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Right at the End of Your Face: Nose Oil for Better Health & Awareness
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“Nasya” means “nose” in Sanskrit, and the importance it is granted in both yoga and Ayurveda means many of us might be overlooking the obvious—right at the tip of our faces, to be precise—when it comes to good health and how to maintain it with simple quotidian routines.
Moreover, the nostrils are considered the gateway to deep meditation. An important daily method to ensure nasal health is the use of Nasya Oil, from the rich tradition of Ayurveda.
Ayurveda is an approach to health and longevity based in traditional Indian medicine, and focuses on equilibrium amongst component parts and addressing root causes. Ayurveda is a means of self-study through a perspective of the elements, learning what the body needs in order to maintain optimal balance and therefore health. All ayurvedic techniques are intended to support the natural healing capacities of the body, which restore and enhance well-being. When you are aware of subtle changes in the body, you can better meet its needs to ensure the system–body as well as the mind–function optimally and are sattvic, or clear and equanimous. This is a goal of Ayurveda, and Nasya Oil is one of its rich techniques.
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Nuanced self-awareness is necessary for care, as balance requires attentiveness to detail and subtle changes. What are you feeling in your nose, and what aspects of health might this knowledge bring into better balance? When breathing passages of the nose, sinuses, and eustachian tubes of the ears are too dry, they are in need of unctuous lubrication in order to regain balance, function, and therefore comfort, according to the Ayurvedic approach. This is where Nasya answers an important need. Nasya Oil encourages clean and clear nasal passages and therefore better breathing, while also supporting mental clarity.
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WHY NOSE OIL?
The potential benefits of Nasya oil are even further wide-ranging. Nasya oil has been heralded as a boon to allergies, sinusitis, headaches, dizziness, and vertigo. It may alleviate dry eyes, a stiff neck, and aches and pains in the head, jaw, neck, and shoulders, and may help migraines or other sources of headaches. Traditionally, use of nose oil is thought to support the immune system, ease congestion, and lessen sneezing as well as nose bleeds. Some users apply nose oil to improve sleep, prevent snoring, and alleviate puffy or sunken eyes and dark circles under the eyes. Brain fatigue is also said to lessen with application of nose oil, and it can calm the entire system during times of emotional strain. Some even insist regular application of Nasya oil can enhance the qualities of the voice and vision. At the very least, the pleasant fragrances of the essential oil in high grade Nasya oils immediately soothe and enhance the mood.
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Nasya is an incredibly practical tool in certain environments and times of year. Yoga teacher Luke Ketterhagen emphasizes Nasya oil is particularly helpful when you are flying, because it helps counter the stale, recycled air on planes.
It is also great to use anytime you are moving from extremely different climes, whether vacillating weather extremes or simply moving from excessively air conditioned or heated interiors to the outdoors and back again.
Additionally, the nostrils are the gateway to the brain as well as more subtle awareness necessary for meditation. David Frawley, a leader in Vedic Studies and Ayurveda education in both India and in the West, even insists that yoga students should integrate Nasya oil into their daily routines. He is not alone. Judy Moulton, educational director of The Himalayan Institute’s certification programs, and master teacher and author Sandra Anderson similarly affirm that attentiveness to the nostrils is key for meditation and advanced yogic practices.
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Our bodies, emotions, mental awareness, and energy levels are constantly in flux. These very nuanced shifts can be felt in the breath at the nostrils. By increasing our capacity to notice such changes, we can also learn to better regulate and optimize our breath, nervous system, mind, and overall health and awareness. We are more able to sustain a steady, inward flow of the mind, which according to yogic philosophy, empowers us to access more radiant inner joy.
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Thus, better care of the nasal passages helps us clean and purify the physical body, while also increasing sensitivity to the channels of prana, our vital yet subtle energies that we work with in yoga and meditation. Since the nostrils are the most immediate entry point for prana into the body, it is crucial to keep them open and well and the breath flowing optimally. Nasya oil keeps these delicate tissues healthy, which fosters the ability to feel the sensitive touch of the breath at the nostrils so crucial to regulating our energy levels and entering into rejuvenating meditation.
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HOW IS NASYA USED?
Most commonly, Nasya is applied early in the morning and before bed. Occasionally it is administered just prior to practicing asana, meditation, or pranayama, especially nadi shodhana, “channel cleansing” breath or alternate nostril breathing. If you use a neti pot to wash the sinuses, it is important not to use Nasya oil just after the neti pot, or the oil could trap water in the sinuses. Instead, use Nasya oil in lieu of the neti pot, or long enough after the wash that there is no residual water.
Generally speaking, a simple application of Nasya just requires you to drop the oil onto the small finger tip and swab the finger around the base of the nostril and up into the nose so that these tissues are thoroughly coated. Some advise taking a few drops in the palm and then dabbing the other hand’s pinky finger there and then applying it to the nose. After thorough application inside the nose, take a few gentle sniffs and deep inhales. You can also take your fingers and press the outside of the nose for a gentle self-massage.
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Occasionally, it might be beneficial to apply the oil more thoroughly and deeply. Be sure to space out this technique between showering or using a neti pot and eating. Lie on your bed and tilt the head back off the edge of the mattress. You can also lie on the floor and put a large, round yoga bolster under the shoulders and tilt the head back. Then drop the oil directly into the nostrils. Some even use 5 drops per nostril: One in center, and one at each “corner” of the nostrils (upper and lower outer edges and upper and lower inner edges of each nostril). If you use this method, be sure to keep the head tilted back and rest and relax for 2 minutes or so, even massaging the face and sinuses, before you sit upright. This allows the oil to absorb more completely and helps coat the nostrils as well as the sinus cavities.
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Note that nose oil is should not be used during pregnancy or during a sinus infection or other acute illness.
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Nasya Oil addresses the physical body and, yet, as a rich component of Ayurveda, it is important to acknowledge that just as the nose is a gateway to the inner world, so this daily technique is an outer adjustment that helps us shift mental habits. Ayurvedic medicine encourages us to be attentive to inner resistance to changing our daily routines, those unarticulated thoughts that keep us in our imbalanced states even when we know better. Changing and stabilizing the simplest of behaviors—such as better caring for our nasal passages and honoring and exploring their functions—are external adjustments that non-coersively rearrange and nourish healthier habits of mind.
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If you’d like to try Nasya Oil for yourself, it is available for purchase at AHA Yoga, OR you can buy them directly on-line and have them delivered directly to your door. We carry AND recommend both PURE BLISS NOSE OIL and CLARITY NOSE OIL, both made by The Himalayan Institute. Both are made of a base of organic sesame seed oil plus organic apricot kernel oil, walnut oil, castor bean oil, or mustard seed oil, plus a blend of pure essential oils. Clarity includes Eucalyptus, Scotch Pine, Peppermint, Rosemary, Tea Tree, and Ginger Root, for an invigorating and stimulating scent. Pure Bliss is a soothing blend of sandalwood, rose, and jasmine. While some recommend Clarity for morning and Bliss for evening, we find that they can be used at any time. There are test vials available for you to check out each scent. Make an appointment with us (email alligatoryoga@gmail.com) if you’d like to stop in, or go ahead and purchase on-line!
YOUR PURCHASE IS IMPORTANT! Note that AHA Yoga is an amazon affiliate, so we receive a minute portion of your purchase if you choose to purchase on-line via amazon. By making such online purchases, you are helping your in-person studio stay open during the crazy wild challenges resulting from the 2020-2021 pandemic consequences.
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We are located at 305 East Duval, Suite 101, in Lake City, Florida, right on the bank of the tranquil Lake DeSoto; we do not have regular retail hours, so come just before or after a course session, or email or call to make an appointment. These NASYA OILS are $18.95 per bottle, plus Florida Sales Tax; we accept cash or check only for retail. There is a limited supply (we presently as of December 2020 have THREE bottles), so reach out now if you are interested.
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UPDATE: Ayurveda has long heralded the importance of supporting well-being through an integrated approach, so that all layers of being remain well-integrated and functioning optimally. Rather than focus on disease, these approaches focus on the host. As of 2020, an interesting study was published that included the role of Nasya (nose oil) in preventing infections by strengthening immunity. For this report and its suggestions, check out that publication here.
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Take more conscientious care of that often overlooked yet precious portal at the end of your face, adding Nasya Oil to your daily routine, and feel not only what health conditions are avoided, but begin to notice the radiant sensitivity and awareness that opens and guides the mind.
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If you’d like an asana (postural yoga) sequence to enhance your breathing, you can also check out my favorite course, Introduction to Meditation in 5 Simple, Profound Steps. We learn a very traditional, systematic process to relax the body completely, which includes lots of breath training to down-regulate the nervous system and calm the mind. Meditation is the goal as well as culmination of any advanced yoga practice. The focus on breath not only moves awareness into more attentive states and peace of mind; it also enhances overall health and well-being. Though we are not holding in-person group sessions until after June 2021, reach out to us directly (alligatoryoga@gmail.com) or join our mailing list here now if you know you want to be included!
Meditation is central to all we teach, and THE reason we are open at all. It is the key to what distinguishes yoga from many other practices.
Meditation is more needed now than ever. Our approach is simple enough that anyone can do it, and profound enough that it is incredibly worthwhile. Find out more here.
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Sources:
Sandra Anderson, “The Nadis: Tantric Anatomy of the Subtle Body.” (April 23, 2018)
Kara Aubin, “You Want me to put Oil Where?! Nasya and What It Is Good For.” Guest Blog on Kathryn Templeton (November 7, 2014)
David Frawley, Yoga & Ayurveda: Self-Healing & Self-Realization. NOTE: The title is available for purchase at AHA Yoga.
Luke Ketterhagen, “Travel Tips: Nose Oil,” Yoga International.
Vasant Lad, “5 Ways to Balance Vata in Autumn.” Yoga International .
Valerie Latona, “Natural Remedies for Headaches.”
Judy Moulton, “Neti & Nasya: Essential Nostril Care Practices.” Wisdom Library of The Himalayan Institute, (February 18, 2019).
