Why your yoni needs a moon bath

As taught by Maya Tiwari

It happened. I was over the moon (no pun intended) to be teaching this Lesson on Womb-Moon Medicine with Dr. Chelynn and set up an entire e-mail list dedicated to Uttara Vasti (the topic of the workshop). I often work with templates: if the lay-out is already there the Vata soul in me doesn’t freeze from overwhelm when I need her to put the e-mails together. However, Vata is now also accompanied by my baby brain (“Baby? He is a toddler!”… I hear you. But according to Ayurveda I can pull the postpartum card for a convenient 24 months). So Vata + Baby Brain made me totally forget to actually fill out the templates that were already scheduled to be sent with my own content. And so everyone received a textbook e-mail with a fictive introduction from Talilah in their inbox.

I am so sorry that I disappointed you. Talilah from that e-mail isn’t real, and none of the design was mine. I myself am also subscribed to my own e-mail lists and can tell you that I was quite disappointed too. It was also the first day of my period. And since I try to practice what I preach, I refused to take a break from my break and so here we are today.

What Is A Yoni Bath? And How Can It Heal My Cycles?

What I was meaning to share with you instead of that empty template, are a few takeouts from Maya Tiwari’s teachings on working with your own womb. If you’re not familiar with her work, she is the author of Women's Power To Heal, founder of a pioneering Ayurveda School and also found MOM, a charitable foundation that brings wellness to people at risk. She continues to be a spiritual teacher to many, sometimes presenting her idea’s alongside Dalai Lama.

Her approach to Yoni Baths are 1) cyclic and 2) herbal.

An “Ideal” Menstrual Cycle Lets You Ovulate on Full Moon and Bleed on New Moon.

The idea is that moon cycle awareness will help your inner clock to (re-)align with the ideal womb rhythm that is a menstrual cycle of 27-29 days where you ovulate on Full Moon and shed your uterus lining at New Moon. Here’s why such a rhythm is considered ideal:

• At Full Moon the oceans tide high and the night is lit. This causes high energy levels and complements your body’s water element to flourish (a.k.a ovulate and conceive).

• Following an average menstrual cycle, the uterus will then begin to shed her lining 2 weeks later, serving you with your period at New Moon when the nights are dark. The absence of light naturally causes a sense of low energy and creates the perfect atmosphere to turn inwards and rest.

In other words, the Moon Cycle and the light or absence thereof it creates whilst working on our body’s own water, complements the menstrual cycle when aligned. I.e.: it will be harder to pause during your period when you’re bleeding during the brightest nights of the Month. Driven by the environment, your body will want to express her passion for things, create or simply just do stuff. As a result, you may be more inclined to use tampons (which obstruct your body’s downward flow and in doing so the free flow of Prana, your life force), take an ibuprofen or simply drive your body into exhaustion by doing too much. The results will be pushed into your next cycle, which is believed to cause accumulated discomfort (PMS) over time.

Uttara Vasti, or Womb-Moon Medicine as I call it, works with herbs to heal your womb and enhances their effect by tapping in to the Moon’s energetics.

A beautiful metaphor for how the Moon complements the work of the Womb is weaved into Sanskrit, the ancient Vedic language. The Sanskrit word Dara means Womb. Dara also means Bowl. The bowl is full at full Moon. Ready to nourish a fertilised egg. The bowl empties in the "empty/absent light" of New Moon. Following New Moon, the waxing phase begins. Simultaneously, the bowl starts to fill up again. In the womb that resembles the follicular phase.

Uttara Vasti is practiced when your bowl is filling up. So that the energetics of the herbs will literally be mixed in with your Hormonal Juices. So Waxing Moon it is. Uttara Vasti consists of three consecutive yoni baths in the first 8 days after the night of the New Moon. If your period is not aligned with the New Moon, the 1st and 2nd day after the New Moon are most beneficial to your practice. If you do bleed on New Moon, wait until the bleeding has stopped and initiate Uttara Vasti 2 days after that.

How To Bathe & Herbal Concoction Recipe

The practice itself is simple: you take a hip bath or a sitz bath in a herbal concoction between 7 and 8 (am or pm). Squeeze your buttocks to invite a tiny amount of the concoction into the vaginal channel. Release after 2 minutes (quite a good butt workout if you ask me). Repeat three times. Pat dry with a bath towel. It's advised to treat yourself to a gentle self massage with sesame oil before the practice, and a belly massage after the practice. If you can rest for a few hours in a cosy and warm space after you finish that'd be ideal.

Side Note: the traditional practice as taught by Mother Maya also includes a vaginal douche bag (optional alternative for the buttock squeeze). It is totally up to you if you want to include the douche, although my personal preference is not to introduce any home made nor fabricated material deep into my Yoni. There are some exceptions, like plain Castor Oil or made for purpose (hygienically packed) Prebiotics. But all vagina’s are unique, so I did not want to keep any information from you that you may love.

Herbal Formula for Your Yoni Bath (sitz bath)

So that is all well and good. But the real magic is in the herbs. To read into more formula's for your specific situation I recommend reading chapter 5 of Mother Maya’s book "Women's Power To Heal". The book has proved an absolute blessing in my own fertility journey and continues to be in the daily practice of my clients. So although Chapter 5 will be a great starting point, I'd suggest reading far beyond it.

That being said, I can now move on to sharing the basic herbal formula for this womb healing practice. The ingredients support your body’s downward moving energy flow. It’s connected to things like breathing out, bowel movements, letting go, orgasm, ovulation, menstruation and giving birth. This specific energy direction is essential to maintain life on Earth (giving birth) and the main energy needed for a healthy reproductive tract.

• 2 cups water

• 1 teaspoon Triphala powder

• 1 table spoon Aloe Vera Gel

How to: bring water to a boil in a double boiler. Add Triphala powder, then cover and allow to simmer for approximately three minutes. Remove the container from heat and allow the solution to steep for 15 minutes. Strain through a fine sieve, retaining the sediment. Pour the aloe vera gel into the solution, then pour the solution into the sitz bath.

-  By Mother Maya, "Women's Power To Heal" page 83, Chapter 5: Uttara Vasti.

*Be careful not to sit on the bath when the solution is still hot. Always test the temperature on the skin at the inside of your wrists, or with the tip of your pinky finger.

Can I get a ready to use formula? Alchemy isn’t my first talent.

Yes, you can! If you have access to a supplier that works with the specific energetics for women’s health and blends ayurvedic with western herbs, you can pour 2 cups of freshly boiled water in a thermos and place a tea egg with 2 table spoons of this specific women’s health tea inside for up to 4 hours to make a strong infusion. When you’re ready for your bath, pour it into the sitz bath and test the temperature before you begin with your ritual. A beautiful example of such a tea blend is this Woman’s Tea from Zen Maitri. It isn’t sold for external use, but has got everything that makes a good yoni bath. The calendula helps soften your tissues and soothes any irritation, liquorice strengthens the local immune system and supports the bladder, Shatavari nourishes Yoni and supports hormonal balance and Rose helps you relax whilst also healing the skin. Use code ayurvedagoddess for 10% off!

Oh, and I also offer 1on1 Yoni Soak consultations that come with your very own herbal blend to heal your specific women’s health concerns and match your Mind-Body Type. You’ll have enough stash for three months.

Ready to heal your cycle?

On Sunday the 7th (November) doctor Chelynn and I come together in a *virtual* women’s circle to discuss Uttara Vasti into detail. She has learned the practice from Mother Maya herself and will be taking questions in this 90 minute gathering. Following our get together I will go into a monthly practice of the ritual with an amazing group of women. Each with their own intention. We will gather 3 times, around 3 consecutive New Moons. This is free of cost to anyone who’s joined our circle - so if this is something you want to explore, just drop me an email <3