Ayurveda

Ayurveda is an Indian holistic system of health dating back 5000 years. The word itself is derived from the Sanskrit words for ‘knowledge’ (veda) and ‘life’ (ayur). Ayurveda is founded on a doctrine of the five elements (space, air, fire, water, earth) which combine to form the three primordial doshas (energies) of Vata, Pitta and Kapha. It takes a holistic approach, seeing body, mind and soul as a single entity.

Ayurveda’s wisdom is as relevant today as it was 5000 years ago, offering us a ‘Users Manual’ for how to stay balanced and healthy.

Some of the benefits Ayurveda:

How to determine your dosha (psychosomatic) constitution
How to follow tailored diet and lifestyle advice to stay balanced.
Daily and seasonal advice on keeping the doshas balance.
An understanding of the real root cause of disease and how to avoid them.
Preventative advice on diseases you might be especially prone to.
The importance of a healthy digestive system and how to maintain it.
What type of Yoga is best for you (eg: Bikram Yoga is too heating for Pitta types)
How to adapt to changing circumstances, such as conception, pregnancy or growing older.
Advice on how to rejuvenate the body and mind post illness.

Background Philosophy

Ayurvedic philosophy revolves around the concept that everything in the universe is made up of varying proportions of five basic elements:

Space/ether – is empty, allowing movement and communication. Includes all space in the body include mouth, nose, gastrointestinal tract, lungs and abdomen. It is associated with sound and the sense of hearing. A dietary example predominant in this element is popcorn.
Air is energy and is responsible for all movement within the body. It governs the nervous system and is responsible for respiration, ingestion and elimination. It is responsible for the sense of touch and the skin. Examples include the various gases in the body and pulses which can create gases!
Fire is radiant energy and is responsible for body temperature, transformation, digestion, absorption and assimilation of thoughts as well as food. It is associated with the sense of vision and the eye. Includes all spices, such as ginger, pepper, and garlic.
Water is fluid and binds everything together. It is anything fluid in the body such as plasma, intercellular fluid, urine, sweat and saliva and is responsible for the sense of taste. Diet examples include milk and fruits.
Earth gives stability, structure, strength and stamina to our bodies in the form of bones, teeth, skin etc. and is responsible for the sense of smell and the nose. Diet examples are rice, wheat, carrots, and beetroot.

This may seen simplistic but it is a sophisticated way to classify all matter found on earth, as well as natural cycles such as seasons, childhood, adulthood and old age. This is due to different elements dominating at different times. For example, during childhood, Kapha dosha naturally predominates, in adulthood it is Pitta that is dominant, and in old age it is Vata.

The Ayurvedic doshas (psychosomatic constitution)

“Just as everyone has a unique fingerprint, each person has a particular pattern of energy- an individual combination of physical, mental and emotional characteristics- which comprises their own constitution.” (Dr Vasant Lad, The Ayurveda Institute)

A person is said to have a particular ‘dosha’ depending on the predominance of the 5 basic elements in his body:

Vata (predominant in space & air elements) – the energy of movement which is dry, light, cold, rough, subtle, mobile, and clear.

People with a predominance of Vata dosha have quick, creative minds but they often forget equally fast. They also talk walk and talk fast but are easily fatigued as they are not very good at holding on to their energy. They tend to have less willpower, confidence and tolerance and may feel ungrounded. Physically, they tend to be lightweight, with narrow bones, dry skin, and often feel cold. Unbalanced, they are prone to anxiety, diseases of the large intestine (main seat of vata), immune system, nervous system, joints, constipation, anxiety, colitis, arthritis, irregular periods, and Chronic Fatigue Syndrome.

Pitta (predominant in fire & water) – the energy of digestion and metabolism which is hot, oily, light, mobile, dispersing, liquid, penetrating, sharp and agitating.

People with a predominance of Pitta dosha have penetrating ideas and sharp intelligence. Physically, they have warm bodies of moderate weight, with good muscle tone, and they sweat easily. One way to spot a Pitta predominance is premature greying and hair loss (excess heat in the head region). Out of balance they become agitated and short tempered, prone to heated emotions, and diseases of the small intestine, liver, spleen, thyroid, eyes, blood, hepatitis, hyperthyroidism, and skin problems.

Kapha (predominant in earth & water) – the energy of lubrication and structure which is oily, sticky, cold, heavy, coarse, stable, motionless, smooth and white.

Kapha types are blessed with strength, endurance and stamina. They are calm, tolerant and forgiving. They may be slower to learn but have excellent long term memory. They may be prone to weight gain as they have slower metabolisms, and a tendency not to exercise enough. Unbalanced (eg: due to excess weight loss) they are prone to greed, envy, melancholy, lethargy, depression, diseases of the stomach, lungs, pancreas and sinuses, diabetes, water retention, nausea, and mucous conditions.

The three gunas

Ayurveda also assesses the quality of a person’s mind and character, beyond their physical doshic constitution. All three types are present in all, just as with the doshas, and we alternate between dominant states depending on their diet and lifestyle. There is a powerful link between the physical body and mind so doshas will affect the mind, and gunas can affect the physical body.

Sattvic (knowledge, purity) people are calm, gentle, tolerant and spiritual
Rajasic (action, passion) people are passionate, materialistic, ambitious and grasping
Tamasic (inertia, ignorance)people are ingnorant, lazy, dishonest and lacking in hygiene!

To summarise

We all have (and need) the doshic qualities of vata, pitta and kapha though one is usually dominant
We all have the guna qualities of sattva, rajas and tamas. The goal is to become more sattvic
We get unbalanced by diet, emotions, lifestyle, seasons, physical trauma, and toxins though body, mind and consciousness work together in maintaining balance
Ayurveda prescribes different regimens for each individual to maintain doshic balance and become more sattvic.

Ayurvedic view on health, disease and treatment

Ayurveda views that the human body, when healthy, is in harmony, self-perpetuating and self-correcting just as the universe is. In contrast to the western system of medicine, which is mainly geared to treating symptoms, Ayurveda seeks to help the individual strengthen mind and body to prolong life and prevent illness. Great emphasis is placed on identifying and treating the root physical or mental cause of symptoms which have caused the doshas to get unbalanced. Ayurvedic philosophy gives us three key causes of imbalance leading to disease in the form of making the wrong decisions (eg: wrong diet), the effects of time (eg: ageing) and misuse of the senses (excess/ improper or too little use of each sense). Signs of the doshas being well balanced include:

Sound sleep and easy, natural awakening
Good appetite, digestion and absorption
Regular bowel movements, starting before breakfast each day
Sparkling eyes and glowing skin
A calm, clear mind
A feeling of cheerfullness
Freedom from addictions
Energy to work and exercise regularly
Good immunity

Treatments include herbal formulations, massage and other detoxification techniques. These are combined with a strong emphasis on a balanced lifestyle and a diet right for each individual to prevent recurrence of symptoms. To take a simple example, a person with a cold is suffering from congestion and mucous due to excess water and earth elements in their system. To alleviate symptoms they take ginger tea, predominant in the fire element. They would also do well to avoid dairy and cold foods which would make their congestion worse.

For more chronic, serious diseases an individual may require deep detoxification, or ‘Panchakarma’ (5 actions). This is a series of 5 cleansing therapies (Emesis, Purgation, Oil and Decoction enemas and Nasya, or drops of medicine in the nose). These remove deep-seated toxins and stress from the body and mind, whilst balancing Vata, Pitta and Kapha.

Balancing doshas through diet

Proper digestive health (agni) is at the heart of Ayurveda and is the first step for all. Most of us have ‘ama’(undigested matter) in our bodies, which is at the root of many sign of physical and mental imbalance. Signs of ama include a coating on tongue and feelings of heaviness, especially after eating. An optimal dietary regimen combines a sattvic diet with a diet appropriate for one’s dosha:

Vata types have variable appetite & digestion, often attracted to astringent foods (salad & raw vegetables) but balanced by warm, heavy, slightly oily, nourishing diet with sweet, sour and salty taste. Regular meal times are important, and one pot meals (soups, stews, casseroles, kitchadi. Avoid frozen, cold or raw foods; eat warm foods and spices.
Pitta types have strong metabolism and appetite, liking plenty of food and liquids, hot, spicy food and cold drinks. Balanced by mildly spiced diet, with sweet, bitter, astringent tastes (to calm their natural aggression and compulsion), heavy or nourishing and slightly dry. Vegetarianism is well suited to pitta types, and avoiding salt, coffee, alcohol and tobacco. Ghee is excellent. Limit salt intake; eat cooling, non-spicy foods, avoid alcohol and caffeine.
Kapha types have slow digestion, and are attracted to sweet, salty, oily foods but are balanced by bitter, astringent and pungent tastes. They need foods to invigorate the mind, and light, dry, spicy diet, and a vigorous exercise regime. Avoid heavy, oily foods, dairy, iced food and drinks. Eat light and dry foods.

Come on a cooking workshop to learn more!

“A person having equilibrium of doshas, agnis (digestive fire), dhatus (tissue), mala (wastes) and kriyas, and a person who is possessed by spiritual, sensual and mental happiness is called a healthy person.” (Sushruta, founding father of surgery, 2BCE-1CE)

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