"Ayu" means life and "Veda" means knowledge from the Vedic texts. This holistic science is the knowledge of complete balance of the Body, Mind and Spirit, including emotions and psychology, on all levels. Ayurveda includes in its consideration, longevity, rejuvenation and self-realization therapies through herbs, diet, exercise, yoga, aromas, tantras, mantras, and meditation.

It is said to have originated from Lord Brahma (Creator of the Universe, according to Indian mythology) and descended to the earth through various generations of gods and saints. The sage-physician-surgeons of the time were the same sages or seers, deeply devoted holy people, who saw health as an integral part of spiritual life. It is said that they received their training of Ayurveda through direct cognition during meditation. In other words, the knowledge of the use of various methods of healing, prevention, longevity and surgery came through Divine revelation (Cosmic Intelligence); there was no guessing or testing and harming animals. These revelations were transcribed from the oral tradition into book form, interspersed with the other aspects of life and spirituality.

Ayurveda is an ancient science of life, a traditional and the oldest and most holistic medical system available on the planet today. Its major premise involves the symbiosis of mind, body and spirit. Any imbalance in this synthesis results in physical ailments. This ancient Indian medicine seeks to reestablish the harmony between the body and its habitat. It was placed in written form over 5,000 years ago in India, it was said to be a world medicine dealing with both body and the spirit. Before the advent of writing, the ancient wisdom of this healing system was a part of the spiritual tradition of the Vedic Religion.

This has been handed down to us by means of ancient venerable scripts as palm leaf books, leather leaves, etc. The oldest works in Ayurveda still available are the Charaka Samhita, Susrutha Samhita and Ashtanga Samgraha.