Welcome MahaGhee™! Hand Made Ayurvedic Ghee from the Green Ashram in Gujarat

Welcome MahaGhee™! Hand Made Ayurvedic Ghee from the Green Ashram in Gujarat

"Maha" means "Great" in Sanskrit. Whenever you see MAHA before a formula, a mantra, or a God/Goddess, it is the ULTIMATE form. We, at Ahara Ghee, understand that there are levels of adherence to Ayurvedic texts that are not practical, cost effective or even legally compliant in the US dairy market, but ARE, indeed, the "way it is supposed to be" according to the Charak Samhita (primary Ayurvedic Text). 

In this article, I will attempt to explain the differences between MahaGhee and Ahara Ghee, and then the MUCH BIGGER differences between the two of us, and all the others.

Let's start with the cows: Gir and Kankrej cows are the humpbacked native cows of India. They give A2 milk (remember, this is a casein protein and is not present in the actual ghee) with a distinct flavor. Of these, Gir cows are most prized in Ayurveda. There are no Gir cow herds outside of India. 

According to Ayurveda, Gir cows should be hand-milked. The WHOLE milk is cultured into curd with an old culture strain, and then the WHOLE milk is churned to butter while the cultured Indian buttermilk is the byproduct (also delicious and totally different from what we call buttermilk in the US). The Cultured butter from this process is called Makhan. The Makhan is gently boiled to separate solids, leaving pure Ayurvedic Ghee. This traditional Gir cow ghee is kind of the "Blue Cheese" of ghee. It has a slight musk and developed aroma that is entirely different from your standard ghee in the American market. Read more about the Ashram this beautiful ancient ghee comes from.

AHARA GHEE PROCESS

When Ahara Ghee started, We wanted to do this process exactly. We ran smack into some realities around legality (we are only allowed to make ghee from Grade A butter, according to the FDA, which implies a multimillion dollar commerical stainless facility...not a lovely little farm. With that, we are limited to the companies who make cultured, grassfed butter WITHOUT pesticides AND who treat their animals with the highest Animal Welfare Standards. This is exactly what we do. Here is how our process is different.

We get butter from an old Butter maker who sources Truly Grassfed™ butter from 95% + grassfed cows who are of varying breeds, but many Jersey and Guernsey. The cream is SEPARATED from the milk before culturing. The cream is cultured (into a kind of Creme Fraiche) and THEN churned into butter, the liquid milk going into other products like yogurt and cottage cheese and other cheeses. So, the point at which it is cultured is different. 

Our process of cooking is much the same. We started in tiny pots like MahaGhee™ uses, and only cook in a moderately larger vessels to this day. The same patient cooking process is applied, with our special touch in flavor development, which is simply the magic of knowing how to work with the fire (agni) and the ghee together. We are super proud of Ahara Ghee and use it every day. 

We decided to bring on Maha Ghee, for the Ayurvedic purist. We KNOW we have fans like this.  It is special, costly due to the process and distance and should be consumed with reverence. There is a finite supply, which we will work with respectfully. Ahara continues to be able to grow with its network of small family farms, but MahaGhee™ is limited to the cows, time and space they have for this ancient process. We completely recommend you try both and get the vibe.  Buy both the MahaGhee™ 32oz Jar AND the Ahara Ghee 33oz jar for only $99!

Shweta Parmar, an upcoming Health Headliner for iloveghee.com is the Ghee-Mama of MahaGhee and is available to answer questions and tell you about her experience hugging these magic cows at the Ashram and meeting their Handlers. She has such passion for this project and we recommend her services wholeheartedly. Reach out to Shweta on Instagram @shweta.parmar.ayurveda and check out her website where she offers support to her clients through Ayurvedic Bodywork, Birthwork, Consultation and full Traditional Ayurvedic services. www.gutsierliving.com

Shweta Parmar, Ayurevdic Specialist BIO

Shweta Parmar’s journey has gone from external liberation (former anti-racism immigrant rights community organizer) to an internal one.  Her mission to heal from polycystic kidney disease and her endless search for her True Self is driven by her reverence and love for Mother Nature, ancient wisdom of Ayurveda, Yoga and Universal Oneness. As an Ayurveda practitioner/therapist of GutsierLiving, she supports people who eat organic and healthy and still feel like crap, regain lasting energy in their day to day. She is passionate of healing the planet by healing birthing as an AyurDoula of BabyTheMama, specializing in concious conceiving, prenatal and postpartum care. She strongly feels that the root of injustice and war is due lack of support and consciousness of the Divine Feminine/ Creation Energy at the individual, community and society levels.  Womben must take responsibility for taking care of themselves - by any means necessary!   She served as a Programs Director at Edgar Cayce’s Association of Enlightenment NYC, and Ayurveda Center of Balance NYC;  For more info, email shweta@gutsierliving.comwww.gutsierliving.com.

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