Understanding Ayurveda, Part I
Written by Kim Deschamps | Aug 14, 2019
In this 2-Part Blog Series Kim Deschamps shares from her resources and knowledge on Ayurveda and the benefits of a well-rounded approach to nutrition and digestion to best support your health and well-being.
Part 1: Understanding Ayurveda
Knowledge shared from The Everyday Ayurveda: A Seasonal Guide to Eating and Living Well. By Kate O’Donnell
What is Ayurveda?
Pronounced “EYE-yer-VAY-da”, Ayurveda can be loosely translated as “the science of life.” The classic texts, however, describe Ayur, or “life,” as being made up of four parts: the physical body, the mind, the soul, and the senses (sight, hearing, touch, smell, and taste). Contrary to the Western model, which focuses on the physical body and more commonly now takes into account the importance of the mind, Ayurveda has always taken in account the health of these four aspects of life and the need to listen, acknowledge and be kind to our whole being.
Ayurveda, the health system of India, employs diet, biorhythms, herbal medicine, psychology, wholesome lifestyle, surgery, and therapeutic bodywork to address the root causes of disease. The science describes the disease process from early symptoms to the end of life. It includes prevention and treatments for ailments of eight therapeutic branches:
Internal medicine
Surgery
Gynecology/obstetrics/paediatrics
Two varieties of geriatrics, rejuvenation of the body and rejuvenation of the sexual energy
Psychology
Toxicology
Disorders of the eyes, ears, nose, and mouth.
Ayurvedic hospitals and clinics are typically found in India, but are becoming more common here in North America. Western medicine is often used in conjunction with traditional medicine, especially in cases of critical ailments. While Western medicine excels at resolving acute situations, Ayurveda excels as a preventative medicine, seeking to halt the progression from imbalance by addressing the under lying causes early on. Used alongside Western medicine, Ayurveda can support digestion, the immune system, and the patient’s state of mind during treatment.
How Does it Work?
Ayurveda recognizes that the human being is a microcosm (a small part; a reflection) of the macrocosm (the big picture; the universe). The human body is made up of the same elements that make up everything else around us, and we are moved by the energies or forces that move the oceans, the winds, the stars, and the planets.
This world operates in rhythm – for example, the cycles of the sun, moon, tides, and seasons – and so do we. The introduction of artificial light, global food transportation, and a schedule so busy that we don’t notice nature’s rhythms makes it easy to get out of sync.
If a person acts as if he or she is separate from the rhythms of the macrocosm, marching to his or her own drummer (by eating tropical fruits in the winter, for example, or foods primarily from bags and boxes; staying up all night; and/or breathing recycled air), the organism will get wacky. If the movements of our world are a river we are floating in, why swim upstream? You start to feel tired, don’t digest your food well, and, over time, end up “out of order.”
What’s Food Got to Do with It?
Digestion is of paramount importance in Ayurveda. The complete digestion, absorption, and assimilation of food nutrients make up the building blocks of the body, called ahara rasa, the juice of the food. When the food is chewed and swallowed, it mixes with water, enzymes, and acids. The resulting products – food matter ready to be assimilated – is the “juice.” To assimilate nature’s bounty into the body connects the microcosm to the macrocosm. Good digestion results not only in a glowing, healthy body but in a glowing consciousness as well. If you are just beginning to understand Ayurveda, it may be easier to become aware of what you are eating and how it makes you feel than it is to realize whether you are “connected.” The feelings of connection and wholeness are fostered by a good diet and a good gut, and isn’t that what everybody wants? A 3-5-day food diary can be very helpful with identifying how your body and mind are reacting to the foods that you are fueling your body with.
What Does It Have to Do with Yoga?
Yoga and Ayurveda stem from the same philosophical roots and evolve around the same time in history. They also share the same goal: to create a union between microcosm and macrocosm. The philosophy of yoga provides a pathway for navigating the mind/body organism toward an understanding of itself as being unified with the universe. The science of Ayurveda focuses primarily on maintaining the physical body, but the link between consciousness and health is clear. Yoga, popular these days for its physical benefits, has traditionally focused more on accessing the mental and energy bodies. Yoga movements and breathing techniques may be employed by Ayurveda to stimulate an organ or system of organs or to ease stress. The further one journeys down the limb of Ayurveda that specializes in psychology, the more one is likely to run into the philosophical system of yoga.
How Does Ayurveda View the Body?
In Ayurveda, human anatomy starts with the five elements: air, fire, water, space (also called “ether”), and earth. The elements create three compounds that govern specific functions and energies in the body, namely: movement, transformation, and cohesion (holding things together). When these compounds, known as doshas, are in balance and working harmoniously, the individual will enjoy smooth moving processes (digestion, circulation, etc), clear senses, proper elimination of wastes, and happiness.
Each of these five elemental compounds manifest as certain felt qualities in the body that one can recognize simply by paying attention to bodily sensations. For example, air and space are cold and light, fire is hot and sharp, and earth and water are heavy and moist. Too much or too little of a grouping of qualities brings on imbalance in the body. A prevalence of dry and light qualities, for instance, will result in dry skin. Ayurveda manages imbalance by introducing opposite qualities and reducing like qualities. In the case of dry skin, introducing moist, heavy foods and reducing dry and light foods will alleviate the symptom.
So What Are Doshas?
Most people who have heard of Ayurveda have heard of the doshas. Dosha literally means “that which is at fault.” But doshas aren’t a problem until imbalance has been hanging around in the body awhile. These energies do good or ill, depending on whether they are in a relative state of balance. That’s why it is more important to understand how to maintain balance than it is to dwell on dashas as the bad guys.
There are three doshas, known as vata, pitta, and kapha. These are the compounds that naturally arise when the five elements come together in certain combinations to make up a human organism. Each performs a specific function in the body and manifests as a recognizable grouping of qualities.
VATA (VA-tah) is the energy of movement.
PITTA (PITT-ah) is the energy of transformation.
KAPHA (CUP-hah) is the energy of structure and lubrication together; cohesion (think glue)
Vata
VA-tah : the energy of movement
Vata is responsible for all bodily movements. Vata is made up of air and ether. Essentially, vata is the free moving energy throughout our entire being. If there is any disturbances in any mobility within the body, Vata is usually involved. Because of its mobile quality, Vata dosha is the easiest dosha to get out of balance and the most important dosha to bring back to balance. The elements, air and ether promote circulation, gastro-intestinal (GI) motility, central nervous system (CNS) motility, motility of cognition (thoughts), communication and speech, respiration and sensory perception.
The most common signs of an imbalance in Vata include: constipation, gas, bloating, numbness and tingling, pain, malabsorption, insomnia, and increased ‘noise’ in your cognition (i.e. difficulty concentrating on one thing). It is so important for Vata types to stay grounded otherwise the air and ether can get trapped. Major causes of Vata imbalance include: irregular schedule, poor nutrition choices, reduced nutrition amount, and poor frequency in sleep schedule.
HEALTHY VATA ENSURES THAT THE BODY HAS
Consistent elimination
Free breathing
Good circulation
Keen senses
TOO MANY VATA QUALITIES MIGHT CAUSE
Gas and constipation
Constricted breathing
Cold hands and feet
Anxiety, feeling overwhelmed
Pitta
PITT-ah : the energy of transformation
Pitta is made up of fire and water; it resides in the small intestine. The elements of pitta are what is required for digestion, absorption, and assimilation of the GI system. Pitta is also responsible for metabolism, maintenance of body temperature, appetite and thirst, coloration, visual perception, cognition, reasoning, and understanding.
When pitta is out of balance it is common to experience digestive upset such as heartburn, acid indigestion, nausea, ulcers and diarrhea. Other symptoms of pitta imbalance include, inflammation, infection, skin redness and rashes such as acne, psoriasis, or eczema.
Major causes of pitta imbalance include eating too much hot, spicy, and fried, sour or fermented food. The summer months aggravate pitta as well as exposure to toxins, chemicals, or allergens.
HEALTHY PITTA CREATES
Good appetite and metabolism
Steady hormones
Sharp eyesight
Comprehension
Good complexion (rosy skin)
TOO MANY PITTA QUALITIES
Acid indigestion, reflux
Tendency to overwork
Dysmenorrhea
Red, dry eyes; the need for glasses
Acne, rosacea
Kapha
CUP-hah : the energy of structure and lubrication together; cohesion
Kapha is made up of earth and water; it resides in the stomach. The elements of earth and water provide lubrication, growth, strength, stamina, and energy, production of mucus, support and stability, gaseous exchange in lungs, sleep, repair and regeneration.
When the body has too much earth and water it can experience weight gain or obesity, lethargy, colds (congestion, coughs), and water retention (swelling or edema). Kapha is extremely important for nourishment, anything that we can understand as excess is usually an aggravation of Kapha. For example: excessive sweet, salty, sour, oily, or fatty foods, excessive eating/overeating, excessive fluid intake, sleep, and lack of exercise.
HEALTHY KAPHA PROVIDES
Strong bodily tissues
Hearty immune system
Well-lubricated joints and mucous membranes
TOO MANY KAPHA QUALITIES MIGHT CAUSE
Weight gain
Water retention
Sinus or lung congestion
Lethargy and sadness
Everybody should have a hearty dose of all of these qualities and thus healthy, well-functioning bodily processes. One person is fierier and more prone to an acid stomach, another is more spacey and prone to drying out – that’s the truth of variation in nature. The body’s constitution, or particular makeup of the five elements is like DNA and comes mostly from one’s parents. Understanding your constitution can help you understand which of the three compounds is likely to get out of balance in your body, so that you can make choices in your diet and lifestyle that will keep your doshas in check.
It’s easy to focus on dosha, that which is at fault. But categorizing oneself as a specific dosha (“I’m so vata”) or identifying oneself with states of imbalance is not the aim of Ayurvedic wisdom. You may find it more helpful to understand and manage the general causes of imbalance first. To learn more about your doshas and to understand further, you can take this online dosha test at Banyan Botanticals.
Out of interest, and to provide context to the three doshas, here is an explanation of how someone’s doshas would influence osteoarthritis:
Kapha – Joints basically belong to the Kapha. Kapha helps in lubrication of the joints, maintains stability and integrity of the joints. Kapha is basically nutritive (by nature) to the joints. When Kapha morbidity occurs in the form of its decrease, this stability and integrity of the joints is lost, the immunity of the joints too will reduce. The lubrication and wetness of the joint is reduced, and dryness will dominate. Vata and Pitta will get vitiated in this favorable environment; especially Vata will increase in the prevailing dry environment. When Kapha morbidity increases in the joints, fluids accumulate within the joint spaces causing effusion and swelling. Excessive fluidity exerts constant pressure on the joints and soft tissues around. Excessive dampness also sets a suitable environment for infections to occur.
Vata helps in free movements, keeps up the flexibility of the joint, and allows free movements to take place within the components of the joints. Vata conducts this role on the backdrop of a suitable lubrication, integrity and strength provided to the joint by Kapha. Kapha and Vata are antagonistic when not present in mutual agreement of balance. Too much Kapha activity in the joints will lessen the activities of Vata due to lack of free space from the accumulation of excessive fluids. On the contrary, if Vata gains a pathological increase, it will dry off the fluidity of Kapha, causing excessive dryness and set in the degeneration process (breakdown of the joint). The joints quickly get damaged on this backdrop. Pathological reduction of Kapha also provides an environment for aggravation of Vata. Hyper-functioning of Vata in the joints will lead to structural damage, degeneration and pathological fractures along with free broken bodies, crepitus (sounds in the joints), and swelling.
Pitta helps in the metabolism taking place in the joints. It keeps up the warmth of the joint, keeps infections at bay, destroys pathogens, enhances and balances blood flow (and nutrition) to the joints (being located as an active component within the blood). Pitta also provides lubrication to the joint along with Kapha. Pitta balances and buffers between Vata and Kapha. Owning to its hot property, it balances the dual cold elements i.e. Vata and Kapha in the joints. The involvement of doshas in the joint pathology, especially arthritis and musculoskeletal disorders can be known by the signs and symptoms. If Pitta gets involved in the pathological process, inflammation of joints will set in, worsening the condition
It is fascinating to discover these unique pieces to our being so that we can choose appropriate nutrition, activity, self-care routines, supplements, and integrative healthcare to best support our health and wellness in a true holistic focus. There are dosha pacifying diets to help alleviate excessive dosha tendencies with the purpose of finding a state of homeostasis. This is where an Ayurvedic practitioner can provide further support to you. It is important to always consult with your care team when you are adjusting your nutrition to ensure that medications and/or supplements do not adversely interact with certain foods.
Keep exploring the traditions of Ayurveda with me in Part 2 of this blog series…
In health,
Kim Deschamps, Physiotherapist, Yoga Therapist
Kim Deschamps
Physiotherapist
Yoga Therapist
Pelvic Health Therapist
