Two people can walk into the same yoga class and leave with completely different experiences. One feels energised, another overheated and irritable. Ayurveda, India's traditional science of life, offers a way of understanding why: each person has a distinctive constitution, and practice works best when it is adapted to it.
A brief introduction to the doshas
Ayurveda describes three doṣas, functional principles made up of the five elements:
- Vāta (air and space): movement, lightness, change.
- Pitta (fire and water): heat, transformation, sharpness.
- Kapha (earth and water): stability, structure, steadiness.
Everyone has all three. Your prakṛti, or natural constitution, is the particular balance you were born with. Your current state can drift from it depending on season, food, stress and lifestyle.
On Platonix, Jagdish Bramta's Live Yog & Ayurved series on the Jiva Balance channel weaves this perspective into yoga practice. Day 10 of the series is devoted to the pitta constitution, and its session notes form the basis of what follows.
The pitta picture
According to the Day 10 notes, pitta is characterised by qualities that are hot, sharp, light and slightly oily. People with a strong pitta element are often described as having:
- A medium build and good muscle tone.
- A strong appetite and digestion.
- A focused, determined and intelligent mind.
- Confidence, ambition and natural leadership.
When pitta is aggravated, the same notes describe a tendency towards irritability, impatience, criticism and anger, along with feeling hot easily. These are traditional descriptions rather than diagnoses, but many people recognise themselves in them.
Yoga for pitta: the principle
If pitta is fire, practice for pitta should cool, soften and slow down. In practical terms that means:
- Effort without competition. Pitta types often push hard. Practise at about 70 per cent of your maximum.
- Moderate pace. Choose flowing or steady practice over intense, heating sequences.
- Cooling, releasing poses. Forward bends, twists and restorative inversions.
- Long exhalations and quiet endings. Finish with a generous rest.
Postures suggested in the session
The Day 10 session notes recommend four asanas to balance pitta:
- Śaśāṅkāsana (child's pose): kneel, sit back towards the heels and fold forward, forehead resting down.
- Paścimottānāsana (seated forward bend): sit with legs extended, lengthen the spine and fold forward from the hips, keeping the knees bent if needed.
- Supta Matsyendrāsana (supine spinal twist): lie on your back, bring one knee across the body and let it lower to the side, arms open.
- Viparīta Karaṇī (legs up the wall): lie with the hips near a wall and the legs resting up it.
Hold each for several slow breaths with a relaxed face and jaw. Leave out any pose that causes pain or discomfort.
Cooling breath
The same notes mention cooling pranayamas: śītalī, śītkārī and candra bhedana.
- Śītalī: roll the tongue into a tube, breathe in through it, close the mouth and breathe out through the nose.
- Śītkārī: if you cannot roll the tongue, breathe in through closed teeth with the lips parted, then out through the nose.
- Candra bhedana: breathe in through the left nostril and out through the right.
Practise a few gentle rounds without breath retention. People with low blood pressure, respiratory conditions or sensitive teeth may find some of these unsuitable; skip them if so.
Lifestyle and food, in the Ayurvedic view
The Day 10 notes also suggest some everyday adjustments for pitta, which reflect traditional Ayurvedic advice:
- Food: favour cooling, hydrating foods and sweet, bitter and astringent tastes, such as leafy greens, cucumber, coconut, seasonal fruits and ghee; reduce chilli, heavy spices, fried foods and alcohol.
- Drinks: cool water, coconut water, fresh juices.
- Daily rhythm: wake early, avoid excessive heat, keep a regular routine and get enough restful sleep.
- Mind: avoid overwork and excessive competition; spend time in nature, especially near water; cultivate patience, forgiveness and compassion through meditation.
These suggestions are traditional guidance, not medical treatment. If you have a health condition, or are considering dietary changes, talk to a qualified healthcare professional.
A 20-minute pitta-balancing sequence
- Settle (2 minutes): seated, with long, easy out-breaths.
- Gentle warm-up (4 minutes): shoulder rolls, cat-cow, gentle side bends.
- Cooling asanas (9 minutes): child's pose, seated forward bend, supine twist on each side, legs up the wall.
- Cooling breath (2 minutes): a few rounds of sitali or sitkari.
- Rest (3 minutes): shavasana, imagining a cool breeze or the surface of a lake.
Beyond pitta
The Live Yog & Ayurved series covers much more than one dosha, including sessions on legs, hips and knees, on the back, and on breathing. For most people the lesson is simple and practical: notice your tendencies, and let your practice bring you back towards balance rather than amplifying what is already strong.
Practise along
Watch Day 10 of Live Yog & Ayurved with Jagdish Bramta on Platonix for the full session, or join one of his live classes on the Jiva Balance channel to practise with guidance.