Sharirik Doshas

Human body is very much like a machine, if not handled properly and not given adequate rest, it can give up any time anywhere. Like a machine, it also prefers to work under favorable circumstances and for a limited period of time so that it does not wear out soon. However, considering the hectic lifestyle and the inhumane pressure that people suffer these days, it is impossible to remain healthy forever. The emergence of lifestyle diseases are the result of the brutal, unorganized and hectic lifestyle people follow these days. There is a description of such circumstances in Ayurveda and it has been said that the root cause behind such disease are the imbalance in the ‘Sharirik Doshas’.

Three Sharirik Doshas
According to Ayurveda, there are three primary energies or doshas in a human body. The doshas are Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. These doshas regulate all physical and psychological behaviors, from basic cell structure to the most complex mental functions. Vata, Pitta and Kapha are the subtle forms of the three bhutas -air, fire and water in a human body. When the Doshas fall out of balance, the diseases may manifest. Ayurveda seeks to return the doshas to and maintain them at their natural balance in our individual constitution.

Significance of Doshas
According to Ayurveda, doshas are of vital importance because they are responsible for coordinating and directing all the structures and substances of the body. Knowledge of the doshas and their functioning give us the understanding of the intelligence that commands the dhatus (body tissues) and malas (waste products) and gives the body its vast functional capability. It is thus very important for these ‘doshas’ to remain in a healthy state of equilibrium.

The theory of the three doshas is the crown jewel of Ayurvedic science and cornerstone of its diagnostic and treatment modalities. According to Ayurveda, all the motions, transportation and electromagnetic activities are controlled by ‘Vata’. ‘Pitta’ represents fire principle and as such is concerned with process of conversion, consumption and other chemical changes taking place in the living body and last but not the least, ‘Kapha’ is the principle of water and thus every living cell is pervaded by it in order to perform their functions.

Evaluation of Doshas
Evaluation of these ‘doshas’ can be easily done in a human body if it is observed closely. The lifestyle, the diet chart, the sleeping pattern, the basic trait of a human nature reveals much about the ‘sharirik dosha’ of a person. The three doshas are also invariably connected with life as it is seen that the dead body and the other inanimate objects do not have any of the three doshas. It proves that tridoshas are invariably connected with life. It is said that as the prana (soul) enters into the material body, the three doshas -vata, pitta and kapha -emerge to take up the physiological functions and as the soul leaves the body the three doshas also get away.

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