Focus on Holistic Healing With These Five Eastern Wellness Practices

When you need a mind/body boost, turn off the techy gimmicks in favor of one of these tried-and-true Eastern wellness practices—no app required.


Illustration by Jeannie Phan

For the mind
Try Saying “Om” at Kadampa Meditation Center

If that meditation pillow you bought in January is still stuffed in the closet, Kadampa promises to get it out of the bag and onto the floor where it belongs. Founded on the premise of modern Buddhism, which is specifically designed for easy integration into a busy lifestyle, the J.P. wellness haven offers meditation classes as short as 15 minutes and at all hours of the day. Come midmorning to clear your mind or on a Sunday afternoon to start your week on a happy note.

360C Centre St., Jamaica Plain, 617-942-1730, meditationinboston.org.

For the body
Try Kundalini Yoga with Sahaj Kaur

No need for loud hip-hop music and black lights—at its core, yoga is about the mind/body connection through breath. Return to the roots of the practice with instructor Sahaj Kaur, who teaches Kundalini yoga, an ancient practice that blends devotion, chanting, meditation, and the expression of power and energy, at Five Doors Health + Wellness.

763 Massachusetts Ave., Cambridge, 617-306-4716, sahajkaur.com.

For the spirit
Try Reiki at Brenner Reiki Healing

Although it might seem like you’re doing nothing during a Reiki session, the potential benefits of this Japanese healing method—including feeling calmer and more energized—promise to be long-­lasting. As you connect to your breath on a massage table at this Auburndale practice, healer Elise Brenner will complete a series of hand placements to try to facilitate a connection between you and your own thoughts, emotions, and body.

324 Central St., Auburndale, 617-244-8856, brennerreikihealing.org.

For the soul
Try an Ayurvedic Cleanse at Down Under School of Yoga

Press the reset button on your hectic life with a DIY community cleanse incorporating elements of Ayurveda, an ancient holistic medicine system that originated in India. Ideal to begin as summer turns to fall, the 10-day challenge kicks off with a workshop, during which you’ll learn what to eat (think: mung beans and rice) and when to boost immunity, as well as how to loosen and release impurities in the body with natural oils.

1038 Beacon St., Brookline, 617-566-9642, bostonayurvedaschool.com.

For the brave
Try Electro-Acupuncture at Copley Acupuncture

Dealing with chronic aches and pains? Give this treatment, a relatively more-modern spin on traditional acupuncture, a try. Drawing on her 20 years of experience treating patients, Copley Acupuncture proprietor Marcy White will apply electricity in different frequencies to needles to aid the release of bound muscles (it’s not as scary as it sounds). White says the treatment can also help with depression and migraines, among other ailments.

667 Boylston St., Boston, 617-281-0797, bostonacupuncturesite.us.