Let’s discuss doshas—Vata, Pitta and Kapha
Even if you’ve never or barely heard of Ayurveda, chances are someone has asked you, “What’s your dosha?” It’s kind of like asking people, “What’s your sign?” While knowing that doshas exist is great, people often have a lot of weird ideas about them. Here’s some facts.
Doshas are qualities
Loosely translated, Dosha means quality. It refers to the fact that, in Ayurveda, all of the world, including humans, is made up of combinations of three qualities – Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Everything is composed of all three doshas in various proportions. I emphasized that because we do have such a tendency to want to categorize things and put them in boxes. Ayurveda will tell you that every human being has their own combo of qualities. We come to our life with a certain grouping that is ideal for what we need to do in life — and then spend every day after that getting that combination out of wack. (In fact, the term dosha is more accurately translated as impurity or fault for this reason, but it’s easier to think of qualities.)
Vata—cold, dry and creative
Vata is associated with the elements of air and ether and possesses the qualities of cold, dryness, and mobility. People with a lot of vata dosha may have dry skin and lips, cold hands and feet, suffer from constipation, touchy digestion, anxiety and “squirrelyness”. They’re often thin, quite petite or quite tall, have irregular features, long fingers, and dark hair. Vata dominance can frequently be seen in artists and spiritual teachers or, conversely, in restless, unfocused wanderers. Vata is inherent in the late fall and early winter, the late afternoon and early evening as well as the hours after 2AM, and with older age.
I have a lot of vata qualities– small frame, dry skin, quick mind — but a pitta dominant personality — i love change, am always moving on to the next thing, and, when out of balance, can be bossy.
Pitta – hot, fiery, and dynamic
Pitta is the element of fire and, as you’d expect, is hot, light, sharp, penetrating and active. Summer is pitta’s season, as well as midday and midnight. If you have a lot of pitta, you are probably of medium build with decent musculature. You probably have light or even red hair, You may have sensitive skin, rashes, ulcers and excessive body heat. Pitta qualities help make good decisionmakers, powerful leaders, teachers and speakers. They are also prominent in out of balance people who are argumentative and critical.
Kapha – moist, juicy and lovable
Kapha is the quality found in earth and water, youth, spring, and morning. It is moist, slow, heavy and steady. Kapha contributes to warm, friendly people with beautiful skin, large eyes, and a strong constitution. These people also have a tendency to put on weight. People with a lot of kapha are often your BFFs. They are frequently the earth mothers of the world. Out of balance, however, kapha dosha can lead to slowness, resistance to change and possessiveness.
Observe your own doshas
Developing an awareness of your own mind and body is the best way to learn what your doshic qualities are. You can also take a quiz. (Here is a good one at Banyan Botanicals.) Remember, no matter what the quiz says, you’re made up of all three qualities. No quiz can capture the reality of it.
For example, all quizzes tell me I have a dominance of vata qualities and that’s true. I’m thin, dry skinned, fast moving, have irregular digestion and complicated sleep patterns. But, in fact, while my body is composed of strong vata characteristics, my mind is composed of pitta qualities. I’m a type A who is always moving forward. I love to start new things, and can get annoyed if people try to slow me down. LOL.
So, observe yourself. Enjoy taking a quiz, but don’t rely on it and learn new subtleties every day. Questions?