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Which dosha are you?

READING YOUR CHART AND DISCOVERING YOUR DOSHA

On the following pages are two charts that will help you figure out the particular mix of doshas that comprise your constitution. You may discover that you have some of the characteristics of all three doshas; this is not uncommon. But you will probably have one dominant dosha (Vata, Pitta or Kapha), then another dosha that is slightly less obvious, and so you would be, say, Vata Pitta, Pitta Kapha or Vata Kapha.

For example, I am a Pitta Vata. I have far stronger Pitta tendencies than I do Vata so I focus on managing my Pitta, but I do have to be aware of my Vata when I travel and in autumn and early winter, the Vata season (more on this later). You may find you are a Pitta Kapha, for example, and so you would focus on balancing Pitta generally but also managing Kapha tendencies in the Kapha season of late winter and spring or if you have a cold or cough, and you may need to manage the Kapha if you find you are gaining some excess weight in later years.

Be sure to look at both the physical and emotional/psychological/lifestyle/environmental characteristics of each dosha. A person may be physically a Kapha type but emotionally a Vata; this person would then be considered a Kapha Vata.

Just watch the tendency to make sweeping statements and generalisations about your doshas: there are a lot of factors and elements at play here. And what may appear to be someone’s dosha may be a big imbalance that is demanding their attention. The world outside of us and the world inside us are ever-changing and so are we.

WHAT DOES TRIDOSHIC MEAN?

If, when you fill out the charts, you find you have an even amount of characteristics from Vata, Pitta and Kapha, you are described as being Tridoshic. This means you have a fairly balanced constitution but will still need to be aware of each dosha in its season. Ayurveda recommends tridoshic people follow a Vata diet usually because Vata is the dosha that goes out of balance first and the other doshas then follow. To obtain a more accurate and individual dosha reading and diagnosis, you may wish to seek out a consultation with an Ayurvedic practitioner.

Dosha evaluation charts

Go through the charts and tick the boxes, then add up the ticks. The one you have the most ticks under is your dominant dosha, the next your secondary dosha.

Normally we would suggest completing a dosha chart twice: the first time to establish your constitution (prakruti) and the second time to establish any imbalance (vikruti). Understanding your constitution will give you valuable insight into your tendencies; knowing your tendencies will help you manage your health and go a long way in helping you to create a balanced life for yourself. Each of us is made up of varying amounts of Vata, Pitta and Kapha energy. Vata provides us with movement and expression, Pitta governs our metabolic action and Kapha builds our tissues.

The first time you go through the chart, think about your body shape, emotional responses and personality up to about 18 years of age. If you can discuss this with your parents, you will often find they are able to share some valuable information with you about your behaviour in your younger years and they may have a much clearer memory of your size and shape.

The second time you fill out the chart, approach it from how you are now. Watch out for changes in weight, mood etc. to your formative years. Be honest and present. This can be a very helpful tool if used properly and you cannot get it wrong, as we are just trying to establish where your body is not functioning as it should.

If you complete the chart twice and your prakruti and vikruti are the same, then this is a good thing as it shows that your body is in a state of balance. But remember, the body is always in a state of flux, sensitive to outside influences and always trying to communicate any imbalance to you.

In Ayurveda we treat the imbalance to bring the body back to a state of health. Regardless of your constitution, you can experience an imbalance in any of the doshas. Imbalance is created from the external environment: not just the weather but any outside influences – food, habits, home environment.

A good way of determining your prakruti is by thinking about the things about you that never change. Body shape can fluctuate and cause some confusion but things like your basic personality tend to stay the same throughout your life.

Experience is simply the name we give our mistakes.

–Oscar Wilde