What is Ayurveda?

Ayurveda is such an important life force to me, as I credit it with fostering my spiritual growth. Without discovering it 3 years ago, I’m not sure where exactly I’d be today! So what is Ayurveda? As one of the oldest holistic healing systems, its origins are rooted in what is now referred to as India over 5000 years ago. Ayurveda literally translates to the “science of life” and is one of the most comprehensive forms of traditional medicine in the world, influencing many approaches to health that have come after it, from the Ancient Greeks to Traditional Chinese Medicine. Ayurveda helps us connect to our natural body rhythms mirrored in the larger natural cycles of life. The more we tap into what our bodies naturally want, the more we can live a life of health, harmony, and wellness.

Samkhya Philosophy is the Vedic spiritual science that forms the basis of Ayurveda. It is one of six classical schools of Indian philosophy, which also forms the basis of yoga. It was created by the great seer Kapila, with its main text written by Samkhya Karika around 200 A.D. This philosophy that underlines Ayurveda consists of the 24 cosmic principles, or tattvas, which I will briefly outline below.

One of the central tenets of Ayurveda, reflected in the 24 Tattvas , is that energy informs matter, not the other way around. If we think about this in the context of food, for example, while the food itself as matter is important, the energy surrounding it is even more significant. Where did it come from? How and when was it prepared? What are the circumstances surrounding the eating of the food? Let’s keep this in mind as we explore the Tattvas of Ayurveda.

24 Tattvas of Ayurveda

Prakriti

Everything begins with Prakriti, primordial nature. Prakriti is the basic substance of the universe, both gross and subtle. This “first power of action” consists of three gunas - Sattva or harmony, Rajas (action), and Tamas (resistance). Everything in the universe consists of a combination of the three gunas.

Mahat & Ahamkara

Next we have Mahat, or Cosmic intelligence - the Creator, God, Divine Mind, through which all manifestation occurs. Then we move onto Ahamkara - the ego or the “I” fabrication. Notice before we have the concept of self, there is primordial nature, and then the cosmic intelligence which creates what we can perceive. This Ahamkara is a process, not an intrinsic reality. Through it, Prakriti and Mahat are able to take on specific forms, and nature can diversify into the senses, the organs of action, and the five elements.

Manas - Conditioned Mind

Before we move into the senses, there must be a Manas or conditioned mind to allow for coordination of activity and energy. This includes the principle of emotion and imagination, and connects us to the outer world through the senses. Keeping this in mind, our emotions, imagination, and overall perception are powerful in that they can greatly affect our experience of the world, they are not just a result of what we take in.

5 Tanmantras

The five Tanmantras or primal measures come next, they are the root energies of sight, sound, touch, taste and smell; the root of all sensory and elemental potentials. According to Ayurveda, they are emitted on a subtle level by all things in the world. These Tanmatras are the subtle forms of the five elements before they differentiate into gross objects.

5 Sense Organs

Next come the five sense organs, the potentials for the mental experience of the outer world.
The ears, organ of sound, are associated with the element of ether.
The skin, the organ of touch, air.
Eyes, organ of sight, fire.
Tongue, organ of taste, water.
And the nose is the organ of smell, associated with the element of earth.

5 Organs of Action

The five organs of action follow the five sense organs. These are only expressive, allowing for the manifestation of ideas to occur. According to Ayurveda, the body is a vehicle specifically designed to allow for certain actions to be accomplished so the mind can gain experience.
The mouth expresses, and is associated with ether and the sense of sound.
Hands grasp, are associated with air and touch.
Feet are responsible for motion, associated with fire and sight.
Urinogential organs are associated with emission, water, and taste.
And finally the anus is associated with elimination, the element of earth, and smell.

Some place sexual function as earth and elimination as water.
Some place male sexual function as earth, female as water.

The 5 Great Elements - Earth, Water Fire, Air, Ether

The last five Tattvas represent the five great elements, which according to Ayurveda are manifestations of ideas.

Earth is solid, representing solidity, stability, and resistance in action. It gives form to things.
Water is liquid, representing liquidity, flowing motion, allowing for life.
Fire is radiant, bringing forth light, perception, movement. It is responsible for time.
Air is gaseous and represents subtle movement, direction, velocity, change, giving the basis for thought.
Ether is etheric, bringing forth connection, interchange between all material mediums, communication, self-expression. It is responsible for the concept of space.

ETHER is the original element. It derives from mind, which is a form of subtle space, and is its outer manifestation.
Through movement ether becomes AIR, which is nothing but the idea of motion inherent in the idea of space.
Air through repeated movement creates friction that becomes FIRE, which manifests the idea of illumination inherent in the idea of movement.
Fire through densification becomes WATER, which manifests the idea of life inherent in the idea of illumination.
Water as it coagulates becomes EARTH, which manifests the idea of form inherent in the idea of life.

Now that we have an understanding of the 24 Tattvas that form the basis of Ayurveda, we can move onto the Doshas, one of its central concepts.

The Doshas in Ayurveda - What is a Dosha?

Doshas are the three primary life forces within the body. They produce the body and are also causative factors in the disease process. Dosha comes from the Sanskrit root “dush,” to spoil, because when doshas are out of balance, they bring about disease.

In Ayurveda, there are 3 doshas, or biological humours - Vata, Pitta, Kapha, corresponding to air, fire, and water. All of us contain all three Doshas in the body, but most of us have an imbalance of one or two. We each have a basic nature or constitution, called Prakriti. When it’s in balance, we have health. Our doshas are part of our prakriti, so let’s learn about them!

Vata Dosha

Vata means wind, and on the level of its etymology, “that which moves things.” Composed primarily of air but also ether, it is the prime force of the nervous system, governs sensory and mental balance, as well as motor orientation. It is the motivating force behind the other two doshas and the life-force that moves the mind.

Vata resides in the empty spaces in the body, primarily the colon but also the thighs, hips, ears, bones, and organs of hearing and touch. Its qualities are dry, light, cold, mobile, agitated, rough, and subtle.

Pitta Dosha

Pitta represents bile, and means “that which digests things.” Its Sanskrit root is “tap” meaning to heat, cook or transform. The primary element of Pitta is fire with water as its secondary element. Pitta is responsible for all chemical and metabolic transformations in the body, mental digestion, and our capacity to perceive reality and understand things as they are.

It derives from our power to digest food and mostly consists of digestive bodily fluids and blood. Its primary site in the body is the small intestine, but is also found in the stomach, sweat, sebaceous glands, blood, lymph, and in the eyes. Pitta qualities include oily, moist, sharp, penetrating, hot, light, unpleasant in odour (sour, fleshy, think acidic), mobile (but not agitated like Vata), and liquid.

Kapha Dosha

Kapha is the biological water humour, phlegm, and etymologically means “that which holds things together.” Kapha dosha is responsible for stickiness and adhesion in the body. It gives nourishment, provides substance, gives support, and makes up the bulk of our bodily tissues.

Kapha serves as a container for the other two doshas. It is found in the skin and tissue linings, primarily in the stomach. Kapha is also located in the chest, throat, head, pancreas, sides, lymph, fat, nose, and tongue. The qualities of Kapha are wet, moist, cold, heavy, dull, sticky, soft, fixed, and slow.

Balancing the Doshas

According to the principles of Ayurveda, nothing can exist without a cause. Cause and effect is Karma, the basic law of action in the universe. In ourselves, most of these causes and effects arise from the ego, which causes us to deviate from the basic laws of nature.

Ayurveda operates with simple karmic rules - like increases like and opposites create balance by curing each other.
With this in mind, let’s look into how one would go about balancing the doshas. With an imbalance of Pitta, or excess Pitta, we would focus on reducing the qualities of Pitta being taken in through food, the environment, and behaviour while increasing the qualities of the other Doshas, Vata and Kapha.

Since Pitta is primarily moist, hot, and light, we might start by beginning to increase things of a cooling nature, as both Vata and Kapha have the property of being cold. This could mean cold in terms of temperature, but also in overall essence. Drinking peppermint tea could be one solution, as peppermint has cooling properties. Reducing spicy, oily, and fried foods would also help, as well as engaging in grounding practices such as meditation where one connects to breath or Prana (Vata) that ideally enters the diaphragm or stomach, the primary site of Kapha, inviting in a heavy stillness that we would associate with Kapha Dosha.

What’s my Dosha?

I’m sure after all this, you’re wondering what your Dosha is. The best way to determine your Dosha would be to consult an Ayurvedic doctor or health professional.

You can also contact me for a consultation, or try an online quiz like the one offered by Banyan Botanicals. Although it’s not a replacement for a proper consultation, I have found it to be quite accurate!

What’s your Dosha? Does it resonate with you? Let me know in the comments below!