I had a hard time finishing this book due to a lot of questionable information I encountered which could be harmful to people, especially if this is the first book they’ve ever read on this subject. Here are just two examples: It approached masturbation as unhealthy and a waste of energy and claimed that you shouldn’t exercise if you have asthma.

In my opinion, skip this book as there are much better books on Ayurveda that you can read as a beginner with healthier, less dated views.

Thanks to Netgalley, publisher and author for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I've been aware of Ayurveda for a while but this is the first time I sat down and read a book about it. This one is divided into four chapters: Ayurveda: The Science of Life, The Ayurdedic Approach, Diet and Lifestyle and Practitioner Led or Self-Help?

The first chapter explains what Ayurveda is and gives history and a method to determine your Ayurvedic constitution. It points out that medicine is one "spoke on the wheel" of a holistic lifestyle approach to promote balance and good health, thereby making it easier to combat illness and mostly prevent it.

It explains that illness affects both body and mind and not just one in isolation of the other. It claims that modern illnesses like chronic fatigue and irritable bowel syndrome have been successfully treated with Ayurveda when modern medicine has failed.

It has its roots in Hinduism and both date back over 5000 years, yet stay dynamic to keep up with modern conditions. There are some surprising facts cited about the history, like knowledge of cells and microscopic organisms in a book written 2000 years before the microscope was invented. There's a strong spiritual connection with the practice, yet it embraces science and finds a balance between the two.

The book is filled with colourful pictures of the sort you might see in Hindu texts or temples and these are accompanied by snippets of relevant information. Over all the book is beautifully laid out.

Naturally the Hindu belief system that Ayurveda is based in comes into it and the concept of Karma is explained in full as well as the belief in reincarnation connected with it. In some ways the book is repetitive as the basic concepts get restated many times, but I can see why it is important to drive a different way of thinking into the average western mind.

I admit to feeling some scepticism about the physical types and how it affects the person to be one or another. It seemed too generalised to me. Having said that, I fell heavily into the Kapha category. The second chapter expands on methods and the third chapter, as the title suggests, deals with diet and lifestyle. The final chapter explains when you need to see a practitioner and how to treat yourself at home.

Overall I found the book very informative and easy to follow. While I might not be in complete alignment with the beliefs expressed, they are explained well and I felt the book covered the subject very thoroughly and clearly.

Found the title a tad misleading (I think it's part of a series - Secrets of 'whatever topic') because while this did go into detail about what Ayurveda is, I wouldn't go as far as saying it is about the actual secrets of this science of life. This felt to me more like an in-depth primer you might want to get into before going to see an Ayurvedic practitioner so you 'know' what they'll say and mention is all about and won't be like a fish out of water in that world. Would however not recommend this book if you really want to go deep into Ayurveda to make effective changes in your life and/or to diagnose your dosha or find possible solutions to your problems. The book does say expressly to see a practitioner and with the info it provides, I do think seeing a professional is better as this is very much a 'what is what?' of Ayurveda and pretty 'surface' for lack of a better word

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for my digital copy in exchange for an honest review.

This was a VERY short and easy to read book. Secrets of Ayurveda is an illustrated guide to a unique holistic form of medicine and is a perfect introduction for beginners. The writing was very clear and concise and the pictures included were a great addition. I love it when nonfiction books include some pictures of whatever their topic might be. A Questionnaire is included which will help you learn about your own dosha type and the rest of the book basically tells you how to take care of yourself to the best of your ability based on that dosha type. This is a really good beginners guide to Ayurveda but if you already know a lot about the subject I would look elsewhere because it will be a lot of repeated information. However if you are new to it then this book is a great introduction. The book was not exactly what I was expecting because, based on the title, I thought there would be so much more included that I haven't learned yet. But all in all, I liked the book.

Thank you to the publisher and to Net Galley for the opportunity.
My review opinion is in exchange for a ARC for review.

This is a wonderful beginner's guide. The author has a concise way to explaining the use of , history of and application of Ayurveda to every reader no matter your level of understanding. I appreciated the format of four chapters. One of history with a questionnaire to help you learn your own Ayurvedic needs. One chapter is for therapies and dietary concerns. I found this most informative and helpful. The final chapter is how to use Ayurveda at home. A very complete guide that i enjoyed learning from and highly recommend.

This book gives a very general overview of ayurveda. It gives some information about diet and improving routines for better overall health. If you are looking for a book that examines the ayurvedic healing that you can apply in your own life I think that there are better options available.

This is a topic I didn’t know much about and it intrigued me to read as I am evolving on my self love journey. Honestly I was really confused on the topic and the book did not help. There were some really good illustrations but this was not a good guide for someone who does not know much on the topic. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

This is a wonderful introduction to Ayurveda for the uninitiated.
It is clearly structured, takes you through the different aspects related to a diagnosis and how it relates to overall lifestyle choices including what to look for when seeking out an ayurvedic practitioner as well as the range of type of treatment that are available in relation to the seriousness of one"s condition.
Through the simple checklist, the reader can assess what dosha they might have and understand what they would need to consider from a food and life style perspective to ensure it is balanced. With the disclaimer comes that one should really seek out a real practitioner for a true diagnosis.

As a 25 year old, I did not feel the wording of this book appealed to the younger generation- this could be due to the wisdom which Ayuredic ways seek. Some areas I had to re-read and question, for example, on page 79, while explaining how often dry and oil massages should be given, it mentions that dry should be given once to twice a year or seasonally, and that oil massages can be given daily; meanwhile, other dashas should do a dry massage more often than oil, causing a very confused area- I feel that this should be explained a little more into depth as to what this means. Then, in other areas (pg 103 for example) I found myself feeling as though I had to repeat the word "and" more times than were necessary.
Coming from someone who's seeking a religion I feel that this book opened my eyes on a belief/lifestyle, in which I knew little about, and although I don't feel this is the lifestyle I choose- I do feel this book was put together well for a beginner. I feel the illustration helped break down the meanings of each article and visually show you what dashas were being spoken about and where, which I found made it more interesting and easier to continue reading along. I would recommend this book to someone in my position, one looking for a lifestyle/belif/religous standing.

I found this a fascinating book. I picked to read it because although I have heard of it, I had no idea what Ayurveda is. It explained everything easily to me, with a great layout of the books and illustrations/photos. I think this will take more than one read through for me to completely understand it.

Thank you NetGalley for my complimentary copy in return for my honest review.