Ayurveda, derived from the ancient Vedic scriptures of India, is one of the best kept secrets in the modern world. Ayurveda understands health from one main perspective: balance vs imbalance. It has a clearly defined balance zone, where physical and mental health is at its optimum. And that is the genius of Ayurveda!
Five Elements
Any deviation from the balance will not result in immediate sickness, but for the alert individual, they can start tracking their symptomatic progress towards deteriorating imbalance. It uses the five elements- space, air, fire, water and earth- found through out the universe to regulate the three basic types of doshas underlying the Ayurvedic human health model.
The three doshas are Vata, which is a combination of air and space elements, and it’s chief characteristic is movement. Pitta is a combination of fire and water, and it’s chief characteristic is metabolism, and Kapha is earth and water, and it’s chief characteristic is matter or body composition. So in short, you can have a mental or physical nature that is Vata or like the wind- moving easily. Pitta, or fiery, or Kapha and dense or sturdy. Or a combination of the three doshas. The key to maintaining life-long health, is by mastering the most suitable opposites, this is the secret to harnessing the power of Ayurveda.