What is your dominant Dosha? And does it matter?

What is Ayurveda? What does “Dosha” mean? Why should I care? This blog post tries to guide you in answering these questions for yourself.

Ayurveda is one of the oldest healing sciences -- a holistic approach to health focused on maintaining physical and emotional balance. The term Ayurveda is derived from the Sanskrit words ayus, meaning life or lifespan, and veda, meaning knowledge. Ayurveda seeks to prevent and treat illness by maintaining balance in the body, mind, and consciousness through diet, lifestyle, and herbal remedies. This can be done by balancing your basic body constitutions, called doshas.

​According to Ayurvedic beliefs, these three doshas are present in every person:

• Vata. Energy that controls bodily functions associated with motion, including blood circulation, breathing, blinking, and your heartbeat. When vata energy is balanced, there is creativity and vitality. Out of balance, vata produces fear and anxiety.
• Pitta. Energy that controls the body's metabolic systems, including digestion, absorption, nutrition, and your body’s temperature. In balance, pitta leads to contentment and intelligence. Out of balance, pitta can cause ulcers and arouse anger.
• Kapha. Energy that controls growth in the body. It supplies water to all body parts, moisturizes the skin, and maintains the immune system. In balance, kapha is expressed as love and forgiveness. Out of balance, kapha leads to insecurity and envy.

We each have a unique blend of vata, pitta, and kapha. But usually 1 or 2 are dominant in a particular person. Many things can disturb the energy balance, such as stress, an unhealthy diet, the weather, and strained family relationships. If you are interested in learning more, here is a link to a detailed quiz to determine your dosha. http://www.holisticonline.com/ayurveda/w_ayurveda-dtest1.htm

We also have a “quick and dirty” quiz you can take in our studio. Stop by to pick one up. Also, please comment below with your questions or insights!