Ayurveda

Ayurveda is the ancient Indian science of life. Much more than a system of medicines for ailments, it consists of a body of wisdom designed to help people stay healthy while living their life to its full potential.

Ayurvedic philosophy holds that the mind and the body are fundamentally connected, and that nothing has more power to heal than the mind. Ayurveda teaches us how to connect with and balance the life force within.

The essence of Ayurveda is a way of life, a holistic approach to health and well-being.  It is an ancient system of rejuvenation of both the body and mind.

Ayurveda is considered to be the sister science of yoga, and as we are also a Yoga Centre, we are well-placed to provide you with an overall program for your overall health and well-being.

Disease is born when the mind is constantly in flux between the past and the future, causing stress, anxiety and depression.  Ayurveda and yoga therapy help to bring the mind back to the present into a calm state, where healing can naturally occur.

The treatments that we offer are based on Ayurveda’s holistic views of the body, which covers lifestyle issues, diet, mental attitudes and a person’s individual constitution.  According to Ayurveda, your constitution is determined by your body type, or dosha.

There are three types of doshas – vata, pitta and kapha, and it is the way in which they are combined in each individual that makes a person unique.  Our trained therapists can help to analyse your body type and determine appropriate treatments according to this.

Want to know your own constitution?  Read our next section on Self-diagnosis.

1. Determining your body type In order to determine your body-type you first need to understand the doshas. The universe and all its components are made up of a combination of the five great elements, or five states of matter:  earth, water, fire, air and space.  The Tridosha, or three energies, are made up of these five elements, and are an indication of the constitution of each person’s body type.  The table below shows the properties, functions and locations:  vata, pitta and kapha.  Every person is a combination of these three energies, with one being predominant.  The purpose of this table is to create an awareness and understanding the Ayurveda point of view of one’s fundamental health.

   Vata (air + space)	Pitta (fire + water)	Kapha (water + earth)
   Properties:  dry, light, cold, rough, subtle, minute, moving	Properties:  slightly oily, light, hot, penetrating, unpleasant odour, spreading nature, liquid	Properties:  oily, heavy, cold, slow acting, slimy, firm, smooth
   Physical functions:  motion, breathing, natural urges, speech, tissue transformation, senses, secretions and excretions, blood circulation, pulsation, nervous system.	Physical functions:  digestion, metabolism, hormones, enzymes, vision, hunger, thirst, colour complexion, temperature	Physical functions:  solid body structure, organ coating, lubrication, strength, potency
   Mental functions:  fear, anxiety, impulses, pain, enthusiasm, alertness	Mental functions:  thinking, intelligence, understanding, perception, desire, courage, bravery, anger	Mental functions:  enthusiasm, forbearance, sexual urges, forgiveness, attachment, courage, passion, stability, greed
   Primary locations:  intestines and lower body	Primary locations:  navel and stomach area	Primary locations:  chest, head and neck area (above the heart)

   Your inherent nature (prakriti) – You are unique! The Tridosha make up one’s constitution, or prakriti (inherent nature), which determines how to accept, process and absorb the food we eat, as well as how to respond to the environment around us.  Each individual physical and mental body is determined by the relative proportions of the three doshas at the time of fertilization.  When the embryo is formed, the constitution is determined. Unique constitutions mean that each person is different in their own way.  This is why a diet programme can work well for some and not at all for others; why some people get ill during certain seasons while others do not; why some eat a little and gain weight while others eat a lot and do not gain any; why some get tired after little physical work whereas others seem to be endowed with an inexhaustible store of energy; and so on. According to Ayurveda there are seven main constitutions with one or more predominant doshas:

   1. Vata predominant
   2. Pitta predominant
   3. Kapha predominant
   4. Vata-pitta predominant
   5. Pitta-kapha predominant
   6. Kapha-vata predominant
   7. Vata-pitta-kapha in equal balance (a rare occurrence).

   Understand your prakriti Below is a list of the physical and mental traits of each dosha.

   TRAITS	Vata	Pitta	Kapha
   PHYSICAL TRAITS
   Body frame/type	Thin, lean	Medium, athletic	Large, stocky
   Hair	Curly, dry, thick	Straight, grey, bald	Silky, thick, oily
   Eyes	Small, unsteady	Sharp, reddish	Large, oval, clear
   Lips	Thin, dry, cracked	Pink, medium, soft	Full, smooth
   Skin	Thin, dry, rough, cold	Smooth and warm	Normal, cool
   Body Temperature	Cold when touched	Hot when touched	Norma, cool
   Weight	Lose easy, gain hard	Steady, slow change	Gain easy, lose hard
   Hunger	Unpredictable	Strong every 4 hours	Regular
   Cravings	Caffeine, sugar	Spicy, intense foods	Ice cream, cheese
   Digestion/elimination	Regular constipation	Rare constipation	Slow, steady, regular
   Sleep	Light, restless	Sleep well 7-8 hours	Deep, hard to wake
   Exercise	Run, dance, move	Competitive sports	Mild, gentle
   Sweat	Hard to sweat	Sweat easily	Regular
   Movement	Quick, light step	Average, strong step	Slow, steady steps
   MENTAL TRAITS
   Temperament	Lively, enthusiastic	Motivated, intense	Relaxed, accepting
   Learning	Breadth over depth	Analytical, in-depth	Common topics
   Memory	Quick grasp and loss	Sharp, clear	Slow grasp, not lost
   Work	Independent/creative	Leads, likes to be boss	Employee, guided
   Projects	Rarely completed	Sets goals, executes	Take time, completed
   Emotion under stress	Anxiety, fear, worry	Angry, irritable, jealous	Laziness, withdrawal
   Decision-making	Difficult, overthinking	Quick, confident	After contemplation
   Communication	Fast talker	Direct, persuasive	Calm, deep voice
   Lifestyle	Unattached, mobile	Busy, well-structured	Routine, constant
   Weather	Dislikes cold, winter	Dislike heat, humidity	Dislikes cool, rain
   Faith and beliefs	Ever changeable	Strong, extremist	Stable/set in stone
   Interest/motivation	Art, travel, experience	Sport, business, politics	Comfort, family, food

   So, after having read this table

   WHAT IS YOUR CONSTITUTION?