Udvartana: Dry Herbal Powder Massage

Udvartana is a rub of the body with herbal powder. The word comes from a Sanskrit root meaning “to move upwards”. The strokes go from the bottom up, against the direction of hair growth, with firm pressure. That is the main difference from abhyanga, where warm oil is applied in the direction of hair growth and the aim is to oil the body. Udvartana’s aim is the opposite: to dry, warm and invigorate. Both techniques are types of ayurvedic massage.

In the Charaka Samhita the treatment is described in the chapter on the daily routine under the name sharira parimarjana, a cleansing rub of the body. The commentator Chakrapani explains that this is udvartana and that it is done after oil massage, before bathing. So originally it is part of dinacharya, not only a clinical treatment. According to the text it removes unpleasant body odor, heaviness, drowsiness, itching and impurities of the skin.

The Sushruta Samhita adds that udvartana calms vata, reduces kapha and fat, gives the body firmness and improves the skin. Vagbhata says almost the same.

In Kerala the most common choice is kolakulathadi churna. Its formula goes back to a verse of the Charaka Samhita: kola (jujube fruit), kulattha (horse gram), deodar, rasna, black gram, flaxseed, castor seeds, kushtha, calamus, dill and barley flour. In the text this mixture is ground with a sour liquid and applied hot to the body for vata disorders. In present-day practice its dry powder has become the main material for udvartana. It is also used to fill the boluses for podikizhi — see the article on kizhi.

Other powders named in the manuals:

• Kulattha powder — for excess subcutaneous fat and heavy sweating.
• Triphala churna — for excess weight and skin complaints.
• Nalpamaradi churna — for itchy skin conditions.
• Blends of grains and legumes. For example, coarsely ground barley, pearl millet and kulattha in equal parts.

The powder is chosen by the doctor, according to the person’s condition and their skin.

In ayurveda udvartana belongs to drying treatment, rukshana, which Charaka lists among the six basic therapeutic approaches. Hence its field of use: kapha conditions — heaviness and sluggishness, drowsiness, stiffness, excess weight. In clinics udvartana is not prescribed on its own for excess weight. It goes together with diet, exercise and internal remedies, all chosen by the doctor. It is also used for heavy sweating, unpleasant body odor and itchy skin.

It also appears as the first step of a longer course: several days of udvartana, then abhyanga with sudation, then a course of basti.

After a session the skin is warm and slightly pink: friction increases blood flow in the skin. The classical texts describe the result as lightness in the body and the lifting of drowsiness. There should be no grazes, burning or pain. If they appear, the powder or the pressure is wrong, and you should tell the doctor.

In a spa udvartana is often served up as a scrub for smooth skin: one session, one powder for everyone. In a clinic it is a prescription. The doctor decides whether it is needed at all, dry or with oil, which powder, how many days and what comes after it. The therapist keeps the direction and pressure right and watches the skin. Udvartana does have a place on a spa menu — on the same terms as other external treatments: a trained therapist and checked contraindications. What an honest salon treatment requires is covered in Ayurvedic treatments on a spa menu.

Udvartana is part of the program of the school’s one-month course. Students practice it hands-on, together with other Kerala treatments.