A philosopher once said, "Body is an instrument of the Self". Body is the material entity while the Self is the conscious entity experiencing the material world. Nobody has ever seen the Self but its presence is felt somewhere inside, somewhere behind our own eyes. You see others as material beings while you see yourself through an entirely different perspective. When you look inside you see the Self & not always your material body.
World is a difficult place to survive. Living organisms feed on plants & other organisms. Not just humans & animals but plants do require an immunization system to survive & exist. Immunization is made by cells & enzymes which fight when microorganisms enter in our body. Lacking these cells will result in bad immunization system & hence our body will become prone to all kinds of diseases.
We as human beings can protect ourselves from macro-organisms, animals & things which are harmful to our health. But our immunization system is continuously fighting with a number of microorganisms that are attacking our body & trying to feed on us. They are present in air through which they easily get into the food we eat & water we drink. We cannot stop them but what we can do is to protect ourselves by making the immunization system strong.
Due to modernization people simply ignore ancient sciences. These days, people consume the medicine & cure themselves. While it is easy to stay careless & accumulate a number of diseases in your body, it is way too difficult to have a body that is free from any problems & illnesses. If you are consuming medicines then you can feel relieved but actually, you are not healthy. There is not much hard work is required to stay healthy. You just need to know yourself & your body and then you are ready to go.
Our body (in fact this whole universe) is made up of these five elements:
- Space
- Air
- Fire
- Water
- Earth
Balancing these five elements in your body will keep you healthy just the way this Earth needs a balance of heat, moisture, light & temperature to sustain the life. Ayurveda is that one science which tells you how you can have a very good health by knowing the type of body you have & issues in your body. First, let’s cover the different body types according to Ayurveda.
- Kapha Type – This type of body is heavy & bulky. People having Kapha dominant in their body are quite obese; they usually have problems related to cough & cold. They feel heavy when they eat something & gain weight very easily. They usually sweat a lot and have oily skin & scalp. They have thicker muscles & bones which are actually not very strong. They are prone to weak immunity.
- Pitta Type – This type of body is thick & strong. People having Pitta dominant in their body have an athletic body; they usually have problems related to eyes & hair. They feel very hungry sometimes & do not gain much weight even if they take a heavy diet. They have a normal skin type. They have fairly strong muscles & bones. They have a strong immunity but are prone to fever & are quite high on energy.
- Vata Type – This type of body is thin & weak. People having Vata dominant in their body might be skinny; they usually have problems related to constipation & joints. They feel hungry at irregular time periods & do not feel like eating much. They have a dry skin & scalp. They have thin muscles & bones which may not be very strong. They may have good immunity but are not much energetic.
Each of these types is associated with certain elements.
- Pitta – Fire + Water
- Kapha – Water + Earth
- Vata – Air + Space
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| Image: CISUN |
One can also say that:
- Pitta is fiery element
- Kapha is earthy element
- Vata is airy element.
“Vata, Pitta & Kapha are like three angles of a triangle.” Change in any one will affect the other two. All these three should be in balance to have a healthy body.
How Body works?
Human body wants to maintain a neutral pH level (slightly basic actually).When body requires food, the gallbladder releases acid which comes into the stomach. The pH value at the stomach walls decreases to 1.5 or 2 which gives us a feeling of hunger. The food we eat has a higher pH (food can be acidic or basic in nature). The pH value is decreased when we eat food & we feel full. The food reacts with the acid present in the stomach and after the reaction is complete it becomes chyme (Rasa in Ayurveda) that goes through small intestine after when it mixes with peristalsis & then it goes through the large intestine.
The language of Ayurveda is bit different. It calls the acid released by the gallbladder as pitta (fiery element). The lining of the stomach where this pitta gets collected is called “Jhathar” & when this Pitta goes into the stomach it becomes “Jatharagni” (Jathar + Agni, Agni is fire). When the Jhatharagni is strong, the food we eat reacts with the acid & the Rasa is built. This Rasa is capable of building tissues, bones, blood & muscles and it is free from any germs, virus & bacteria. This Rasa is easy to digest & can travel easily through small & large intestine.
When the Jhatharagni or fire is weak, then the same chyme is called Ama (not Rasa). Ama in Ayurveda means a sticky fluid. It is a result of an incomplete reaction of food with the acid. When this Ama goes through small & large intestine, it sticks everywhere & hence is difficult to travel.
Possible consequences:
- Indigestion
- Irritable Bowel Syndrome
- Celiac Disease
- Intestinal Cancer
- Colon Cancer
The large intestine is a home of windy disorders. When food goes into the large intestine, the air pushes the food out but because Ama is sticky, it gets difficult to push it out, due to which the Vata of the body becomes imbalanced. Imbalanced Vata can give following problems:
- Constipation
- Frequent Headaches
- Migraine
- Pain in Joints
- Mental Instability
Ama is incapable of building up healthy tissues, bones, blood & muscles in the body. Due to incomplete reaction, the virus & bacteria present in the food continues to live. During the digestion process, they get into bloodstreams. If the immunization system is strong enough, then it will kill them all otherwise following things may occur:
- Viral Infection
- Acne
- Ill Health
- Fever
- Fungal Infections
In case, the Jhathargni is very weak and you take heavy meals then this will lead to an imbalance in Kapha as well. Kapha imbalanced body has the abundance low-quality tissues & cells. Increased Kapha will accumulate in your body due to which you can have following issues:
- Obesity
- Fatigue
- Blocked Sinuses
- Weakness
- Hypothyroidism
It is not always that people having Kapha dominant in their body always have these issues; even if your body is heavy you can have a balanced Pitta & Vata in your body due to which your health & immunity will be good.
What You Should Do?
You know that by only balancing the fiery element in your body you can balance the other two types of doshas. To keep your fire in balance do the following things:- Eat when you feel hungry
- Do not drink cold water while eating as this will kill the fire (dilute the acid)
- Have some lukewarm water (half cup) before meals to help the digestion process
- Avoid consuming ice cream & aerated drinks as much as you can
- Do some exercise as it helps the fiery element of the body
- Have lemon & honey in warm water empty stomach in the morning
Relationship of Type of Food & Its Taste
Foods can be of Vata, Pitta or Kapha type. Depending upon what problems you have you must identify what type of food you should eat. Suppose, you have Kapha type problems in your body, then you must avoid foods that are rich in Kapha or Earthy element. It is difficult to remember the type of all the foods, therefore, I am writing these points which will help you in identifying it.
- Kapha Type – Kapha is the Earthy element. Earth has weight, shape & form. These foods are heavy, dense, moist, cold & sweet. Wheat, rice, sugar, grains, sweet fruits & oily foods.
- Pitta Type – Pitta is the Fiery element. Fire has energy, it is hot & it has no weight. These foods are light, hot, dry, sour & spicy. Chilies, lemons, sour fruits, corn, dry fruits & spices.
- Vata Type – Vata is the Airy element. Air has no weight, shape or form. These foods are light, cold, dry, bitter & pungent. Apples, watermelon, dried fruits, green vegetables & kale.
Hot & cold does not necessarily mean with respect to temperature only. While warm foods can help in pacifying Kapha & Vata doshas, it is possible that some foods can aggravate Kapha in spite of being hot. Honey is sweet but it is of fiery nature.
Apart from this, I wanted to tell you:
- How to Balance the Aggravated Fire in Your Body?
- How to remove excess of Kapha from Your Body?
- How to Get free from Vata type Disorders?
But this article became really long due to which I will write this in separate articles. To receive notifications about these helpful articles make sure you subscribe above for email notifications.
Hope you guys stay healthy.
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