Ayus + Veda

Your Ayurvedic Constitution

Three doshas govern movement, transformation and structure. Answer as you have been most of your life, not as you have been this week.

The Dosha Test · 0 / 16 answered

1. Your build
2. Your skin
3. Your hair
4. Appetite
5. Digestion
6. Sleep
7. Weather you dislike
8. Under stress you become
9. Speech
10. Memory
11. Money
12. Movement
13. Temperature
14. Emotional default
15. Energy through the day
16. Decision making

The Three Doshas

Air + Ether · Dry, light, cold, mobile, rough, subtle

Vata

Movement itself — breath, circulation, nerve impulse, the speed of thought. Vata types are quick, inventive, enthusiastic and easily scattered.

Peaks in: Autumn and early winter, and the hours 2–6 (both ends of the day)

In balance

· Creative and quick to start things
· Adaptable, travels well
· Light sleeper but wakes alert
· Enthusiastic, socially warm

Aggravated

· Anxiety and racing thoughts
· Broken sleep, waking at 3am
· Dry skin, cracking joints, constipation
· Forgetfulness and half-finished projects

The Six Tastes

Sweet

Earth + Water

Builds tissue and calm

↑ Kapha · ↓ Vata, Pitta

Sour

Earth + Fire

Kindles appetite, warms

↑ Pitta, Kapha · ↓ Vata

Salty

Water + Fire

Moistens, softens, stimulates

↑ Pitta, Kapha · ↓ Vata

Pungent

Fire + Air

Heats, clears, lightens

↑ Vata, Pitta · ↓ Kapha

Bitter

Air + Ether

Cools, detoxifies, dries

↑ Vata · ↓ Pitta, Kapha

Astringent

Air + Earth

Tightens, absorbs, dries

↑ Vata · ↓ Pitta, Kapha

The Daily Dosha Clock

6–10

Kapha

Heavy and stable. The best hours for exercise; the worst for a lie-in.

10–2

Pitta

Digestive fire is highest. Eat the main meal here and do the hardest thinking.

2–6

Vata

Light, mobile, creative. Good for ideas, poor for decisions.

6–10

Kapha

Settling. Light dinner, dim light, wind down.

10–2

Pitta

The body repairs. Being awake here burns reserves.

2–6

Vata

Dreams and early waking. Traditional hours for meditation.

Ayurveda is offered here as traditional wisdom and self-reflection, not medical advice. Nothing on this page diagnoses or treats anything — speak to a qualified clinician about symptoms, diet changes or herbs.

In short

Find your Ayurvedic constitution with a sixteen-question dosha test, then read food, routine and season guidance for vata, pitta and kapha.

Dual types are the norm. A clean single-dosha result usually means you answered aspirationally.
The strongest single intervention in the whole system is eating your largest meal at midday.
Warm, cooked, moderately spiced food suits nearly everyone in the short term — start there before elaborate protocols.
Herbs interact with medication. Anything beyond kitchen spices belongs in a conversation with a clinician.

Doshas

Elements

Tastes

Questions

Ayurveda is a system of medicine from the Indian subcontinent, with its classical texts — the Charaka Samhita, Sushruta Samhita and Ashtanga Hridayam — compiled between roughly the first and seventh centuries CE from older oral material. It is a full clinical tradition: pharmacology, surgery, obstetrics and diet, not only constitution types.

The three doshas — vata, pitta and kapha — are the part best known outside India. They are functional categories built from the five elements: vata for movement, pitta for transformation, kapha for structure. Your prakriti is the balance you were born with; your vikriti is the imbalance you have now, and it is the second that treatment addresses.

It remains a state-regulated medical system in India with its own degrees and hospitals, while in the West it usually appears stripped down to diet and lifestyle advice. Both facts matter: the tradition is serious, and the version most people meet online is a small, informal slice of it.

Questions Readers Ask

What is the difference between prakriti and vikriti?

Prakriti is your constitution at birth and does not change. Vikriti is your current state — the imbalance that has built up since — and it is what treatment addresses.