Panchakarma — The Five Actions of Deep Purification
Panchakarma (five actions) is Ayurveda's comprehensive detoxification and rejuvenation system — a sequence of preparatory treatments followed by five specific purification procedures that eliminate accumulated Ama and restore doshic balance at the deepest level.
Panchakarma (pancha = five + karma = action) consists of five deep purification treatments: Vamana (therapeutic emesis — the elimination of excess Kapha through controlled vomiting), Virechana (therapeutic purgation — the elimination of excess Pitta through controlled laxation), Basti (medicated enema — the treatment of Vata imbalance through oil and decoction enemas, considered the most important Panchakarma treatment), Nasya (nasal administration — elimination of doshas from the head and neck), and Raktamokshana (bloodletting — the removal of excess Pitta-vitiated blood through leaching or controlled phlebotomy). These five are preceded by Purvakarma (preparatory treatments): Snehana (oleation — internal and external oil administration) and Svedana (sudation — therapeutic sweating) which liquefy and mobilize accumulated Ama for elimination. A complete Panchakarma program takes 7-28 days and is ideally performed at seasonal transitions.
Just as cloth must first be cleansed before it can take a new color, the body must be purified before Rasayana can work.
Clinical trials by Dr. Hari Sharma at Ohio State University documented that Maharishi Ayurveda purification treatments (Panchakarma) produced significant reductions in lipid peroxides, cancer-linked thromboxanes, and free radicals — providing biochemical evidence for the toxin-elimination claims of the classical texts.
Charaka Samhita