Ayurveda is a 5000yr old Indian Science of life and encompasses the principles of mindfulness within its practices. It’s a fascinating subject as it explores our humanity and how its relationship with the five elements of energy; heat, water, air, earth and ether can bring balance and a peaceful, healthier life. It’s a way of understanding and working with your body and personality type so that you can enjoy a greater sense of wellness. For almost 45yrs I struggled with a tendency to angry outbursts and I felt ashamed that despite soul searching, counselling, therapy, prayer … you name it, I tried it, I couldn’t appear to solve this flaw. Only when I discovered the principles of Ayurveda did I find some answers. I discovered that one of the ‘symptoms’ of being out of balance for my body/personality type was having angry outbursts. For example, I’m a pitta dosha which is characterized by the energy of fire and when out of balance can result in a fiery nature, prone to overheating, resulting in angry outbursts. Seems obvious when you think about it, doesn’t it?
This was a life changing discovery for me as once I understood this then I knew I had to do what I could do to bring a cooling element to my life. There are many ways I could bring a cooling balance, such as; avoid hot baths, hot drinks, alcohol, midday sunshine etc. Heating elements in our lives can be subtle so certain foods that are deemed healthy may not be advisable for some depending on their dosha type. For example, tomatoes are considered healthy but should be avoided by pitta dosha’s as they are highly acidic and can aggravate pitta’s as they produce heat. Then there is the obvious hot spicy foods. This really is just a simple introduction so consider doing a dosha quiz (I’ve linked a free one below) and find out what your ‘dosha’ type is, as this will carry a key to what you need to do to bring balance to your life and this includes the foods you eat.
So as we can see above there are three dosha types Kapha, Pitta and Vata. They are understood to be a combination of the universal principles of all five energy sources, and we all need elements of each of these within us to live balanced lives. Each dosha type has been identified to have a more dominant energy source.
In terms of mindfulness and alleviating our suffering, our need to achieve balance within our body, minds and spirits leads to emotional intelligence and resilience. If we’ve achieved balance within our connecting systems, then we experience greater stability and inner harmony. Because the principles of Ayurveda are all very natural expressions of life, like mindfulness they can be practiced by anyone, with any belief or philosophy.
Ayurveda embraces all the natural components of nature. Water (sea, lakes, rivers, fountains), air (walking outside on a windy day, breathing in the fresh air), heat (feeling the warmth of the sun and the warm foods nourishing our bodies), earth (living organisms grow from the nourished earth -the plants, tree’s, flowers). Then ether (that space that is within each cell of our body where our spirituality is said to reside. We’re aware of the presence of ether even if we can’t detect it as easily as the other elements).
As mentioned earlier Ayurveda addresses all aspects of life and this includes our diets. There are many diets that we could follow to lose weight or try to be healthier in general. It can be so confusing to know which diet can be right for us. On some diets we may lose weight but still be so out of balance within ourselves that we’re still suffering despite effective weight loss. We can soon turn back to comfort foods that lead to further weight gain. I highly recommend you do the dosha quiz to identify your dominant dosha type and then follow the advice given for the kinds of food you can eat that will best suit you. It doesn’t mean you have to be strict with your diet, as you can allow yourself to eat something you enjoy and then bring balance with some of the other mindful practices we’ve already mentioned. I enjoy a well-balanced diet guided by my dosha type but still allow myself to eat a nice big piece of chocolate cake if I want it and occasionally have a glass of wine with a meal. I know that the alcohol will bring further heat to my body and isn’t good for me, so I understand that I need to balance this out with cooling practices. You identify what your body needs and if you’re out of balance you can implement Ayurvedic principles to bring balance back and a peaceful sense of wellness.
You make your decisions in life, understand the consequences of those decisions, then make the necessary adjustment or simply live with the discomfort afterwards knowing why. Don’t beat yourself up or judge yourself harshly. Simply be present in the moment and as long as it’s not a harmful substance, then enjoy it! Have fun finding your dosha and I’ll see you next week!
Love & blessings, Sam x
Samantha Jordan TLC 