Your Complete Guide To The Doshas 

If you’re a bit familiar with Ayurveda, you may already be familiar with the doshas.  The doshas are made up of the five elements: earth, air, fire, water, and ether.  The doshas are the forces that make up all of nature and govern all emotional, mental, and physical processes in our lives.  

There are three maha, or great, doshas.  These are kapha, pitta, and vata.  It’s important to remember that you actually are made up of all three doshas, but the qualities of one or more may dominate the way you digest your food, the way you learn, your physical appearance, how you act in relationships, and so much more!

How do the doshas show up in you?

Kapha, which is made up of the elements of earth and water, can be recognized as the part of you that’s dependable, compassionate, nurturing, and stable.  

Pitta, which is made up of the elements of fire and water, can be recognized as the part of you that’s organized, driven, determined, and strategic. 

Vata, which is made up of the elements of air and ether, can be recognized as the part of you that’s creative, adventurous, spontaneous, and adaptable.

Like increase like and opposites balance

One of the main principles of Ayurveda is that like increases like and opposites balance.  For example, if during the winter you drink tons of cold smoothies and eat raw foods, you will be increasing the cold quality that is already so present during the cold winter months.

By increasing that cold quality, your incredibly intelligent body begins to find ways to keep you warm and lubricated. Then, when spring comes, that additional lubrication may manifest as excess mucus or springtime allergies. 

However, if you eat warm soups and well cooked foods during the winter, that will counter the cold qualities present in nature and your body won’t need to find ways to come back to balance.  

The more you know about the doshas and their qualities, the more you can recognize when you may need to balance something out before there is a very big imbalance and disease manifests.  

An introduction to the kapha dosha

Kapha dosha is made up of the elements earth and water and the qualities are heavy, cold, moist, static, smooth, and soft.  When you think about what happens when earth and water combine, you may think about mud or even heaviness, but earth and water also provide us with feelings of being nurtured and being taken care of.  Kapha dosha is responsible for stability and structure within the body and also shows up as your ability to be supportive and caring to yourself and others.  The main sites of kapha dosha are the stomach and the lungs. 

The kapha archetype

The kapha archetype is someone with strong bones, very muscular, lots of physical and mental strength, sometimes slow digestion, a slower walk, a booming voice, and a strong constitution.  These are the people who don’t get sick too often, but when they do they’re probably more upset about being out of their daily routine.  Kapha’s love routine and rarely get bored of it.  

Kapha Season

Kapha dosha’s season is springtime and during the spring, mother earth is moving through a phase where she’s melting the snow and ice and also creating an environment for new life and rebirth.  Your body mirrors what happens in nature, so you are naturally warming up and preparing for the new season and for change. 

Kapha Time

The kapha times of day are 6am-10am and 6pm-10pm.  If you’ve ever woken up at 8am and felt like you just wanted to go back to sleep or felt like it was impossible to get out of bed, it may be because you were waking up right in the middle of that kapha time of day.  

Remember, some of the qualities of kapha are heavy, slow, and dull.  If you try to move and motivate when these qualities are dominant in nature, it’s naturally going to be more difficult.

An introduction to pitta dosha

Pitta dosha is made of the elements fire and water and some of the qualities are oily, hot, sharp, light, and spreading. When fire and water come together, it can create steam. When you think of steam, probably imagine there being some sort of flame or heat to cause transformation. You need pitta to digest and transform your food and to also digest and transform your thoughts and emotions. One of the main sites of pitta dosha is the small intestine, which is where your food gets “cooked” and transformed into nutrients that move through your body. 

The pitta archetype

The pitta archetype is someone with a medium sized frame, warm skin, light and intense eyes, an intense gaze, very strong digestion, the ability to walk with intention and talk in an assertive way. They may gain and lose weight quite easily and also tend to be very athletic and active. This is the person who probably has their closet organized by color, season, or clothing type. Their bookshelves are most likely arranged by author or the books are set up in some kind of color-coded system. 

Pitta season

Pitta  dosha’s season is summer and you can see the hot quality all around you. There is also a sharp and spreading mood to the summer that can make you feel quite intense if you don’t encourage balance. If it’s afternoon on a hot summer day, when the sun is strongest and you’re already sweaty and warm, you’ll feel even more hot if you ate spicy salsa and went to a high intensity boot camp class in the park. To stay balanced, try more mellow activities and go for a swim.

Pitta time

The pitta times of day are 10am-2pm and 10pm-2am. These times of day have qualities of pitta, so they’re the times of motivation and transformation. That 10am-2pm time of the day is the perfect time to tackle projects, make moves towards goals, schedule phone calls, and do anything that requires motivation and drive. It’s the best time to open up your planner or to-do-list and check things off. It’s also an ideal time to have the biggest meal of the day because your digestion is strongest. The start of the evening 10pm-2am time might be when you may experience a feeling of a “second wind” which is basically just pitta time coming back around. Ideally, you want to be in bed, or at least trying to wind down, before evening pitta time kicks in. 

An Introduction to Vata Dosha 

Vata dosha is made of the elements air and ether and some of the qualities of vata are cold, light, dry, mobile, subtle.  Air is literally all around us and is always moving.  Even when you’re in total sillness, you can almost feel the air around you skin, eyes, nose, and ears.  Ether is sometimes understood as space or stillness.  It’s what can contain or hold.  When air and ether come together to create vata dosha, there is potential for creation and also a container to just be.  

You see vata in you whenever we come up with a new idea or a different plan.  Vata manifests as your ability to express, craft, and share.  On the other end of that, vata is also the only dosha that moves, so this may lead to feelings of emptiness or lack.

The vata archetype

The vata archetype is someone with a long straight frame, light bones and muscles, cool skin, cold hands and feet, and a slower walk.  They probably eat and talk fast and want to multitask all the time.  It can be difficult for them to gain weight and it’s usually easy for them to lose weight.  Some vata types may have a very dominant feature like large eyes, big teeth, or a more pronounced nose.  They are social, creative, and also love to learn and travel.  Due to the mobile quality of vata, your vata friends probably need reminders and to-do-lists.  

Vata season

Late fall and winter are considered vata season because it’s when you see many of vata’s cold, light, dry, mobile, and subtle qualities. When the weather begins to get cooler, you see nature naturally begin to dry up and get lighter.  It becomes much windier and there is a crispness to the air that can only be felt during vata season.  During this time when the environment is naturally drying out, you need to maintain balance by favoring well-cooked, moist, and warm foods.  It’s common to find that your  appetite might increase as well and it’s okay to lean into that change.  

Vata time

The vata times of day are 2pm-6pm and 2am-6am.  The daytime hours of vata from 2pm-6pm are when you may feel that afternoon crash or the need for a coffee or something sweet.  This is a great opportunity to practice something nourishing like pranayama, meditation, or more mellow yoga classes.  It’s a nice time to take a walk in nature and to also have a cup of tea. The late night and early morning hours of vata are a time to use the air and ether elements for receiving.  It’s said that if you can wake up around 5-6am, it’s a very powerful time to meditate or to take part in whatever ritual or practice you have.  It’s naturally a time with little distraction because most people are still asleep and all things in nature are just beginning to wake up.

It’s all about balance

A lot of this can seem overwhelming when you first learn it, but the best way to understand Ayurveda and the doshas is to begin to notice the qualities all around you.  When you walk outside, notice what qualities are present in the weather.  Is it cold or hot?  Does it feel heavy or light?  You may also notice these qualities within yourself after you eat certain foods.  

What works for me and what makes me feel balanced won’t always work for you, which is why it’s so important and empowering to notice how you feel and when  you feel it.