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Ayurveda is a comprehensive system of
healthcare originating in India over 5,000 years ago. Of these,
the Atharva Veda, dated around 1200 BCE is widely regarded as the
most important source book. Ayurveda is derived from two Sanskrit
words: ‘Ayus’ meaning life and ‘Vid’
meaning knowledge. Classical Ayurvedic texts such as the Charaka
Samhita and the Sushruta Samhita, compiled between the second
century BCE and the second century CE, took account of the
physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects of the person
in their consideration of health and ill-health, and the complex
concepts and theories they embody continue to underpin the modern
practice of Ayurvedic medicine. The Universe according to
Ayurveda is composed of five basic elements or pancha mahabhuta,
namely, ether air, fire, water and earth. These are present in
all things and in the human body they are represented as the
doshas, dhatus and mala.
What is a Dosha?
Dosha
is an Ayurvedic term that generally describes our inherited
traits, individual characteristics and tendencies such as the
body frame, eye colour, digestive capacity and also the emotional
balance. Everybody has different levels of doshas. The
constitution is set at birth but some traits may accumulate. If
the accumulation does not leave the body in the usual way like
stools, urine or sweat; it increases. According to Ayurveda, this
is the cause of most disease. If the doshas are cared for
properly they will offer great potential for health and
vitality.
Doshas are not visible. You will only know
through inference as they manifest through the products of
disease like phlegm, swellings, and inflammation, bleeding,
nervous imbalance and dry skin. You would not see these symptoms
if you were in perfect health.
‘Dosha’ is
commonly known as ‘humour’ but is also known as
‘constitution’ or ‘functional principle’.
‘Humour’ comes from the Latin ‘umere’.
There are three humours (tridosha: vata, pitta and kapha). Your
constitution is described in terms of the doshas.
Your
constitutional make-up means your inherent nature (prakriti). You
have a mental nature (manas prakriti) as well as a physical
humoural constitution (doshas prakriti). When there is an
accumulation of a particular dosha/doshas an aggravated state of
the humours (doshas vikriti) arises-your present state. This
brings ill health.
Doshas literally means ‘fault’.
This comes from ‘dush’ meaning error and relates to
the prefix ‘dys’ (from Greek), as in dyslexia,
dysfunctional or dysentery.
VATA: The vata dosha is
comprised of ether and wind. Vata is the air element that is held
within the confines of ether. Vata is cold, light, rough, mobile,
subtle, clear, dry and astringent. The primary site of vata is
the colon. It also resides in the bladder, thighs, ears, bones
and the sense of touch. The root ‘va’ means ‘to
spread’ and it is responsible for all movement in the body;
flow to the breath and blood, elimination of wastes, expression
of speech, it moves the diaphragm, muscles and limbs, regulates
the nervous system and it also stimulates the function of the
intellect. It is the messenger. Without vata the other doshas are
inert.
There are five sub-categories of vata, called the
five winds (panchvayu):
Prana, Vyana, Udana, Samana and
Apana.
These regulate inhalation and swallowing,
circulation of blood and the messages from the nervous system,
speech, digestion in the centre of the abdomen and excretion of
urine, wind, stools, menses, sperm and babies.
Vata is
brought on by astringent, bitter and pungent flavours (as they
increase dryness), end of a meal, in the early morning and
evening, by fear and insecurity, in early autumn and spring, at
the later stage of life (the driest stage), by excessive
movement, by a dry and cold climate, and by going to bed after
11pm. Dry foods, such as popcorn aggravate vata, as do dry
natured foods such as pulses.
PITTA: The pitta dosha is
made up of fire and water. Pitta exists as water or oil in the
body, thus preserving the tissues from the destructive aspect of
fire.
It is pungent, hot, penetrating, oily, sharp,
liquid, spreading and sour. Its main function is transformation.
It is the force of metabolic activity in the body associated with
the endocrine function, hormone levels, digestion, body
temperature, visual perception, hunger, thirst and skin quality.
Mentally it plays a role in understanding and in digesting
sensory impressions. It resides in the eyes, blood, sweat glands,
the small intestine, stomach and lymph. Its primary site is in
the small intestine.
The five types of pitta are:
Alochaka, Sadhaka, Ranjaka, Bhrajaka and Pachaka.
They
regulate sight, the heartbeat and ability to discriminate between
different pieces of information, the function of the liver, the
quality of the skin and digestion in the stomach and small
intestine.
Pitta is set off by pungent, salty and sour
flavours (as they increase heat), in the middle of a meal, at
midday, by anger and irritation, repressed emotions, in summer,
from adolescence to middle age, from excessive ambition and in a
hot and damp climate. Hot and oily foods like garlic and fried
foods disturb pitta.
In summertime you need to be
particularly careful of aggravating pitta. Stay away from
chillies, fried foods, salty foods and keep up the fresh juices,
water and steamed vegetables.
KAPHA: The kapha dosha is a
combination of earth and water elements. The water element is
contained within the earthen structures of the tissues and skin;
the dry earth is moistened by the reviving water element. It is
slow, heavy, cool, dense, soft, oily, sticky, cloudy, liquid and
sweet. Kapha literally holds the body together. It is cohesive,
gives shape and form, aids growth and development, lubricates and
protects, helps smelling and tasting. It relates to phlegm in the
body. It resides in the chest, throat, head, pancreas, stomach,
lymph, fat, nose and tongue. Its primary site is the
stomach.
The five types of kapha are: Bhodaka, Tarpaka,
Sleshaka, Avalambaka and Kledaka.
They regulate the
experience of taste, the cerebrospinal fluid and white matter in
the brain, the synovial fluid that nourishes the joints, the
lubrication of the lungs and heart and the protective lining of
the stomach.
Kapha is aggravated by sweet, sour and salty
flavours (as they increase moisture), at the beginning of a meal,
morning and afternoon, by greed and possessiveness, in winter, in
childhood, from a damp and cold climate and from sleeping in the
day.
Dhatus
The dhatus form the basic structure of
the body. There are seven in number and each has its own
function. Mala are metabolic end products, which serve to support
the functions of the body and are then excreted. The tridosha
should be in a state of perfect equilibrium for the body to
remain healthy. Any imbalance of these bio-energetic forces
results in ill health. Ayurveda places particular emphasis on the
individual constitution or prakriti, which is determined by the
unique combination of the tridoshas, genetic factors, the health,
nutrition, lifestyle and life experiences of the mother as well
as the pancha mahabhuta (five elements) that make up the
foetus.
Proper hygiene, diet and lifestyle are essential
prerequisites for good health. Treatment is tailored to the
individual in question. The starting point is to determine your
constitution.
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