Unlike hatha yoga traditions which tend to steer clear of ‘mind stimulating’ or ‘agitating’ foods such as onion, garlic, ginger and chilli, kundalini yoga teachings can’t get enough of them. They recommend we have one green chilli a day, especially women, to keep our system fresh.

We also incorporate the lauded trinity roots of onion, garlic and ginger into most cooked meals, especially when it’s getting chilly out there. And anyone who’s been to a solstice celebration or kundalini yoga festival will be all too well acquainted with the Solstice Hot Sauce that accompanies the kitchari mono diet.

So with an onion focus this week, here are some mini gems I found in the Aquarian Teaching Manual, including that all important recipe for homemade onion cough medicine.

Onions are an excellent anti-allergy and respiratory food, especially for asthma. They thin phlegm and promote expectoration. Equal amounts of onion juice and honey should be mixed and three to four teaspoons of this onion cough medicine should be taken daily for a cough.

Ayurveda considers onion to be a multipurpose heart medicine. A study performed at Cornell University found that several spices, such as garlic and onion, kill every bacterium tested, even anthrax.

Onions are also valuable in treating painful, bleeding hemorrhoids. About one ounce of onion should be mashed in water and 2 ounces of sugar added, and taken twice daily. It will bring relief within a few days.

Worth including an onion a day in our diet, I’d say! Thank you, Yogi Bhajan.

Sat nam x