Introduction
Medicine has always been one of the most important concerns for human society. It appeared at the first stages of its evolution to help people recover from various diseases and injuries. The importance of the given science could also be evidenced by the fact that only privileged groups of a certain community were given the right to cure people and provide special health care services to them. Besides, the lack of scientific knowledge and the inability to provide clear explanations for the majority of important processes resulted in the close interrelation between religious ceremonies and medical practices.
Furthermore, they also obtained an intuitive character. It was predetermined by the necessity to introduce some visual elements to assure a patient and spectators that some actions are performed to help a patient recover. For this reason, various societies in different regions gave rise to specific medical practices characterized by the unique approaches to treatment and close connection with the local beliefs and religion.
Background
Besides, India is one of the most ancient states in the world that could be characterized by a unique religion that enriched the world culture with several outstanding phenomena. These are considered the great cultural heritage which contributes to the modern worlds diversity. However, some of them are still topical and are used by people. For instance, ayurvedic medicine plays a crucial role in the life of local communities as it provides specific healthcare services that are combined with the traditional approaches (Ayurvedic Medicine, n.d.).
Hence, numerous modern investigators doubt the positive effect of these practices because of the lack of any scientific rationale. Despite this fact, a set of practices that comprises ayurvedic medicine remains popular among people who respect ancient traditions and believe in the power of practices exercised by their predecessors. In these regards, there are numerous attempts to investigate the given issue and provide credible information about its most interesting peculiarities.
Lessons learned
The suggested movie could be considered one of the above-mentioned attempts. A veteran reported T. Reid spends three weeks in the clinic in southern India trying to research the ancient practice of Ayurveda from another perspective (Second Opinion with T. R. Reid: Inside Ayurvedic Medicine, 2008). He tries to abandon prejudices and biased attitude to obtain a clear image of the main approaches used in the given sphere. Watching the video, a viewer could acquire the basic knowledge about this new area and understand the way some of the procedures are expected to work. The reporters treatment was more than unusual as it was based on the astrological data and implied such practices as massages, mudpacks, eye drops, etc. Moreover, the video provides some facts that evidence the positive results achieved by Reid while trying to cure his shoulder.
Traditional western medicine supposes a special surgery and shoulder replacement. However, the video shows us that a person might feel great relief in the course of treatment. The narrator revolves around its nature, whether it comes from the placebo effect or has some real scientific rationale. Additionally, he is not the only patient of this clinic, which means that it remains popular. They state the great practical use of these practices and prove their efficiency. The movie makes a viewer think about some alternative to traditional western medicine that could be different and not understandable but equally efficient.
The videos impact on the attitude to the issue
The video could be interesting both for people who already know the basic aspects of ayurvedic medicine and for those who acquire completely new information. The fact is that it reveals some inner motifs of people who use and provide these practices. That is why it impacts the above-mentioned categories. Even if a person was familiar with it, he/she would be able to discover some interesting facts and phenomena. Thus, Reid shows a viewer some facts that were unknown before.
For instance, we can see some kind of a video report that describes every stage of a certain procedure. It helps a viewer understand it better and change a point of view as those specialists provide the rationale for their actions. However, the fact that changes the attitude to this sort of medicine most of all is the reduction of patients pain. It could be used as great evidence of the efficiency of this approach. Being quite different from the things we expect from the healthcare sector, it is still used in several regions in India and has thousands of admirers (What is the Philosophy of Ayurvedic Medicine? n.d.).
For this reason, the movie alters the attitude to the given practice and conditions the reconsideration of the approach and breaks the major stereotypes that are related to the given sphere. Furthermore, while watching the video, a person also realizes the fact that there could be several approaches to the same issue, and this fact impacts his/her mentality greatly.
Nevertheless, the reporter also manages to grab a viewers interest by emphasizing the unique and unusual character of ayurvedic medicine and its close connection with the ancient Indian culture. In this regard, the issue might be attractive for people who are fond of these customs and try to investigate their unique peculiarities. Additionally, the increased popularity of exotic beliefs and traditions conditions the renewal of interest in this sort of medicine. Under these conditions, the movie could be considered an important source that shows people the way ayurvedic medicine functions and the impact it has on local people. The customs, traditions, and approaches depicted there have a unique history that could be more than interesting for various people. For this reason, the movies impact on viewers could hardly be overestimated.
Benefits
Altogether, it is difficult to state whether there are some benefits peculiar to ayurvedic medicine that could make it more attractive than the traditional one. At the same time, some real positive outcomes and the popularity of the given practice contribute to its further development and spread (Ayurvedic Medicine and Eczema, n.d.). Having watched the video, a viewer will realize the ayurvedic medicine should be investigated to realize the way it delivers health care and helps people.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the movie provides a person with information about the interesting peculiarities of ayurvedic medicine and shows some real-life examples to support the most important claims with clear evidence. The reporter uses a good format that could interest viewers and make them believe in the power of these ancient practices. He acts as the researcher, investigator, and experimental subject trying to state whether this approach could help people and assure positive results. The film could change the attitude to the practice and contribute to the increased popularity of ayurvedic medicine in the Western world. It could be recommended for a wide audience.
References
Ayurvedic Medicine. (n.d.). Web.
Ayurvedic Medicine and Eczema. (n.d.). Web.
Palfreman Film Group. (2008). Second Opinion with T. R. Reid: Inside Ayurvedic Medicine. Web.
What is the Philosophy of Ayurvedic Medicine? (n.d.). Web.