Herbal FAQ

Introduction to Ayurvedic Herbalism

Karta Purkh Singh Khalsa
January 1, 2007

Abstract
Ayurveda, the indigenous holistic healing system of India, is a holistic approach
to health and lifestyle management that incorporates diet, exercise, life activity routines,
psychotherapeutic practices, massage and botanical medicine.
Ayurveda focuses on prevention, applying techniques of self-care to restore health
balance quickly and effectively.
Ayurveda is one of the four large, long practiced ethnic herbal medicine systems
with large extant literatures (along with Western, Chinese and Unani). It affords valuable
clinical insights in its own right. Acquiring a basis in Ayurveda will enhance access to
South Asian herbs and indigenous medicinal preparations.

Ayurveda, the indigenous holistic healing system of India, is a remarkably broad

approach to health and lifestyle management. This system incorporates diet, exercise,
life activity routines, psychotherapeutic practices, massage, and, of course, botanical
medicine, which is the foundation of Ayurvedic therapeutics.
Ayurveda is first and foremost a self-care system that focuses on prevention. The
techniques of Ayurvedic self-care are geared toward never allowing a symptom to
develop, and if it should happen, to restore health balance quickly and effectively, so that
there is no chance to have another.
Ayurveda has a different vision of the healthy human- not just the gradually
failing, getting through the day human, but a vibrant being with energy to excel.
This system seeks to answer some fundamental questions of wellbeing. How
does your body work; how does it heal? What are the proper foods and herbs? Why use
them? Why can herbs, foods, and spices heal? How does it all fit together? Gaining even
a basic understanding Ayurveda will provide a valuable additional perspective on health
and illness.
This system, one of the four large, long practiced ethnic herbal medicine systems
with large extant literatures (along with Western, Chinese and Unani), affords valuable
clinical insights in its own right. Also, acquiring a basis in Ayurveda will enhance the
clinician’s access to the plethora of South Asian herbs and indigenous medicinal
preparations.

Why Ayurveda?
You’ve noticed that there are myriad natural healing theories and methods, and
that many seem to conflict with each other. How could they all be right?
They can and they are. But no one regime works for everyone. Individualization
is the key. We are born into different bodies, each with a different heritage, and we have
all lived different lives.
 One hears of several herbal medicine systems and may have practiced one. If it
worked, one became a convert. If you didn’t, one went on to the next theory. Ayurveda
provides a coherent, systematic way of understanding individual needs and applying
remedies to bring back health and happiness, in a body that works right year after year.
All traditional natural healing systems have already worked out this
individualized approach. If we dig deep enough, we find them all dipping from the same
stream. One look at contemporary developments in complementary and alternative
medicine may convince us that this is an area that deserves serious attention. A coherent,
cohesive model can explain the success of the spectrum of effective health programs.
Ayurveda gives us a measuring tool that people can master and apply. It explains the
reason some people get better on one diet and others tolerate different foods. The
overarching concept of energy balance is the glue that holds all the various theories,
systems and techniques together.
Nearly half the people in the United States suffer from at least one chronic illness,
and that, taken as a whole, these diseases account for three-fourths of all medical
expenses in our country. 1 Crisis medicine reflects a crisis-based society. Unhealthy
people make unhealthy choices, and create unhealthy environments, which create
unhealthy people. 2
Ayurveda has begun to achieve some degree of recognition in recent years, yet
people are still confused about its basic concepts. Frequently, people have read half a
dozen books on Ayurveda, and are confused, but still intrigued. Often, after a proper
introduction to the topic, they realize that it isn’t so obscure and metaphysical after all. 3
They begin to take steps to live the life they can live- not only nourishing the
body with the customized, individualized diet based on Ayurvedic principles, but also
building on that foundation by using herbs, foods and teas to heal illness, soothe injury,
and tip the odds against disease and degeneration in your favor.
Ayurveda systematically explains how skin rash, hemorrhoids, diarrhea, balding
head and weak eyesight are connected, for example. Armed with the knowledge of how
one is put together as an individual, one will be able to select the diet, know which herbs
to take and what style of massage to have- even what temperature to keep the office.
Despite its cultural trappings, Ayurveda is actually systematic and user friendly.
Its methods are easy to understand and logical to apply. After a basic introduction,
Ayurveda will come through as systematic, consistent and eminently useful.

Energetics
People of ancient cultures experienced the natural world in which they lived, and
sought to develop a way to systematically understand their relationship to it. They
reasoned that they were subject to the effects of circumstances in their living
environment. In culture after culture, often widely separated by distance and time, people
came to remarkably similar conclusions about how their bodies responded to changes in
the climate, diet, season of the year, and so forth.
Practitioners in these cultures put together systematic metaphors for how herbs,
food and exercise interact with the body and mind, based on centuries of patient
observations of their patients. Gradually a consensus emerged in ea.ch group of
practitioners
 Fundamentally, these experts concluded that “like increases like”. In other words,
an external factor, when introduced to the body, will create a similar reaction in the body
of the person experiencing the change. For example, going out into the cold weather will
make the body cold. Eating heavy food will make the body heavy. This seems obvious on
the surface, and it is ultimately straightforward to grasp intuitively, but putting together
all the intricacies of every possible effect of every possible herbal medicine on every
possible person is a daunting task.
If we think of each of these possible effects, such as temperature or moisture, as
an energy, we can put together a conceptual scheme that will explain the complexity of
the human being, while being consistent and systematic enough for people to learn and
apply in daily life. The cumulative effect of these internal and external factors forms a
complex metaphor that has come to be called “energetics”. This metaphor creates a
conceptual model that is intricate enough to represent an entire human being, yet simple
enough to be useful.
Energetic evaluation of the body is based on experiencing the body with the
human senses. (Of course, it does not contravene use of any technological method, with
which it is usually complementary.) Since everyone experiences the world in subtly
different ways, it takes centuries for a consensus to develop among practitioners about
any given therapeutic procedure or remedy. It creates a structure in which remedies can
easily be identified and understood. According to energetic systems, the sum total of the
effect of a diet or supplement is what counts. For example, we may know from modern
science that an herb contains antibacterial activity. We want to give that herb to treat an
acute bacterial infection. But we also know that the herb tends to increase body
temperature- it is “hypermetabolic, or “hot”. If the patient has a fever, or is a person who
is particularly prone to develop inflammation (heat) that is difficult to control, we would
think twice about using that specific herb. It might kill the bacterium very nicely, and
treat the infection, but the whole person would be worse off in the net than before we
started. Instead, we would seek out an herb that would kill the infection, but which had a
“cooling” energy. This difference in approach can make a world of difference in clinical
practice, and affords an invaluable tool in managing a case for the best in the long term,
and in treating the person as a whole human being. No one wants to make people worse
while she thinks they are getting better.
Using an energetic model, the properties of foods and herbs are collated
systematically according to their taste, temperature, effect before and after digestion, and
similar factors.
While the modern method of constituent analysis is to isolate and identify key
active ingredients, which is incredibly complicated, considering the boggling n umbers of
different botanical compounds, and their possible interactions, and is far from complete,
considering how recent the effort is, the art and science of energetics creates an
impression from the whole, allowing us to grasp the overall nature of the remedy, and
predict with great accuracy the expected consequences of its use.
Using a system of energetics allows the practitioner to match the actions and
nature of the medicine to the individual patient. Rather than applying this process to
diseases, to differentiate one from another, facilitating proper diagnosis, energetic
systems understand this concept to mean the differentiation between individuals, all of
whom might have the same diagnosis in the conventional paradigm. Line up ten patients
with multiple sclerosis or chronic fatigue syndrome or pneumonia. Each of the patients in
any group will have characteristics in common, but each case will be as unique as the
person manifesting the disease. An herbalist using an energetic paradigm will choose the
herbal prescription based on the uniqueness of the case, rather than the commonality of
the medical diagnosis.
Ayurveda and Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) are based upon a universal
notion, expressed in nature in bi-polar terms (Yin-Yang in TCM, Shiva-Shakti in
Ayurveda). In both systems, which share historical roots, diseases, herbal medicines and
therapies are similarly classified in a bi-polar scheme as “heating or cooling”, “strong or
weak” and so forth. Both further subdivide natural energy into the concepts of “five
elements” and “three humors”, the latter of which assumes a more central position in
Ayurveda than in TCM. 4
Various energetic systems carve up the spectrum of energies in the human body
and mind in somewhat different ways. Basically, though, they are all looking at about the
same things. The concepts that are common to just about all systems of herbal energetics
are:
• Temperature. This implies body temperature, but also is generally construed to
mean metabolic rate. The spectrum is from hot to cold.
• Weight. This is an observation of body weight, and also general density of the
tissues.
• Moisture. This is an observation of the lubricious nature of the body fluids, and
the degree of fluid retention.
• Taste. Taste is essentially a measure of biochemical composition. Generally
speaking, we can divide tastes into energetic categories. Acid substances taste
hot. Alkaline substances taste cold. Acid tastes are sour, pungent and salty.
Alkaline tastes are bitter and astringent. Sweet taste is caused from
carbohydrates, proteins and fats, which all produce acid reactions in the body.

A Note on Spelling
Sanskrit, the language of classical Ayurveda, is written in a script, Devanagri,
which is completely different from the Roman script in which English is written. It is
difficult to match the Roman alphabet to the Devanagri alphabet. Furthermore, Sanskrit
uses sounds not contained in English. The Roman alphabet does not adapt well to the
range of Sanskrit sounds. For example, Sanskrit, and other modern offshoots, uses
aspirated consonants, which are separate letters from their unaspirated counterparts. A
puff of air is released while pronouncing the consonant. The “p” in the English “put” is
actually an aspirated consonant, but English does not represent it with a separate letter.
These sounds are often transliterated into English with an additional “h”, so “ph” in
Sanskrit is not pronounced like “ph” in the English “philosophy”.
Sanskrit words yield a dizzying array of Roman-alphabet spellings because of the
many different schemes for transliterating Sanskrit. Although there are standardized
transliteration methods developed for scholarly use, these systems have not been applied
in a uniform fashion by past scholars in transliterating terms. Transliteration is generally
pretty unhelpful in conveying proper pronunciation.
British authorities introduced spellings that reflected what they thought a term
sounded like. Then there are the modern languages and dialects spoken in contemporary
India. Any given herb might today be called by dozens of different, often somewhat
similar names, with variant pronunciations. The reader may come across many different
names and spellings in the course of herbal study.

Just the Basics

Therapy in Ayurveda is based on an understanding of the underlying concepts of
energetics inherent in the Ayurvedic worldview. Ayurveda assigns all matter/energy
interactions in the world to a scheme of five primal elements or “states of existence”
(metaphorical concepts that describe physiological processes and environmental
interactions): earth, water, fire, air and ether.
These five elements (“mahabhuta” in Sanskrit) are the basic foundation of the
theory of anatomy, physiopathology, and pharmacology. Ayurveda considers it necessary
to know only the state of proportionate balance of the elements in all parts of the body to
affect an accurate diagnosis. Ayurveda does name diseases, but only for the convenience
of discussion; all diagnosis is based on the energetics of each individual case.
As the body is composed of the five elements, all other substances on the planet
are likewise composed. Botanical medicines interact with the tissues of the body
according to innate characteristics of their five-element profile.

Element Characteristics Pharmacological effects

Earth Heavy, tough, hard, dry, stable, Plumpness, heaviness, compactness,
dense, gross, smelly stability
Water Liquid, oily, cold, dull, soft, slimy, Stickiness, oiliness, compactness,
strong taste softness, moisturizing, contentment
Fire Hot, sharp, subtle, light, oily, Heat, oxidation, metabolism, luster,
vision promoting radiance, color
Air Soft, light, cold, oily, rough, dry, Roughness, dryness, lightness, aversion
subtle, touch promoting
Ether Soft, light, subtle, smooth, sound Softness, porosity, lightness
promoting

The Doshas
For ease of conceptualizing the actions of these energies, and for therapeutic
application in diagnosis and treatment, the five elements, as they manifest in the body,
are further condensed into three primal physiological forces, called doshas. 5 6 These
forces underlie all of the theoretical foundation of Ayurvedic diagnosis and therapeutics. 7
8

Elements Dosha Energetics Actions

Earth and Water Kapha Cold, wet, heavy Stability, solidity, lubrication,
tissue building
Water and Fire Pitta Hot, wet, light Metabolism, digestion,
assimilation, body heat, glandular
secretion
Air and Ether Vata Cold, dry, light Movement, nerve regulation,
respiration, circulation, excretion
 Botanicals are classified as to pharmacology based on several factors: taste
(biochemical composition), qualities (physiological action), potency (effect on metabolic
rate), and post-digestive effect.
Ayurveda predicts physiological effect by the intrinsic biochemical makeup of the
botanical, which can be identified by taste. Ayurveda recognizes six tastes:

Taste Component Energetics Characteristics Action

on
Doshas
Sweet Protein, Carbohydrates, Cold, wet, Pleasing, brain PV
fats heavy tonic, anabolic K
Sour Organic acids Hot, wet, Digestive, V
light sialagogue, PK
anabolic
Salty Minerals Hot, wet, Moistening, V
heavy expectorant, PK
anabolic
Pungent Induces burning sensation Hot, dry, Detoxifying, K
light cardiac, catabolic VP
Bitter Alkaloids and other bitter Cold, Dry, Appetizer, drying, PK
principles, including Light cooling, catabolic V
terpenes and small
polyphenols
Astringent Phenols (tannins) Cold, Dry, Stiffness, PK
Heavy absorbent, V
catabolic.

Since Ayurveda identifies disease as an imbalance of the doshas, the aim of

Ayurvedic herbalism is to restore this proper harmony. By understanding the energetics
contained in the plant, we can offset the accumulation of energy characteristic of the
offending dosha, thus restoring the body to its original proper functioning.

Personalize the Diet with Ayurveda

As different as each individual body is, so, too, are the individual nutritional
requirements. Ayurveda recognizes this, and emphasizes the correct diet for each
individual.
Diet is the first and most basic building block of good health in Ayurveda, and
can be an effective treatment for disease, even when used alone. It is the safest therapy,
and can be used by anyone as self care. Of course, the results can materialize more
slowly than more directed methods, such as herbal medicine.
Improper diet is the main underlying physical factor that induces disease, says
Ayurveda. When the diet is modified, one also get at one of the underlying problems.
Ayurveda primarily evaluates the diet based on the energetic qualities of the food,
and its effect on the doshas, not necessarily on the chemical (vitamin, mineral) content.
Diets for the Doshas
To achieve balance, the diet for treating each dosha will have the characteristics
that are opposite that of the dosha that is dominating and causing the problem.
Dosha Qualities Diet Should Be
Kapha Cold, Wet Heavy Warm, Dry, Light
Pitta Hot, Wet, Light Cool, Dry, Heavier
Vata Cold, Dry Light Warm, Moist, Heavier

Usually, the current therapeutic diet that is best for a given patient will be the
same as the diet for that person’s underlying fundamental physiology, but any dosha
could be out of balance at any given time. Treat what is happening now.
For example, a thin framed, always cold person with dry skin, has an underlying
Vata physiology, and should eat a Vata-balancing diet as the appropriate lifetime
program. However, one who is this week retaining water, feeling sluggish, and has a
chest full of mucus is experiencing a Kapha imbalance, and should use a Kapha
balancing diet until the body is again balanced and healthy.
Digestion begins when one first begins to think of food. When food is well
selected, properly prepared and presented beautifully, the senses will aid digestion. All of
a person- body and your mind- are receptive. Flavors, aromas, colors, and textures make
the experience of eating an agreeable and creative time. 9
Appetizers and appetizing aromas are used 30 minutes before the meal to get the
digestive juices flowing. Eating is undertaken in a serene atmosphere so the body can
give its full attention to producing health.
One should eat when feces and urine have been eliminated, the emotions are
calm, the doshas are balanced, belching has no foul smell or taste, one is truly hungry,
gas is moving downward, digestive fire is high, the sense organs are clear and the body
feels light. After a proper size meal, the stomach should be half filled with food, one
quarter filled with liquid and one quarter empty. 10

Food Qualities
Food will act in the body based on its energy properties, such as temperature,
weight, and moisture, as we have discussed. The inherent taste, another way of
recognizing biochemical composition, will also be important.
Here are some examples of the six tastes in food:

Taste Examples
Sweet Rice, honey
Sour Lemon
Salty Kelp
Pungent Chiles, onion
Bitter Leafy greens
Astringent Pomegranate

In daily food, the tastes must be consumed in appropriate proportion. Each taste
has a measure of potency, or intensity of metabolic effect. Sweet is the least potent taste.
Everyone will eat the vast majority of the diet as sweet (neutral, bland) tastes, as those are
the macronutrients- necessary for nutrition, but minimally impactful in metabolic action.
Sour is the next most potent taste, although it should be consumed in much lower
amounts than sweet. Sour is a great taste for vata, as it promotes digestion. Salty is next
in power of action. In general, we will eat only small amounts of salty. Pungent, then
bitter, and, finally, astringent are the three most potent tastes.
Vatas should strive to concentrate on sweet, sour and salty tastes- the anabolic,
building tastes. Salty is best for vata because it promotes moisture retention in the tissues.
Pittas should use mainly sweet, bitter, and astringent- the cooling tastes. Bitter is
best for pitta because it is the most cooling.
Kaphas will primarily consume pungent, bitter and astringent- the catabolic,
detoxifying tastes. Pungent s the best for kapha because it is warming and drying.
The table below lists the tastes in order of potency. The proportion of the diet, in
general, that should be made up of each taste is indicated.

Tastes Proportion in Dietary Therapy

← Least Potent Most Potent →
Sweet Sour Salty Pungent Bitter Astringent
Vata 92% (3rd 4% (2nd 1% (best) 1% 1% 1%
best) best)
Pitta 89% (2nd 1% 1% 1% 2% (best) 6% (3rd best)
best)
Kapha 79% 1% 1% 2% (best) 2% (2nd 15% (3rd best)
best)

Foods for Balancing Kapha

Energy Warm, Dry, Light (Avoid cold, oily, heavy)
Tastes Pungent, Bitter, Astringent
Strategy Eat less total food, lowfat, low calorie, hot spices, occasional fasting, less
frequency, largest meal midday
Emphasize Dry and astringent fruits (apple, raisin)
Vegetables, especially raw
Dry grains (rice cakes)
Hot spices (black pepper, chiles)
Cooked beans with warming spices
Spicy herbal teas (ginger)
Avoid Sweet fruits
Nuts
Milk products
Oil

Foods for Balancing Pitta

Energy Cool, Dry, Heavier (Avoid Hot, Wet, Light)
Tastes Sweet, Bitter, Astringent
Strategy Mild, bland food, served cool, raw, no hot spices, low oil, eat when calm,
three regular meals
Emphasize Sweet fruits
Sweet and bitter vegetables (greens)
 Beans in general
Natural sweeteners (maple syrup)
Mild cheeses (cottage cheese)
Sweet and cooling drinks (apple juice)
Avoid Sour fruits
Pungent vegetables (onion)
Nuts
Hot spices (chiles)
Fermented milk products (yogurt)
Oils

Foods for Balancing Vata

Energy Warm, Moist, Heavier (Avoid Cold, Dry, Light)
Tastes Sweet, Sour, Salty
Strategy Nourishing, easy to digest, warm, filling, heavy, moistening, strengthening,
small frequent regular meals, mild warming spices, calm and concentrate
while eating
Emphasize Sweet fruits
Cooked vegetables
Cooked grains (oatmeal)
Nuts
Natural sweeteners
Mild warming spices (basil)
Milk products in moderation, especially warm
Avoid Dry fruits
Dry grains (rice cakes)
Raw vegetables
Cabbage family (broccoli)
Beans in general
Any food which causes gas

Personalize Lifestyle with Ayurveda

As each person is viewed as an individual in the ways we’ve mentioned, so, too,
can we understand how each person should conduct their life, according to the dosha they
are seeking to balance. The daily schedule, relationships, choice of exercise, all can be
calculated using Ayurveda.
When Kapha dominates, people are slow and lethargic. They like a lot of sleep,
and tend toward obesity. When Pitta dominates, people are hot, intense, aggressive, and
demanding. When vata dominates people are spaced-out, flighty, erratic, anxious and
insomniac. Through Ayurveda, the ultimate self-care system, we can adjust all these
factors with careful lifestyle choices.

To Balance Kapha To Balance Pitta To Balance Vata

Be Active Be Calm Be Moderate
Stimulating activities Rest and relax Adequate sleep
Physical labor Cut down the schedule No staying up late
Stay warm, stay active Cut down striving Disciplined schedule
Sunbathing Stay cool Regular hours
Less sleep (shorter nights rest, Take in cool breezes Consistency
no naps)
Mix it up (variety of activities)
Gardens and gardening, Take in the sun
flowers
Avoid cold and damp Contentment Sexual moderation
Cultivate physical challenges Forgiveness Mild physical effort
Mental stimulation Simplify your life Avoid wind and cold
Promote travel Avoid the sun Avoid overwork
Avoid “couch potato” behavior Moonlight Avoid all types of stress
Avoid intense travel
Avoid excess stimulation
(TV, etc.)

Personalize the Love Life with Ayurveda

Relationships can improve if one understands the doshas. Ayurveda suggests a
spouse of a different fundamental physiology. This helps each balance the other in the
relationship, and prevents the offspring from being too extremely endowed from biorth in
any one dosha. Two Vatas produce a child who is doubly fundamentally Vata, for
example.

For balancing Kapha For Balancing Pitta For Balancing Vata

Marry Vata
Active family life
Stimulating conversations
Encourage talking
Go out and get interested
Encourage sexual interest
Marry Kapha or Vata Marry Kapha
Soothing conversations Slow and Steady
No confrontation Less thinking, more acting
Relaxing massages Careful managing money
Take “cool off” breaks Commitment
Slow down and cool off to Consistent and supportive
take time and care for sex behavior
Caution with sexual
experimentation
Don’t overtalk and
overanalyze

Personalize the Exercise Routine with Ayurveda

For Balancing Kapha For Balancing Pitta For Balancing Vata

Get hot Don’t overheat, cool air
Sweat Don’t be fanatical - take a
break
Vigorous aerobic Drink plenty of water
Work up to pushing your Vary the routine to avoid
Stay warm
Mild only - don’t overdo
Regular routine - stick with a
program
Slow, gradual progress
limits boredom
Discipline Varied overall fitness program Walking
Powerful calisthenics Stretching, yoga

Ayurvedic Herbs
Botanicals are recommended for the individual case, base on the same principles
of energetic balancing of the doshas. Often a program of relatively common, general
purpose herbs, selected to offset the current dosha imbalance, will be broadly effective.

Common Herbs for the Doshas

Balance Vata Balance Pitta Balance Kapha
Digestion Garlic bulb Aloe vera leaf Cayenne fruit
Ginger root Turmericroot Black pepper
Cinnamon bark Fennel seed Ginger root
Cumin seed Spearmint leaf Clove
Elimination Psyllium seed Senna leaf Bibitaki fruit
Castor oil Rhubarb root (Terminalia
belerica)
Guggul gum
(Commiphora
mukul)
Energy Ashwaganda Licorice root Garlic
(Withania
somnifera)
Bala Dandelion root Cinnamon
Pipali (Piper Amla (Emblica Basil
longum) officinalis)
Mind Valerian Sandalwood Sage
Chamomile Hibiscus Basil
Poppy Mandukaparni Scullcap
(Centella asiatica)

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9
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