Physcical Constitution

Ayurveda classifies individuals broadly into seven categories, according to their constitution or prakriti, which has specific physical and mental characteristics. These seven categories are in outcome of the dominance of a particular dosha; vayu, pitta and kapha or of combinations of the three doshas. These basic traits of an individual are developed at the very time of birth and remain until death.
A knowledge of constitution is essential for selecting appropriate food, beverages and other regimens are also for choosing medicines for the treatment of ailments. Furthermore, a person may be more prone to certain kinds of ailments because of his natural constitution or combination of doshas.
Primarily, human constitution is of seven types:

1. Vata constitution.
2. Pitta constitution.
3. Kapha constitution.
4.  Vata-pitta constitution.
5.  Pitta-kapha constitution.
6.  Vata-kapha constitution.
7.  Sama constitution.

The vata, pitta and kapha constitutions refer to constitutions having the dominance of the characteristic features associated with that particular dosha. The mixed constitutions namely, vata-pitta constitution, pitta-kapha constitution and vata-kapha constitution have the characteristic features of their respective doshas in a combined form. In sama constitution, which is the best, everything is in a state of complete balance.
The characteristic features of a person having vata constitution are:

• Dryness and roughness of the skin and body.
• Emaciated body.
• Short stature.

Prominence of tendons and veins, roughness of hair, nails, teeth, soles of the feet and palms.

• Appearance of cracks in limbs.
• Less hair and beard.
• Hair with split ends and of brown colour.
• Dryness and drowsiness of the eyes.

Some of the characteristic features of an individual with pitta constitution are:

• White colour of the skin.
• Dryness and tenderness of the body.
• Excessive appearance of black moles.

Intense feeling of heat in face and limbs.

• Early appearance of grey hair and wrinkles.
• Baldness.
• Less hair with a reddish brown tinge.
• Sloth in muscle movements.
• Looseness of the joints.
• Body colour.
• Coppery colour of nails, eyes, tongue, palate, limbs, palms and soles of the feet.
• Enthusiasm.
• Small reddish eyes.
• Sparse eyelashes.

Characteristic features of a person having kapha constitution are:

• Soft, smooth, unctuous skin.
• Compact and muscular body.
• White and tender body.

Corpulence.

• Compact joints.
• White-eyes with red tinge at the outer corner.
• Curly and black hair.
• Prominent forehead, chest and arms.
• Beautiful big eyes.
• Plenty of eyelashes.

For Ayurvedic treatment, knowledge of individual constitution is very important. For example, a person with a vata constitution will be prone to vata ailments like bronchitis, asthma, common cold, hoarseness of voice, or various diseases of the eye, ear, nose and throat respectively. He or she may have problems of indigestion and diarrhoea and diseases like diabetes. Diseases of other types will not give much trouble to such people.

To prevent the occurrence of diseases, the individual having a vata constitution should always avoid factors which would aggravate vata. He or she should take to vata-alleviating food, drinks and way of like. Food ingredients which are unctuous and hot are likely to suit such people the most whereas for a person having pitta constitution, cooling things will be most suitable.

Similarly, while administering medicines, a pitta constitution patient is to be given medicines which are cooling and a kapha constitution patient is to be given medicines which bring about a heating effect. Pitta ailments include indigestion, anaemia and jaundice, besides impairment of vision, skin diseases and psychological disturbances. Kapha ailments include impairment of digestion and of waste. There may be loss of memory and impairment of the functions of sense organs is also a tendency to have pain and malfunctioning in the joints.

Individuals with constitutions dominated by a mixture of two doshas characterised by the combination of the manifestations of the representative doshas. A sama type of individual has all the doshas in a state of equilibrium with the good qualities of all the types individuals described above. Thus, persons having different types of constitutions are vulnerable to some specific diseases, which can be healed by a particular kind of therapy.

Health according to Ayurveda, is not merely freedom from disease but a state of being in which the individual enjoys physical, mental and spiritual happiness and fulfillment over a relatively uninterrupted period of time. This state of being can only be experienced if all the aspects of the constitution are in state of balance. The external manifestations of this balance can be explained in terms of the individual's experience of hunger, thirst, sleep and ability to perform his or her normal functions at work and at home without undue strain on the body or mind. The normal human urges such as hunger, thirst and sleep help indicate that the bodily functions of indigestions, metabolism and elimination are being performed smoothly.