There are three doshas in Ayurveda which are the three vital energies. Vata is the dosha of movement, Pitta the dosha of transformation and Kapha the dosha of consolidation. These three doshas are present everywhere. They are present outside of us (seasons, climate, time) and inside of us.
Each one of us has a proportion of these three doshas that is unique, this is what we call prakriti, the birth’s constitution. This prakriti was formed during our conception, we keep it throughout our life until our death. We can have a dominant dosha (more than 50%), this is the dominant constitution. Ex : Kapha constitution. We can have two dominant doshas (50-50), this is the dual constitution. Ex : Kapha-Vata, Kapha-Pitta. We can have the three doshas in equal proportion (33% each), this is the triple constitution, extremely rare.
The birth constitution cannot be changed. As such, it should not be confused with Vrikriti, the state of imbalance. It can happen that one or more doshas are in excess in the body, this imbalance is the cause of illness. Imbalances evolve throughout our lives depending on our habits and lifestyle.
Here, we will develop the dominant Kapha constitution. The Kapha dosha is composed of water and earth, the proportion of water being greater than the proportion of earth. We can give it the image of mud allowing construction : forming new tissues, hydrating and lubricating the body. It has qualities, gunas, which are specific to it and allow us to see that we are in the presence of this dosha. Kapha is :
Heavy (Guru)
Sticky (Picchila)
Slow (Manda)
Oily (Snigdha)
Cold (Shita)
Dense (Sthoula)
Smooth (Shlakshna)
These qualities are found in the physical appearance, the functioning of the body or even the way of thinking of a person with a Kapha dominance.
Physical appearance
Kapha people have a round build. The torso and buttocks are well developed. Kapha women have a feminine silhouette with curves. They easily gain weight and have difficulty losing it. Their height is smaller or larger than average. Their bone structure is broad, the muscles are strong and developed.
Their gait is slow and nonchalant.
The faces of Kapha people have wide features. The shape of the face is rectangular or wide. The forehead is broad, the cheeks round. The nose can be large, long or flat. The eyes are large and expressive, round or almond-shaped. They are often moist with a soft gaze. The eyebrows are full, Kapha dominant people have more developed hair than Vata or Pitta.
Their teeth are large, white, aligned and strong. They have good enamel and do not encounter dental problems. Their neck is often small and they are prone to double chin. Their ears are large, the lobe is often predominant. The lips are thick and pulpy.
Hair grows very easily and can easily be very long. Their hair is abundant and thick. It can be smooth or wavy. They are oily in nature.
Nails are white and strong.
The skin is smooth, clear, thick with a tendency to be oily. The skin of Kapha people is the one that ages best with few wrinkles. These are people who like heat and are sensitive to cold and humidity.
Physiology
Kapha people have excellent immunity. They are very resistant and almost never get sick. However, when they are sick, it is often difficult and long-to-treat illnesses. They have taken a long time to settle in and the treatment will have to be long.
They do not have a great appetite. Their digestion is slow and their digestive capacity weak. They can easily produce ama (toxins) because of the slowness of their metabolism.
In terms of cognitive functions, they are slower than other constitutions. They take time to assimilate concepts but have a very good memory. They are also slow to make decisions but do not change their minds easily.
Their sleep is heavy. They really like to sleep, although 6 hours of sleep is enough for them. Their dreams are often calm and peaceful. They often dream of water, the ocean or swimming. These are often romantic dreams.
Their gestures are slow. The most developed sense in them is touch. For them, touch is very important. Their voices are deep, soft, harmonious. It is also powerful, so they make good singers.
Psychology
The positive emotions they feel the most are love, tenderness and calm. When they are not well, they can feel sadness, depression or shut themselves away in silence. They have a stable mood.
They need a framework and to follow rules. They deeply love routine. They will not rebel and like to follow rules. They have long-term plans.
They have long-time friends and like long-term lasting relationships. They may have few friends but keep these same friends throughout their lives. In addition to these lasting friendships, they can also be solitary.
They like to take care of others and give love to those around them. For them, family is very important, they are good mothers and fathers. They also like to take their time, to sleep, to stay at home or to cook.
They have very high physical resistance. They resist stress very well with calm.
Among their qualities we find forgiveness. They know how to forgive easily even if they forget nothing. They have a great capacity to put things into perspective, are frank. Among the three doshas, this is the easiest dosha to live with. They listen to others, are generous, grateful, compassionate and have confidence in themselves.
On the contrary, they can be resentful, naive and possessive. They tend to be lazy and procrastinate. They can be stubborn and obstinate. They are often impassive, it is sometimes difficult to know what is happening inside them.
Among their weaknesses we find their materialistic side. They become very attached to things, people, places. They can easily forget themselves and get lost in their relationships with others. They need to be stimulated and cannot count on their motivation which is often weak.
They easily manage to find their place in society. They seek to start a family and get married, values conveyed by society. In terms of performance, they can be but they are slow. They will achieve the required objectives but at their own pace. The pressure will not affect them.
They make good singers. They can also work in a hospital environment to take care of the sick or in contact with children.
Their beliefs are “Slowly but surely”, “There is no point in running, you just have to start on time” or “Why do today what you can do tomorrow”.
Spiritual
Ayurveda believes that a person's constitution is chosen by her soul. This constitution is chosen to accomplish the mission, the life mission (the Dharma), for which the soul was reincarnated. So, each constitution experiences different things on a spiritual level.
Kapha is composed mainly of water. The water element allows transformation through accumulation. Kapha people are called to experience accumulation in different forms : material, emotional, intellectual, spiritual... This accumulation is necessary to allow their transformation which is slow and progressive.
Nevertheless, they must be careful to accumulate the right element, otherwise the transformation will not be favorable to them.
And you, do you recognize yourself in this description ? Do you think you have Kapha in you ?
There are different ways to know your birth constitution.
You can take tests online : https://forms.gle/NNygjMMxsHteUwo58
You can also request a consultation with an Ayurveda practitioner who will ask you different questions to identify your prakriti.
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