AYURVEDA AND OUR HEALTH

The following information is an extract provided to participants during the Neeki Foundation Ayurveda and our Health week long seminar.

“Health is not the absence of disease but the alignment of the physical, emotional and spiritual bodies”

See attachments in Persian and English.

By: Lolo Khashaghaghi

FIRST SESSION: BASICS OF AYURVEDA

Ayurveda means the Knowledge of Longevity or the Wisdom of Life.

Ayur: Life/Longevity

Veda: Knowledge/Wisdom

According to Ayurveda Health is not only the absence of disease but it is the alignment between the physical body, emotional/mental body and spiritual body.

Ayurveda discusses daily and seasonal practices to ensure your optimum health.

1. The Five Elements:

According to Ayurveda everything in the universe is made of a combination of the following five elements.

• Space: concept of emptiness and void
• Air: concept of movement and flow
• Fire: concept of radiance, warmth, transformation
• Water: concept of mending, connection and togetherness
• Earth: concept of structure and stability

Qualities of each of the elements:

• Space: empty, cold, light, dry
• Air: moving, cold, light, dry
• Fire: bright, warm, light, dry
• Water: mending, cold, heavy, moist
• Earth: stable, cold, heavy, dry

Elements and the Fives Senses:

• Space: sound
• Air: touch
• Fire: sight
• Water: taste
• Earth: smell

1. The Three Doshas:

In Ayurveda we talk in the terms of DOSHA. Dosha literally means “that which causes decay”. Each Dosha is a combination of two elements and therefore will have the qualities of these two elements.

• VATA: Space + Air: moving, cold, light, dry
• PITTA: Fire+ Water: warm, medium, oily
• KAPHA: Water + Earth: heavy, cold, moist

Physical Qualities of each Dosha in an Individual:

VATA: thin and flexible frame, either too tall or too short, underweight, small muscles, low stamina, on the move, restless, dry and dull skin, dry and/or curly hair, cold extremities, grayish teeth, brittle nails, could have twitches, variable appetite, light sleep, does not like cold and windy climate

PITTA: medium frame, good muscle tone, puts on weight easily and loses weight easily, warm body, rosy or yellowish complexion, freckles and moles, thinning or early graying hair, slightly yellowish teeth, rosy nails, perspire easily, strong appetite, sound sleep, do not like hot and humid climate

KAPHA: large frame, strong body, broad chest, puts on weight easily, slow metabolism, very good stamina, large eyes, thick and lustrous hair and eyelashes, cold and moist skin, white teeth, strong nails, deep sleep, slow movements, has a hard time in cold and humid climate

Psychological Qualities of each Dosha:

VATA: grasps the concepts quickly but forgets quickly, creative, artistic, prolific imagination, entertaining, fast speech, enthusiastic, irregular routines, impatient, forgetful, disconnected, sensitive, loner, agitated, prone to anxiety and insomnia.

PITTA: understands and analyzes the concepts, good planner, regular routines, good leader, precise speech, generous, humanitarian, intelligent, good memory, good investigative mind, perfectionist, ambitious, critical, controlling, unforgiving of mistakes (others and self), competitive, workaholic, prone to anger and irritability.

KAPHA: retains the concepts, good emotional memory, compassionate, motherly, sweet and loving, tolerant, patient, forgiving, gentle speech, good endurance, few daily routines, good follower, grounded: here and now, co-dependant, high emotional and/or material attachment, possessive, lethargic, prone to depression.

Health Challenges for each Dosha:

VATA: constipation, stomach distention, insomnia from too much restlessness, lower back pain and stiffness, small joints stiffness and pain, cracking joints, muscle cramps, arthritis, sharp and moving pain, dry and itchy eczema, irritable bowel syndrome, ulcerative colitis, palpitations, fear and anxiety, paranoia, panic attacks.

PITTA: diarrhea, hypoglycemia, infections, inflammations, fever, acid reflux, stomach ulcer, liver and/or gall bladder problems, eye problems, heart and circulation problems, anger, irritability, insomnia from thinking too much.

KAPHA: edema, water retention, phlegm and mucous in chest and lungs, sinus congestion, diabetes, obesity, hypertension, tumors and growths, blockages (colon, lymphatic glands and nodes, etc..), loss of taste and smell.

Site of each Dosha in the body:

Each Dosha manifests preferably in its own site. This allows us to follow the imbalances in the specific areas of our body and remedy them more efficiently.

VATA: colon, kidneys, bones, small joints, lungs, ears, nervous system

PITTA: small intestine, liver, gall bladder, tendons, eyes, heart and circulatory system

KAPHA: chest, bigger joints, fat tissue, synovial fluids, pancreas, salivary glands, lymphatic

system

“Ayurveda balances each quality with the opposite quality”

Balancing Qualities for each Dosha:

When we are aware of any Dosha is rising in our life/body/environment we can invite the opposite qualities into our life to balance the rise of that Dosha. For example during a dry and windy winter we should add more moisture, stability and warmth into our life (our house, our daily routines, our surrounding) and body (diet, skin, clothing, physical activities).

VATA: warmth, moisture, regularity, follow daily routines, eat regular meals, eat cooked food, favor mostly sweet/salty and sour tastes, do not eat too much salad and greens, do not fast, add more oil and water in your body and on your body, take care of your constipation, stay in touch, do not neglect yourself, do grounding practices, slow down, calm down, rest, meditate, focus, visualize continuity and connectedness.

PITTA: cooling down (physically and emotionally), eat less hot spices and more green food, stay away from fried and greasy food, decrease the salt intake, favor sweet/bitter and astringent tastes, play with the water, practice more non-competitive sports, stay away from sun, do not push yourself too hard, practice forgiveness and non-judgment, delegate, have more fun and lighten-up, be silly, laugh at yourself.

KAPHA: move, move, move, have a regular exercise program, warm-up your meals with spices, favor pungent/bitter and astringent tastes, decrease your sugar and fat intake, decrease dairy milk and cheese, drink warm and hot drinks, do not take naps, get-up at sunrise, practice detachment, clean-up your closets once a year and throw away unused stuff, push yourself further each day.

Twenty Opposite Qualities for Balance:

Once we find any of these qualities rising in our body (because of the outside environment, seasons, age, diet, psychological impacts, activities, etc…) we should try to balance it with the opposite quality (using the outside world, diet, daily lifestyle and routine, psychological affirmations, etc…).

Heavy Light

Oily Dry

Stable Mobile

Slimy Rough

Gross Subtle

Cold Hot

Slow Sharp

Soft Hard

Dense Liquid

Cloudy Clear

How do we define a balanced Person?

At the time of our conception, there is a specific combination of the three Doshas that come into play and compose what we call our Prakruti. Our Prakruti is an ensemble of qualities that make us who we are. For example our hazel eyes, our height, the shape of our nose or our eyes, etc.

Throughout our live we are influenced by our diet, activities, professional specificities, relationships, marital life, etc. These influences increase some of the Doshas from times to time. For example a person who has to travel for this work contributes to the increase of Vata Dosha in his body. This can affect his sleep, his digestion, his concentration, etc. This new state of the Doshas and the new amount of each Dosha in our body is called Vikruti.

The state of balance is when Vikruti is brought as close to the Prakruti as possible.