Old traditions teach us some valuable lessons, sometimes it is not relatable to current life and sometimes it is. I have to talk about a tradition I have seen in my village (and country).

There was a tradition when someone passes away from our village; family, friends and neighbors go to that deceased person’s home with buttermilk and khichari for seven days. That is called ‘going to Chhash piva‘—which means ‘going to drink buttermilk’.

Griff stricken family who has just lost a loved one, is not in a state of mind to cook anything or eat anything. Neighbors cook khichari – khichadi, make butter milk and take that meal to share with the family.

They drink buttermilk together, and have dinner of khichari afterward. And then they all do prayers — chanting together.

My coworker told me her country has a similar tradition. They get together for chanting and share chao (rice porridge) with the family for 15 days.

What We Know So Far About Buttermilk

1. Health Benefits of Buttermilk

Buttermilk has long been valued in traditional kitchens — and modern nutrition agrees with many of its strengths.

• Cooling and hydrating
  Naturally light and refreshing, it helps balance heat in the body, especially during summer or after spicy meals.
• Gentle on digestion
  The combination of water, yogurt cultures, and a small amount of fat makes it easier to digest than milk or yogurt alone.
• Probiotic support
  Fermented buttermilk contains beneficial bacteria that can support gut health and regularity.
• Electrolyte replenishment
  Naturally rich in potassium and calcium, it helps maintain hydration and muscle function.
• Low in fat and calories
  Traditional churned buttermilk is naturally low‑fat, making it a light, nourishing drink.

2. Varieties of Buttermilk

Not all buttermilk is the same — and understanding the differences helps readers choose what suits their needs.

• Traditional (Churned) Buttermilk

• The liquid left after churning cultured cream into butter
• Naturally tangy, thin, and probiotic‑rich
• Common in Indian households (chaas, mattha)

• Cultured Buttermilk (Store‑bought)

• Made by adding live cultures to milk
• Thicker and more yogurt‑like
• Used mostly in baking for its acidity

• Spiced Buttermilk (Masala Chaas)

• Buttermilk blended with cumin, ginger, mint, coriander, or hing
• Enhances digestion and reduces bloating

• Sweet Buttermilk

• Mildly sweetened version used in some regions
• Less common in wellness‑focused diets

3. Common Uses of Buttermilk

Buttermilk is versatile — both in daily routines and cooking.

• Daily digestive drink (especially after lunch)
• Cooling summer beverage
• Base for smoothies or fruit‑infused drinks
• Ingredient in baking (pancakes, muffins, breads)
• Marinade (its acidity tenderizes proteins)
• Ayurvedic home remedy for acidity, bloating, and heat imbalance

4. Issues or Problems to Be Aware Of

Buttermilk is generally safe and gentle, but a few considerations matter.

• Lactose sensitivity

Even though it’s easier to digest than milk, people with lactose intolerance may still experience:

• bloating
• gas
• discomfort

• Added salt or sugar

Packaged or restaurant versions may contain:

• excess salt
• added sugar
• stabilizers

These reduce its digestive benefits.

• Not ideal during severe congestion

Ayurveda notes that buttermilk may aggravate Kapha when someone has:

• heavy congestion
• sinus pressure
• thick mucus

• Cultured buttermilk ≠ traditional buttermilk

Store‑bought cultured buttermilk is thicker and more acidic, and doesn’t always offer the same probiotic profile as traditional churned buttermilk.

Brioveda Lens

After learning about buttermilk benefits, I finally understood the reason behind that tradition! 

Family members who lost a loved one are emotionally disturbed. Foremost — no one in the family is in the mood to eat or eat à la carte dinner — obviously.

Generally, emotional distress suppresses hunger and digestive fire — the agni. So they can not digest heavy meals or lots of fiber even if they eat them.

If they stay hungry for longer periods of time, vata dosha takes over and adds to their emotional problems like fear, grief, anxiety and helplessness.

How social support helps in grief

That small gathering part of the tradition aids as grief counselors — a totally free and around-the-clock service from neighbors!

Even if someone visits a grief-stricken family in the daytime, neighbors set their chores aside and rush to the family’s aid.

They support them like a good friend until they completely come out of the grief. Neighbors and friends’ presence helps the family to feel the void that is created by the loss of a person.

Briovedic Routine

How to use buttermilk to balance vata, calm anxiety and distress caused by grief

• Take a glass of homemade buttermilk with a pinch of rock salt about half an hour before dinner or a meal. 
• Move around or be active after drinking it — if possible, do a light walk.
• Eat vata pacifying food at dinner like khichari -khichadi to calm the agni.

When people visit the family of a deceased person, they share the buttermilk they brought with everyone. Do some prayers and share khichri – khichadi.

Buttermilk empty stomach helps them clean the dosha from the body, especially vata dosha that gets aggravated empty stomach. That process improves digestion a bit and works as an appetizer.

See buttermilk recipe and khichari recipe for details.

🌿When they have khichari at dinner, vata dosha stays under control.

🌿As time passed, people added bajra rotala (millet bread) to the dinner. As it is packed with nutrition and gluten-free.

🌿Entire routine helps them to focus on prayer, have emotional strength, and it keeps them full for longer periods of time.

🌿That vata dosha cleaning also helps to loosen up the joints. People can sit down for prayers and have some flexibility.

Supporting Facts

Supporting Research: How Grief and Emotional Distress Disrupt Digestion

Modern research increasingly validates what Ayurveda has long described: intense emotions — especially grief, anxiety, and prolonged distress — directly alter digestive function. These findings help explain why a gentle, cooling, easy‑to‑digest food like buttermilk becomes so stabilizing during Vata‑aggravated emotional states.

1. Grief Alters Gut Motility and Appetite Regulation

Studies on bereavement show that grief activates the brain’s stress circuits, which then disrupt normal digestive rhythms. Research highlights:

• Bereavement increases sympathetic nervous system activity, which slows gastric emptying and can trigger bloating, irregular appetite, and indigestion.
• People experiencing grief often show reduced vagal tone, meaning the gut receives fewer “rest‑and‑digest” signals — a pattern Ayurveda describes as Vata derangement.
• Clinical observations note that grief commonly leads to loss of appetite, unpredictable hunger, and digestive discomfort, mirroring classical Vata‑type digestive instability.

These findings align with the Ayurvedic view that sudden emotional shock dries, scatters, and weakens digestive fire, making light, hydrating, sour‑sweet foods like buttermilk especially supportive.

2. Emotional Distress Disrupts the Gut–Brain Axis

Research on the gut–brain axis shows that emotional distress directly affects digestion through hormonal and neural pathways:

• Stress hormones such as cortisol and adrenaline alter gut motility and increase sensitivity to discomfort.
• Emotional distress reduces parasympathetic activation, which is essential for coordinated digestion.
• Distress states increase intestinal permeability (“leaky gut”) and inflammation, which can worsen symptoms like acidity, bloating, and irregular bowel movements.

Ayurveda describes this same pattern as Vata rising upward and outward, disturbing both the mind and the gut. Buttermilk’s grounding, cooling, and mildly sour profile helps counter this upward movement.

3. Anxiety Intensifies Vata‑Like Digestive Patterns

Modern anxiety research mirrors classical Vata symptomatology:

• Anxiety is associated with rapid, shallow breathing, which reduces digestive blood flow.
• It increases gut hypersensitivity, making even normal digestion feel uncomfortable.
• Anxiety-prone individuals show altered microbiome composition, which can worsen bloating and irregularity.

These findings echo Ayurveda’s description of Vata‑type digestion: irregular, sensitive, easily disturbed by emotions.

Buttermilk’s probiotic content, hydration, and gentle acidity make it a natural fit for calming this pattern.

4. Why These Findings Support Buttermilk as a Vata‑Calming Food

When grief or distress weakens digestion, the body benefits from foods that are:

• Light yet nourishing
• Hydrating and cooling
• Easy to digest
• Slightly sour to stimulate appetite gently
• Rich in gut‑supportive microbes

Buttermilk matches this profile perfectly.

Modern research on fermented dairy shows:

• Probiotics can improve gut motility, especially when stress has slowed digestion.
• Fermented foods support vagal tone, which is often suppressed during grief.
• Gentle sourness stimulates digestive enzymes without aggravating heat — ideal for hungry‑but‑anxious states where Pitta and Vata both fluctuate.

This creates a beautiful bridge between tradition and science: a simple, ancestral drink that supports a stressed gut and a grieving mind.

Brioveda Tips

🌿Use mildly sour yogurt to make buttermilk, it should not be too sour.

🌿Add rock salt for added benefits.

🌿Use khichari in oatmeal consistently — add a little hot water and mix if it goes dry.

🌿 Not all traditions are relevant to current times. See recent research on the topic before you follow any strict diet or ritual.

Takeaway

🌿This tradition teaches us how a simple food or diet change can help us to relieve vata imbalance, grief causing anxiety and distress.

🌿Do you know about any tradition like this? Would you like to discuss it?