Tweak of the Week is Citizen Femme’s in-depth beauty treatment and tweakment review series, featuring the CF team’s tried-and-tested recommendations for facials, massages and injectables.
This week Citizen Femme’s fashion editor Gemma Louise Deeks reviews the Shakti Divine Feminine Nurturing Ritual, in celebration of International Women’s Day.
Available at The Bulgari Spa London located in Knightsbridge on the edge of Hyde Park, Ayurveda wellness brand Mauli Rituals brings four new healing treatments to the spa, centred around female wellbeing. Read on for the full review.
What is Ayurveda?
Ayurveda is an ancient Indian medical system based on ancient writings that rely on a natural and holistic approach to physical and mental health. Ayurvedic medicine is one of the world’s oldest medical systems and remains one of India’s traditional health care systems.
Who are Mauli Rituals?
British-Indian husband and wife team Anita and Bittu Kaushal founded Mauli Rituals as a love letter to their ancestorial roots and rich healing heritage. Bittu’s father was an Ayurvedic Doctor and Anita comes from a line of herbalists. Mauli is a celebration of love, nature, tradition, and all that makes life meaningful and worth honouring. Masterfully integrating ancient India’s beauty tradition of layering, anointing, and purifying with sensual oils, healing herbs and fragrant flowers; Mauli’s results-driven (all-natural and where possible organic) collection offers an exquisite repertoire of India’s most transformative actives, adaptogens and opulent botanicals, crafted in England with uncompromised performance and purity.
What does the treatment actually involve?
The Shakti Divine Feminine Nurturing Ritual, one of four new Ayurvedic-inspired treatments by Mauli Rituals, is designed to balance all ages and stages of the female hormonal cycle. Personalised oils, organic Shatavari herbs, and a body and scalp massage are layered with singing bowls and mind-therapy meditation to balance subtle energies.
You’ll start the treatment with a Himalayan Salt foot bath to help with overall body detoxification followed by a marma point foot massage – a traditional Ayurvedic massage technique that’s believed to help sustain the flow of energy throughout the body. You will decide which oil you want for your treatment, each based on one of the three ‘doshas’, an Ayurveda term originating from Sanskrit, which can be translated as “that which can cause problems”. The three doshas are believed to be present in a person’s body and mind.
After an explanation of the dosha traits, you will select which best describes your personality. Mine is Pitta, which is known for being associated with a tenacious personality, based on fire and water. It’s commonly described as hot, fiery and sharp. Those with a Pitta dosha are highly motivated, goal-oriented and competitive, but their tenacious nature can lead to conflict. The Serenity Pitta Body Oil helps to pacify a fiery mood, strengthen joints and soothe inflamed skin.
The next choice is which sounds to accompany your treatment – you have a choice from four leading female therapists. I opted for Athena Ko, one of London’s superior gong masters who uses gong and sound bath healing frequencies to move from negativity to clarity and confidence.
A full body massage is next (which includes the stomach), followed by a pressure point scalp massage and finishing with a cleansing facial using the massage dome tool on your face’s marma points.
Post-treatment, you’ll have some more downtime in the relaxation room with tea specifically blended for your dosha. A nice finishing touch.
Pictured left to right: Estelle Bingham, Alice Law, Athena Ko, Dr Tara Swart
Who is the treatment suitable for?
The treatment is suitable for women pre or post-pregnancy, those going through menopause or those looking to treat other womb-related conditions such as recovering from loss, ovarian cysts or endometriosis. The focus will be on nourishing the abdominal area, rebalancing the sacral and heart chakras and intuitively releasing blocks to support a deeper connection with divine feminine energy.
What is the aftercare advice?
How long does it take to see results?
The treatment is deeply relaxing and you will feel a difference straight away.
Why is it Tweak of the Week worthy?
In a world drowning in masculine energy, it’s important women embrace their sacred feminine energy and realise their divine essence, standing in all their power, and creating a more harmonious world. A woman who takes care of herself is more powerful than one who pushes herself to exhaustion and no longer experiences joy and pleasure.
Any Questions or Tips to add?