are Space, Air, Fire, Water, and Earth. Fire inside the human body is often seen as digestion related – whether it is of solid food or for the creation of tissues themselves. When fire moves into a more wild expression, it is called jvara, or fever. Just as there are many types of jvara in the body, responding to a host of preceptors, so then, must the Earth have an similar presentation of jvara. Using the classical texts of Ayurveda, I will explore the function of jvara in the body in relation to its counterpart in Earth’s gorgeous forests.