The Pitta-Vata Prakriti Double Dosha
We hope you made some time to familiarise yourself with the report on Prakriti & the three Doshas & understand the concept of possessing a dual Prakriti. Your profile report reveals that your inherent nature is driven by two doshas, Pitta & Vata, with the former being more prominent than the latter. These Doshas have quite a few, conflicting properties, for instance, Pitta is hot while Vata is cold. Pitta makes you meticulous, focused, brave and angry whereas Vata exhibits itself in your nature making you unpredictable, anxious, and fearful.however, despite these varying traits, you are able to synchronise your energies, with some effort and lead a balanced life. Simultaneously, mobility which is a similar property, of both these Doshas, is one of your dominant traits. Anatomy & Physiology You have a medium frame, with Pitta in dominance, however, with Vata as your secondary Dosha, you have a light & thin build. Pitta also, gives you a fairly good appetite and better digestion in comparison to a Vata only Prakriti. Consequently, your tissue system is well nourished & your joints are flexible so that you are not vulnerable to easy sprains and strains. Your skin is radiant with Pitta dominance, but maybe prone to pimples, boils, discolouration, freckles and sunburn, particularly in hot weather. In winters, you may experience dryness and flakiness because of Vata. You may also sweat more, with an odour or without one, in comparison to others, because of abundant Pitta. You may show some typical characteristics of Pitta like early greying of hair, hair fall and a scalp which maybe oily to dry (Vata property). You have pleasing features in general, however, you may show some characteristics of disproportion or crooked or deviated anatomy which is a contribution of your primary Vata Dosha like an irregular teeth line or a deviated nasal septum. The temperature of your body (especially, the hands and feet) generally will be warm or normal, because of Pitta, for most of the year, except for peak winters, when, Vata may make you cold. Thus, you will be intolerant & uncomfortable, in both extremely cold (Vata property) and hot (Pitta property) weather.
In extreme weather, you are likely to suffer from high grade fever & body aches. Gouty arthritis, and skin diseases are other health concerns you may encounter, if your constituent doshas are out of balance. You have a healthy appetite and digestive capacity, driven by Pitta, but you may get constipated, due to dryness, fuelled by Vata, if you do not take sufficient fluids. However, digestion can be problematic, if you consume too much spicy or sour food. Behavioural Patterns & Trends You are largely a Pitta person, exhibiting sharpness, intelligence, passion, assertiveness and courage, coupled with features of a Vata person, characterised by unpredictability, speed, enthusiasm and anxiety. You may exhibit any of these qualities driven by the dominance of either of the constituent Doshas at a particular time. You are a dynamic personality, coupling the sharpness and passion (intensity) of Pitta with the speed, enthusiam and creativity of Vata. This makes you a real go-getter! You should however, know your limits and not over exert & strain yourself to a point of burn out. The Pitta in your Prakriti, makes you intolerant to discomforts and the Vata can exhaust you quite fast. So, exercising moderation, is critical to stability and cultivated progress in actions. In an aggravated state, your constituent Doshas may manifest themselves as impatience, jealousy, sarcasm and anger ( Pitta features) or in irritability and anxiety (Vata features). These destructive tendencies are counterproductive and need to be avoided. You are a light sleeper. Your passionate perseverance for perfection (Pitta property) clubbed with the flighty nature of your wavering & anxious mind (of Vata) makes you go through sleepless nights when some work is left unfinished or improperly done. You cannot afford to miss a full night s sleep regularly, as this will aggravate the Vata, to unhealthy proportions, causing illness. As a Pitta-Vata type, you have a pretty sharp memory when you make an effort to stay focussed. Pitta by nature gifts you a good memory and the power of discrimination and analysis. All you need to do is control the Vata to concentrate, by consciously paying attention to things you do.
Mobility is a strong feature of your dual prakriti, so you have a mind that is always brimming with ideas and thoughts, that can be forgotten equally fast, if the Vata is aggravated. Physically also you are active and enjoy being on the move. You primary Dosha Pitta, makes you passionate and possessive about a few selective relationships, you love & feel good about, but if the aggravated secondary Dosha Vata gets coupled with the aggravated Pitta, it can make you break relationships in a fit of anger and impulsiveness. Ayurvedic Remedies to counteract Imbalance in Pitta-Vata In a dual Prakriti, care needs to be taken to address both the constituent Doshas while designing your diet, lifestyle and actions in general. However, it is likely that, the primary dominant Dosha will dictate the measures taken to live as per your dual Prakriti. So the Pitta dominant in your Prakriti fuses with the Vata, and they manifest as different features, with varying properties. Your diet, actions and life style can influence these properties and any one of these which increases the particular properties of either Dosha will increase the strength of the respective Dosha and can aggravate it. Conversly, a decrease in a dietary habit or action, can pacify the presence of a Dosha. Often, if certain measures are taken to control one property of a constituent Dosha then the opposing property of the second constituent Dosha increases. This needs to be managed carefully & is a challenging reality while dealing with your dual Prakriti. AVOID actions that aggravate either Dosha like : Extreme weather that makes you uncomfortable. Avoid excessively sedentary & routine jobs which go against your nature. Being an insomniac or sleeping & getting up late Cold, refrigerated, processed and spicy foods
Take measures to Pacify & Harmonise The Pitta-Vata like : Lifestyle Habits While using air conditioning in hot weather and heating in cold weather, you need to to exercise moderation. Your nature, thrives on physical & mental mobility. A job involving action which keeps you intellectually stimulated, suggesting new ideas and implementing them, will go well with your Prakriti. Or at least, you may settle for a job that involves some dynamism. Since Pitta has an affinity towards blood tissue and can easily vitiate it, and Vata manifests itself in the skin and makes it dry and flaky, you are likely to have skin related problems with this Dual prakriti. Otherwise in a healthy state also, you may have various Pitta kind of skin diseases like oiliness, acne, boils, freckles and pigmentation. So proper skin care warrants a judicious use of medicated herbal pastes, blood purifying herbs and oleation therapy as per the condition. Your Primary Dosha Pitta, demands that you sleep early by 10 p.m., since Pitta time starts by then and the digestive system is at work. You need to sleep for six or seven hours. You need to get this sufficient rest and sleep, to ensure your Vata is not aggravated. Yoga & Meditation are fabulous & therapeutic for the mind and body.
Exercise routine For you the best exercises are those that are moderate in intensity and involve small bursts of energy and stretching and toning of muscles. Where you have the necessary technique and stamina required to win, you should choose competitive sports, which resonate with the Pitta in your Prakriti. So you might enjoy playing sports like Basket ball, Volley ball, Swimming, Racquet sports & Cricket & you may like dancing too. To take care of the secondary Dosha Vata, you need a proper warm up and cooling down pre and post exercise respectively. Dietary Habits The Pitta in your Prakriti, is hot & will prompt you for cold or just warm food while the Vata demands warm and fresh food. You need to primarily follow the Pitta dosha and eat fresh, slightly warm and bland or mildly spiced, food. To accommodate the Vatta properties, it ought to be easily digestible & cooked, not raw. A good example of a balanced meal is boiled vegetables, with some salt for seasoning. Eating, small quantities of food, at regular intervals, instead of big meals at one go, are particularly good for your digestion. Sit and eat in a calm place and eat slowly, chewing the food properly. Eating while walking, working and talking is likely to cause gas, indigestion and acidity which you are easily prone to. Liquids should be taken an hour prior or a hour after the meals so as not to dilute the digestive juices. Few sips, though, are allowed. Choose to eat lightly cooked food over raw food and use spices like fennel, cumin, fenugreek seeds (to be used in small quantities, since it is hot & bitter & will pacify Vata without aggravating Pitta, as such ).
Ghee or fresh butter should be preferred over oil as it pacifies both Vata and Pitta. However, intake needs to be restricted to a maximum of 4-6 tea spoons per day. White meats and low fat dairy are recommended. Sweet tasting foods or foods with sweet, to promote a digestive effect like Indian goose berries (amla) are recommended. Sour and salty tastes pacify Vata, however, they aggravate Pitta, while bitter and astringent tastes (as in salads) pacify Pitta but aggravate Vata. So if both the constituent Doshas are aggravated then a sweet taste has to be used to pacify them. In other situations. specific tastes, as per the condition of the constituent Doshas are to be used. ( Please refer to The Ayurveda Experience Advanced Version 2.0 to learn more about symptoms of Dosha aggravation which will help you understand which of your Doshas is aggravated. ) Herbs for Pitta-Vata Prakriti: Medicated ghee, fennel seeds, Asparagus, liquorice, coriander seeds, Sandalwood powder, Amla & Rose petal jam, etc are few of the herbs / herbal preparations useful for your Prakriti. Understanding your dual nature & its multiple traits and utilising their advantages to lead a healthy, abundant & satisfying life is the secret to success & joy that Ayurveda offers. Learn about it & follow these easy principles to secure a life of bliss for yourself and your loved ones. We wish you luck in your journey into your own nature! Learn more about Ayurveda at home! Ayurveda: The Science Of Life, Ayurveda through the Day and through the Years, Digestion, Exercise and Body Work, Meditation Techniques, Breath and Energy, Ayurvedic Self-Care All of it right here!