Maharishi AyurVeda Health Centre, MERU
Cleansing, restoration, and long rest
Panchakarma is the principal cleansing process of Ayurveda, offered at MERU as a residential programme of five days or more.
Through a gradual, guided sequence of warm oil therapies, herbal steam, food suited to your stage, and true rest, it restores physiological balance and lets the body's own capacity to heal do the rest.
The Approach
Panchakarma means five treatments. Warm oil, herbal steam where prescribed, light nourishing food and long rest, given in a set sequence over several days — nobody receives every treatment.
Which treatments are used, and in what order, is decided by your Vaidya from the classical Ayurvedic texts, and adjusted as the days go on. Panchakarma is a protocol, not a package.
Is this the right moment?
Panchakarma is an integrated sequence that mobilises and releases what the body no longer needs. It has three stages, and the sequence matters as much as the treatments.
Preparation — a home regimen from your Vaidya, followed by oiling and, where prescribed, herbal steam on arrival.
The main treatments — chosen by your Vaidya from the classical texts, equal in importance to the stages either side of it.
Restoration — food reintroduced in order, continued rest, and a gradual return to activity over at least two further weeks.
From the classical texts
Your Vaidya selects from these according to your constitution and the stage of your programme.
A four-hand, fully synchronised full-body oil massage, given by two therapists working in complete rhythm. Warm medicated oil, chosen for your constitution, is worked in long, steady strokes following the direction of the channels.
Programme Benefits
A continuous, unbroken stream of warm herbal oil poured gently over the forehead while the body rests completely still. One of the most requested treatments for the mind.
Programme Benefits
Warm herbal poultices, filled with medicinal leaves and heated in oil, pressed rhythmically into the muscles and joints by two technicians working in tandem.
Programme Benefits
A treatment in the same family as Shirodhara, using a herbalised buttermilk in place of oil, poured in a steady stream over the forehead while the body rests.
Programme Benefits
A continuous stream of warm herbal oil poured over the whole body while two technicians work in perfect synchrony — one of the most intensive whole-body oil treatments in the classical tradition.
Programme Benefits
A full-body treatment using a warm herbal paste, worked into the skin by two therapists in place of oil. The textured application gently exfoliates while stimulating circulation beneath the skin.
Programme Benefits
A herbal preparation, oil or decoction, held or introduced at a specific point on the body as prescribed by your Vaidya. The classical texts treat Basti as the most important of the five treatments that give Panchakarma its name.
A gentle facial treatment using natural pastes and packs chosen for your skin and constitution — cleansing, a light scrub, a nourishing mask, and a finishing toner.
Programme Benefits
Also Prescribed as Needed
Swedana (herbal steam) · Vishesh (deeper-pressure massage) · Nasya (herbal oil through the nose) · Pinda Swedana (warm rice poultices) · Maharishi Light Therapy with Gems
The shape of a day
Nadi Vigyan
Your Vaidya does, after a consultation that begins with a pulse reading taken by hand. Each of the three Vaidyas at the Centre holds a BAMS and an MD (Ayurveda), the Indian medical degree and its postgraduate qualification.
Accommodation is provided by MERU Academy.
What it costs
For stays of five to thirteen days, reducing for longer stays. All prices include VAT.
Treatments, three Ayurvedic meals, your room, Vaidya consultations, and the herbal preparations used during your stay. Herbal preparations for before or after the programme are charged separately.
You leave with a written regimen — food, routine and herbal support chosen for your constitution. Restoration continues for at least two further weeks at home: more rest, lighter food, a gradual return to activity.
The Maharishi College of Perfect Health International maintains a directory of trained practitioners for guests returning to another country.
Start with a guidance call, or book your consultation directly if you're ready to begin.
We've compiled a list of the most frequently asked questions to help you find the information you need quickly and easily.
