How to Know Ayurveda Beyond Vata, Pitta, Kapha

Ayurveda, due to its natural, effective and permanent cures for chronic diseases has gained popularity all over the world in the last two decades. In spite of all this popularity, the real meaning of Ayurveda is still not very well understood. I travel around the world to teach the original Ayurveda and I come across people who have many misconceptions about it. Most people think Ayurveda is oil massage or some kind of cleansing program, while others think it is a system that involves a natural spa, beauty and rejuvenation treatments. I have even found people who told me that Ayurveda is a weight loss program. Kerala massage is the latest synonym of Ayurveda. Even in India, the birth place of Ayurveda, I get very interesting answers to the question, “What is Ayurveda?” Many think Ayurveda is some kind of kitchen or home remedies, and others in India say it is herbal medicine which is very slow and not very effective. I have even encountered people who told me that Ayurveda is homeopathy and a part of Yoga.

The situation in the West is not much different. Ayurveda, like Yoga has not been presented in its complete form. Just as Yoga has been limited to physical postures in the West, so has Ayurveda been limited to vata, pitta, kapha. The reason for this superficial presentation of Ayurveda in the West is that Ayurveda was introduced there by people who were not Ayurvedic doctors/experts. No doubt they did a great job by making this wonderful science familiar to the people, but the real potential of Ayurveda is yet to be explored. It is time we should take the next step and understand Ayurveda at a deeper level. While vata, pitta, kapha play an important role in disease manifestation, their action field is limited to the physical body. But a human being, according to Ayurveda, is the combination of body, mind, senses, ego, intelligence and soul. We need to explore what Ayurveda says about the subtle components of a human being. Therefore we need to go beyond vata, pitta, kapha.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Today most people suffer in the body, but the root cause of the disease lies somewhere beyond the body. In my practice, I see patients, who come with all the advanced scientific investigations they have undergone, but interestingly, all tests are normal. The blood tests, scans, and different kinds of internal photos taken do not show any abnormality. But the person continues to suffer from pain and various symptoms. This indicates that the physical symptoms are the manifestation of some imbalance at a subtle level. Modern research has also proved through a number of clinical studies that our mind, emotions, social relations, behavior and mental stress play an important role, both in the manifestation as well as treatment of diseases. While modern science has yet to discover the mysteries of the human being beyond the body, Ayurveda has given a wonderful explanation about mind, senses, emotions, ego and intelligence and how these subtle components of the human being play an important role in disease manifestation.

2. Restless mind, an unsatisfied sense, undernourished emotions, stressful relations, false ego and misuse of intelligence can all cause serious disorders in the body. Consider a very common example. You have just finished eating a delicious lunch and because the lunch was so delicious you filled the stomach, and also filled the esophagus up to the neck. In this condition, the physical body is happy because the stomach is full with delicious food. Five minutes after you have eaten, you see a chocolate cake on the table. Technically you should not eat it because the body does not have even an inch of empty space and the stomach is happy and satisfied, but because the mind is restless, the tongue is not healthy, and the intelligence is not functioning, you decide to pick up the cake and put in the already overfilled body. The liver, stomach, duodenum, small intestines, colon, kidneys, gall bladder and other body organs have to suffer. It may lead to stomach ache, hyper-acidity (heartburn), bloating, constipation, formation of toxins in the stomach, and a number of other physical symptoms. All of which are caused by a restless mind and sick senses that are not able to figure out that if they take this action the whole body will suffer. In Ayurveda we call it “pragyaparadha” or misuse of intelligence. If we use our intelligence properly, we can tell the tongue and mind to kindly wait for two hours till the food goes down. In both situations, one can enjoy the cake, but the former decision to eat when overfull causes diseases in the physical body which is called imbalance of vata, pitta, kapha.

3. Ayurveda emphasizes to always understand the root cause of the disease and then fix it to attain permanent results. Our approach to treat diseases in the modern age is limited only to temporarily suppress the symptoms. This way we never get rid of the disease and end up eating tablets all through our life. This is also pragyaparadha or misuse of intelligence. When we have problems with our car, mobile phone, business or job, don’t we use our intelligence to fix the problem, or at least try to find out the root cause? So why then we do not use the same intelligence when it comes to our own body? We can always buy a new car or a mobile phone, but we can not buy a new body. This body is the most precious thing we have and it is most important to keep it healthy and energetic so that we can enjoy life. Otherwise life becomes boring, stressful, and depressing, and we do not want to live.
   
   This human body is a wonderful complex machine. One must maintain, rejuvenate and preserve it. In order to keep the body free from disorders it is necessary that we use our intelligence and keep the mind, senses, ego, emotions in control. Ayurveda explains in detail about all these subjects and how to keep them in proper balance. It is important that we enjoy this life to the full. In order to enjoy life we need good health. Good health is a combination of vata, pitta, kapha balance in the body, relaxed mind, clean senses, nourished emotions, good relations and the proper use of intelligence. This is possible only through Ayurveda because Ayurveda is not only vata, pitta, kapha, but a complete knowledge about the whole human being.
   
   I founded Jiva Ayurveda with the goal to bring the complete truth of Ayurveda into every home in the world. Over the years I have been very successful in achieving this goal.
   
   But it is the responsibility of each one of us to understand about our true composition (Ayurveda), become healthy and then help others to attain health, happiness, peace and love. I invite all of you to take care of your health and enjoy life to the full. Once you taste the true Ayurveda, then pass on this simple knowledge to others and help them to be happy and healthy.

Resources

• Jiva Ayurveda
• Jiva Article Resource