Indian dedicated to promoting Ayurvedic lifestyle

Born into a family that has practiced Ayurveda for several generations and holding a master’s degree in Ayurveda himself, Mohanakrishnan Menon is also a long-time Ayurveda practitioner. Operating from an Ayurveda wellness center in Shekou, he actively promotes the lifestyle advocated by the ancient health care system that originated in his home country to residents in Shenzhen.  

“’Ayurveda’ is actually a combination of two words. The first word, ‘Ayur,’ means longevity or life, while the second word, ‘veda,’ means science. It’s a science that helps people to live a healthy life without much medicine,” Menon shared with Shenzhen Daily during a recent interview at Innate Ayurveda, a wellness center providing a comprehensive range of Ayurvedic wellness services, which he oversaw its establishment in the city from scratch.

Mohanakrishnan Menon

“Ayurveda believes that only our body has the capacity to heal itself, and it focuses on two aspects: prevention and cure, with weightage given to prevention. But while it is considered a mainstream medical system in India, what we do here does not involve the practice of medicine. Instead, we provide lifestyle recommendations.”

Before moving to Shenzhen, the first Chinese city he had ever visited, in the second half of last year, Menon was in Portugal working on an Ayurveda retreat project. Upon the completion of the project, he was contacted and subsequently commissioned by a company to build an Ayurveda facility in China.

“China is [a nation] deeply tied to traditions and culture. When we take Ayurveda outside India, we want to take it to places where people know the value of traditions and culture, because only when you know the value of your own culture can you appreciate the cultural traditions of other people,” he said.

“China also has thousands of years of culture, and most people, even the youth, are closely tied to the Chinese culture. Shenzhen is a good location because it’s easy for people from Hong Kong, Macao and other Chinese mainland cities to come. That’s why we chose China and Shenzhen.”

At Innate Ayurveda, Menon serves as the initial guide to clients who are new to Ayurveda, assisting them in identifying their Ayurvedic body types through questionnaires and face-to-face talks. 

According to their individual needs and the analysis results that reflect their physical and mental characteristics, he will then offer recommendations on adjustments they can incorporate into their daily and seasonal routines in order to maintain good health.

Besides providing lifestyle recommendations, another main part of his work is to organize events on a regular basis to educate a larger audience about Ayurveda and showcase the services provided by the wellness center. These events range from yoga and meditation sessions, cooking class to daily routine workshops and skincare product making tutorials. 

Their clients, according to his observations, display some interesting traits. “Surprisingly, many of our Chinese clients know more about Ayurveda than our Indian clients. Many of them had experienced it in India or Hong Kong,” he said. “And we didn’t expect so many young people to be interested in it. Usually, Ayurveda appeals more to older people. But here, we have many clients below 30 years of age. Once They find it’s doing good for them, they readily embrace it.”