Ayurveda means ‘the science of life’ but I like to think of it as something a little deeper than that. For me, ayurveda is the science of relationships, health and longevity, too, and has proven to be a wonderful tool for self-enquiry. At its core, ayurveda asks you to question what is appropriate, useful and beneficial for your health and what is inappropriate, aggravating and disturbing for your health. In turn, this gives you an understanding of what you should be doing to live with ease and avoid dis-ease. If you are eating well, moving well, feeling harmonised and living contentedly, you are considered healthy in ayurveda.
Ayurveda is the traditional medicine of India. Over 5000 years old, it is a simple way of living that uses lifestyle and food as medicine. Making small changes to these two things can have profound effects on your wellbeing. Everything in ayurveda is based on the principles of the five elements – air, space, fire, water and earth. These elements combine in our bodies to form our constitution. This is known in ayurveda as your dosha, and there are three types: vata (air and space), pitta (fire and water) and kapha (water and earth).
Each dosha describes certain qualities of the elements they contain, so vata represents aspects associated with air, like the wind – light, dry, cold, mobile, rough, crisp, quick, subtle. Vata governs movement in the body and people with this dosha have thin, light frames, they feel the cold, are quick to learn and quick to forget. Their skin can be dry, they can find it hard to sit still and have busy minds. Pitta represents the qualities of fire – hot, oily, sharp, light, spreading and liquid. Pitta types have strong athletic bodies that can be disturbed by heat.