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Vata is the bodily air principle. Vata is in charge of the principle of movement and mind. Anything that moves does so because of Vata. It is formed by the combination of the elements Ether and Air. The proportions of Ether and Air determine how active Vata is. Vata enables the other two Doshas to be expressive.

The amount of Ether (space) affects the ability of the air to gain momentum. If unrestricted, as it is over the ocean, air can gain momentum and become extremely forceful, such as a hurricane.

Vayu is wind. Vayu carries things throughout the body. It carries the ingredient needed by the body throughout the system, or instead it can carry waste products and toxins throughout the body, which can cause disease.

The external air in the atmosphere is not the same as the air that is within the body. Vata may be characterized as the subtle energy that governs biological movement that stimulate all subtle changes in the metabolism.

Vata governs movements of the muscles, beating of the heart, the eyelids blinking, movement in nerve cells, expansion and contraction in the body and breathing. It controls nervousness, spasms, tremors, pain, fear and anxiety.

The Vata parts of the body are the large intestine, ears, thighs, bones, skins and pelvic cavity. An excess of Vata in the body will accumulate in these places. Vayu is within the stomach, intestines, bone, skin, thighs, waist and ears, with the main places being intestines and stomach.

Vayu is the main carrier of disease, because the element of wind distributes everything. Therefore Vayu, of the three doshas, is considered to be the most important.

The actions of Vata are drying, cooling, light, agitating, and moving. Wind’s nature is light, fast, subtle, cold and dry in nature. It changes its nature according to temperature, pressure and when it mixes with the ingredients that it will carry.

Below are main attributes of Vata Dosha and how they are expressed in the body and mind.

Dry - Dry lips, tongue, hair, skin and colon. Tends to have constipation or a hoarse voice.

Light - Light muscles and bones. Light sleep. Underweight. Thin body frames.

Cold - Poor circulation. Cold hands and feet. Have muscle stiffness. Loves hot and hate cold.

Activities - Walks fast, gestures tend to be choppy, walks with a jaunty quality

Appetite - Always anxious to eat. Eyes bigger than stomach. They feel full before they eat what they want to eat. The appetite varies, one day it may be strong and the next day it may be weak. They don’t like extended fasting because they don’t have the energy to get through a long periods of not eating.

Body
If a person show most of these characteristic, but is overweight they still can be a Vata.

a. Skin Color and Complexion - Vata persons tend to have dark skin and tend to get dark tans. Color is relative to racial background. When comparing whether skin is light or dark, this should be compared to other people with the same racial background. The darkest skin color of someone from Sweden is much lighter than someone from African. Skin is cold, rough, dry and cracked. May have a grayish tint to it. Tend to have dry skin, because their high energy output uses up external lubrication. All the skin may be dry, or only patches are dry and there may be oily patches. Skin easily chaps. Susceptible to dry eczema, psoriasis and other such conditions. Cracks tend to form on the body, especially on the sores of the feet. Corns and calluses often come. Often have chapped lips. May have moles or wrinkles.
b. Body Frame - Tend to be tall or very short. Usually thin with narrow shoulders or hips. Have thin frames with small bones, or heavy bones that reveal prominent joints and bone-ends because of poor muscle development.
c. People of Vata constitution are generally physically underdeveloped. Their chests are flat and their veins and muscle tendons are visible. Often their arms and legs are unusually long and sometimes they seem to be unusually short. Tend to have long, narrow fingers and toes.
d. If parts of the body have unusual proportion this is due to the Vata quality of irregularity.
e. Joints - Often make cracking sound when moving.
f. Eyes - Eye are small relative to the size of the head. The eyes are usually far apart or unusually close together. Blue, violet and grey are normal eye color. Also their eyes could be dark brown eyes like the black of bittersweet chocolate. Eyes quickly appear dull and lusterless when a person uses up their energy. Are round and devoid of beauty, may be sunken, and active.
g. Nose - The shape of the nose is bent and turned-up.
h. Hair - Usually dry. Hair can vary and be dry in some places and oily in other places on the head. Usually dark, curly, and course or rough in texture. Tend to have split ends or dandruff. May seems lusterless or dull. Head hair tends to be thin, brittle and sparse and slightly grayish. The eyelashes are thin.
i. Limbs, Hands and Feet - Knees are especially knobby and gnarled. Tendency toward cold hands and feet and may experience discomfort in cold climates. Their hands and feet are often cold.
j. Mouth - Tend to have uneven, crooked or buck teeth. Often some teeth are bigger than other. Vata irregularity may cause the jaws to be too large for the teeth to fit properly or too small for all the teeth to fit properly. Brittle and oversensitive to cold and sweets. When waking in the morning they may have a Bitter or Astringent taste in the mouths. Tongue often coated and the coating is often pinkish-grey. Vata gums often recede early.
k. Nails - Nails are rough, hard and brittle. Nails may vary in size from one another. A good amount of irregularity indicates a high degree of Vata. Often have marked ridges or depressions. May be slightly grayish or bluish. Persons who have the habit of biting their nails are often Vatas.
l. Weight - Vata people have a dry body, which encourage the body to be slender Vata persons are the lightest of the three body types. Vatas often cannot gain weight, no matter how much they eat. Vata people use up all the energy from food before it can be stored. Often they are so skinny that prominent veins and tendons can be seen on their limbs. Store most of the fat around their midsection. Vatas persons sometimes can eat too much poor foods and become fat, but if they return to eating properly they can often easily lose the weight.

Climate Preference
Because they are cold blooded, they enjoy warm weather. They can take plenty of heat before they sweat. The sun enlivens them. Tend to lose energy in the winter, during which they bundle up and want heat from external sources. This is to make up for their little internal heat production. They prefer heat and love being in the sun. Body needs addition of heat because Vata is by nature cold and their bodies do not tend to store enough energy to maintain a good warm bodily feeling. Often have poor circulation and their skin usually feels cold to the touch.

Digestion
The appetite and digestion are variable. Vata people loves sweet, sour and salty tastes and like hot drinks. They may make sounds while drinking water.

Evacuation
It is best for Vata persons to evacuate once or twice a day naturally. If waterly stool is passed more than three times a day it is considered to be diarrhea. Some Vata persons suffer from constipation for their whole life and tend to have dark-colored, hard stools. Have frequent gas or bloating. Some Vata persons have variable bowel movements, sometimes normal, and then constipated, then loose or diarrhea. Some Vata persons if constipated resort to strong laxatives.

Foods that are good for Vatas are Salty, Sour and Sweet because these tastes satisfy the system and reduce the insecurity about being well fed. Astringent, Bitter and Pungent foods are not as good because these dry the system and intensify emotional instability, especially insecurity. Best to reduce dry foods and bitter tastes.

Vata persons prefer warm food that is moderately heavy in textures with added butter and fat. All soothing and satisfying foods are good for settling disturbed Vata. Use foods such as: warm milk, cream, butter, cooked grains and cereals, bowl of hot oatmeal, warm soups, stews, hot cereals and fresh baked bread. Prefer spicy foods such as spicy Mexican or Indian foods that are cooked in oil. Since Vata is a cold and dry Dosha, warm, nourishing foods such as these are good for stabilizing Vata. Good spices are cinnamon, cardamom, cumin, ginger and cloves in moderation.

Best to drink warm or hot water instead of ice cold water and drinks. Cold foods such as cold salads, iced drinks, raw vegetables and greens are not very good for persons with a Vata imbalance.

Best to take a hot or herbal tea with snacks in the late afternoon. It is best for Vata persons to avoid drinks with high caffeine as Vata gets disturbed by it. Warm milk is good. You can add a little sugar or honey to it if you prefer. Prefer salted nuts and nut butters that are heavy and oily as opposed to dry salty snacks.

All sweet fruits are Ok for Vata persons, but they should avoid unripe fruits as they are astringent. They should avoid eating candies as it disturbs Vata. Vata persons should not eat Vata-promoting junk food in the afternoons or in autumn because at this time Vata predominates. It is best for Vata person to eat in the morning or at noon in spring or summer, when Pitta and Kapha are more predominates.

Breakfast
Breakfast is usually desirable. Vata persons like to eat breakfast and don’t like to miss breakfast because they may feel anxious or weak as their blood sugar tends to drop and their energy becomes exhausted. Some Vata persons like to eat a heavy breakfast because they think they need it because they burn energy quickly. But most Vata persons feel better if they have a light breakfast and an early lunch. Best to eat hot cereals such as cream of rice or wheat or other warm and sweet breakfasts.

Vata persons tend to take coffee or tea because of the caffeine in it to wake themselves up in the morning, but this is not good for them as it causes exhaustion by drying out their glands and takes up energy they will need later in the day. Their energy comes in bursts and artificial stimulation by caffeine and sugar wears out the system quickly.

Dreams
Dreams a lot and often cannot remember them. When they wake up they may know they had a dream but they cannot remember the details. Vata persons can vary between apparently not dreaming “dreamlessness” and other times for days or weeks they have vivid dreams. When they remember their dreams they tend to be intense, active or violent. A typical dream is flying or being chased by someone. Dreams about mountains, trees and flying in the air.

Governs
Vata governs breathing, blinking of the eyelids, movements in the muscles and tissues, pulsations in the heart, all expansion and contraction, the movements of cytoplasm and the cell membranes, and the movement of the single impulses in nerve cells. Vata also governs such feelings and emotions as freshness, nervousness, fear, anxiety, pain, tremors and spasms.

Health Problems
Typical health problems include headaches, hypertension, dry coughs, sore throats, earaches, anxiety, irregular heart rhythms, muscle spasms, lower back pain, constipation, abdominal gas, diarrhea, nervous stomach, menstrual cramps, premature ejaculation and other sexual dysfunctions and arthritis. Most neurological disorders are related to Vata imbalance.

Lifestyle
Not easy to form any habits, even those of eating and sleep. Have changeable moods and do not make friends fast. Irregular daily routine. Excitable. High energy in short bursts; tendency to tire easily and to overexert. Feels like moving from place to place almost continuously. Full of joy and enthusiasm when in balance. Often have racing, disjointed thoughts. Tends to act on impulse. Talk and walk quickly

Money
Financial responsibility is not natural to them and because of this it is easy for them to spend money as soon as they get it. Prone to impulse spending on things they don’t really need. Money is something for them to spend. Vata people tend to earn money quickly and they also tend to spend it quickly and thus, they tend to be poor.

Menstruation
Have very irregular cycles. May miss periods, especially if they weigh too little or they exercise too much. Flow tends to be scanty and may clot, which is due to Vata dryness. Periods may come longer than monthly. Blood is usually dark in color. Cramps are usually worse for Vatas than for Pittas and Kaphas, because cramps are due to Vata.

Memory
Usually remembers easily and forgets easily. They anger quickly and they quickly calm down when the mind shifts to some other subject. They can even forget what got them angry, unless the person who got them angry reminds them of the cause of their anger. Tend to have a weak memory.

Mind
Psychologically, they are characterized by short memory but quick mental understanding. They will understand something immediately, but will soon forget it. Quick to learn and grasp new knowledge, but also quick to forget

Tend to be creative, have mental quickness and be highly imaginative. Good, original thinkers. Tend to connect old thoughts and turn them into new, progressive way to do things. As they tend to move from idea to idea it tends to make it difficult for them to practically pull off their theories.

Have restless minds and tend to talk too much. Often their sentences will be left incomplete because their mind leaves one train of though and then abruptly switches to another.

Their reasoning power is weak and Vata people are nervous, fearful and afflicted by much anxiety. Respond to stress with fear, worry, and anxiety, especially when Vata is out of balance. They have little willpower, tend toward mental instability and possess little tolerance, confidence or boldness.

Personality Traits
Tend to react quickly when their environment changes. Can adapt easily. Sensitive, high-strung, very changeable and resist regularity because of their active minds. Demand continual stimulation. Enjoy traveling for fun.

Find it hard to concentrate on one subject, which may cause them not to complete projects. When they have high energy they may be the life of party, but their energy burns out quickly.

Sometimes want companionship and at other times want privacy (solitude). Often make friends easily, but their friendship is short-lived.

Primary Seat or Location
The primary seat or location of Vata in the body is the colon. It also resides in the hips, thighs, ears, bones, large intestine, pelvic cavity and skin. It is related to the touch sensation. If the body develops an excess of Vata, it will accumulate in these areas.

Physical Strength & Endurance
Very active and are often restless. Tend to have low stamina. Engaging in vigorous exercise tires them quickly (dries them out) and makes them feel hungry afterwards. Often push themselves excessively and exhaust themselves, May enjoy vigorous exercise, because it temporarily make them feel pain-free and stable.

Pulse
It is best to take the pulse early in the morning before eating. Before checking the pulse it is best to sit quietly with the back straight for five to ten minutes (breathing regularly and deeply). It is usually best to read the radial pulse (at wrist below the thumb.). Use index, middle and ring fingers. Place index finger next to thumb and the ring finger should be furthest from the thumb.

A Vata person’s pulse is fast, shallow and thin. Has a broken or variable rhythm and tends to skip an occasional beat. Pure Vata person’s pulse seems to slither like a snake. Artery tends to feel hard and the pulse is cool or cold to the touch. It feels strongest under the index finger.

Sleep
Vata persons tend to sleep little and tend to stay awake most of the time. Their sleep may be disturbed and they will sleep less than the other types. They usually sleep lightly and tend to toss and turn. They have trouble sleeping and may awaken several times during the night.

Sleep changes from day to day. Some days, especially when they are exhausted Vata persons will fall right into a deep sleep and then it will be hard to wake them up. Other nights they will wake up easily from outside noises, as their minds continue function while sleeping. Therefore no matter how long they sleep when they wake up they will not feel rested. Talking in the sleep and sleep-walking may indicate a Vata. Grounding the teeth during sleeping indicate a Vata.

Sex
Loves sexual and sensual enjoyments. A master of his senses, he is loved by women. Is easily sexually excitable, but is also quickly satiated. When interested, it is intense. Thinks often about sex. Often find fantasies so satisfying that they have no interest in physical contact. Sexual desires change day by day. Tend to have a habit of sexual overindulgence, which leaves then exhausted. Fertility level is lower than others.

Sweat
Scanty even when it is hot. This is because Vata’s are metabolically cold. Vata persons have a need for external heat sources like steam-baths, stoves and hot springs. Overweight Vata persons sweat more.

Vocal Qualities
Vata persons tend to become hoarse easily and their voice may crack or become strained. This can be caused by the tendency of Vata persons to speak too much. Tend to stray from what is being talked about. Tend to speak quickly. Often end phrases with a rising pitch. Very talkative and can speak about anything with just about anyone, even an inanimate object. Much energy is used up be talking, which is a reason why Vata person enjoy it. May not say much when speaking. Two Vata persons can speak for hours and never really say anything, but will enjoy the conversation.

Waste Products
The production of urine is scanty and the feces are dry, hard and small in quantity. Vata persons have a tendency to perspire less than other constitutional types.

Five Vayu Types
1. Udan Vayu
2. Pran Vayu
3. Saman Vayu
4. Apan Vayu
5. Vyan Vayu

• Constipation
• Darkened complexion
• Desire for heat
• Emaciation
• Insomnia
• Roughness of voice
• Throbbing sensations
• Weakness

• Agitated mind
• Agitated movement
• Anxious
• Arthritis (stiff and painful joints)
• Asthma
• Cannot make decisions
• Can't concentrate
• Chapped lips
• Circulatory troubles
• Constipation (intestinal bloating, gas, belching, hiccups)
• Cough
• Depressed
• Dry (sore throat, dry eyes)
• Fainting spells
• Fatigue, poor stamina
• Fearful
• Generalized aches (sharp pains)
• Heart palpitations
• Hiccough
• Impatient (hyperactive)
• Insomnia (wake up at night and can't go back to sleep)
• Nail biting
• Nervous
• Restless
• Rough, flaky skin
• Shy (insecure)
• Spaced out
• Thirst (excessive)
• Throat, nose and ears ailments
• Tired, yet can't relax
• Urinary ailments
• Very angry.
• Very sensitive to cold
• Weight loss (under weight)
• Worried

Indication of Vata Imbalance
If you are suffering from anxiety, worry, a tendency for overexertion, insomnia, chronic tiredness, mental and emotional depression, physical tension and other symptoms of stress, a weakened immune system, headaches, underweight, constipation, skin dryness, mental confusion, emotional conflict, inability to make decisions, impulsiveness, fast and disconnected speech, fantasy and illusions, then there is a very good sign that your Vata is aggravated.

Indications of balanced Vata influences are mental alertness and abundance of creative energy, good elimination of waste matters from the body, sound sleep, a strong immune system, enthusiasm, emotional balance and orderly functioning of the body's systems

Vata influences the movement of thoughts, feelings, Prana flows, nerve impulses, and fluids in the body. These guidelines can be used for Vata mind-body constitutions, to maintain Dosha balance, and to restore balance if necessary, regardless of the basic constitution.

Vata persons find it very difficult to maintain regular habits, that is, to eat and sleep at regular times. But this is the most important thing for them to do. When Vata is out of balance this may feel almost impossible, but an effort to establish a regular routine is very important for all people with a Vata body type. Rest sufficiently, and choose foods, behaviors, personal relationships, and environmental circumstances which can be instrumental in balancing Vata characteristics.

It is important to regulate mental and physical impulses and to modify mental attitudes, emotional states and behaviors.

Sweet, sour, and salty tastes decrease Vata influences, so it is good to include these tastes if the Vata influences need to be diminished. Milk, wheat, rice, and some fruits and berries can provide sweet and sour tastes.

Regular exercise should be relaxed and moderate. Hatha yoga practice in a meditative mood is good, as are walking, and swimming. Best to avoid strenuous, competitive, frantic activities.

When possible, associate with people who are calmly purposeful. Meditate every day for deep relaxation.

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