Agni— Our Digestive Power
By now, we have looked at the following aspects —
- Knowing your Prakruti and how to develop your lifestyle around it.(https://medium.com/@sanhitanegi/what-is-prakruti)
- The need and the way of keeping the Doshas in balance. (https://medium.com/@sanhitanegi/tri-doshas)
“Its not what you EAT, its what you DIGEST….”
According to Ayurveda, Agni refers to the digestive power of the body. Agni is what that determines which substances should enter our cells and tissues, and which substances should be removed as waste. Hence, Agni can be said to be ‘The force of intelligence of each cell.’
After your current doshic state, Agni is the most important factor in determining your dietary needs. As everyone’s Prakruti is different, therefore, everyone will digest the same food differently.
There are 4 types of Agnis (i.e. 4 types of Metabolisms)
- SAMA Agni : “Balanced Metabolism” — As the name suggests, people with Sama Agni can digest, absorb and assimilate a reasonable quantity of any food in any season, without any problem. As a result of proper digestion, these people have a very strong immune system. Unfortunately, in today’s time, either by chance or consequence, people with Sama Agni are very rare.
However, all the other 3 Agnis should aspire to become Sama Agni. - VISHAMA Agni : “Irregular Metabolism” — Vishama Agni is associated with Vata. An erratic digestion is experienced. Sometimes, the digestive power is high (and you feel the hunger), whereas at other times, the digestive power is low (and you feel that your tummy is full!).
- TIKSHNA Agni : “Hyper Metabolism” — Tikshna Agni is associated with Pitta. It causes excess intensity in the digestive fire. People with Tikshna Agni digest their food very fast, which might seem to be a good sign. However, counter-intuitively, the food is passed through the digestive tract very quickly, leaving the tissues undernourished.
- MANDA Agni : “Hypo Metabolism” — Manda agni is associated with excess Kapha. It causes suppression of the digestive fire. People with Manda Agni experience slow and sluggish digestion. This often leads to heaviness in the stomach, body and mind.
These ideas are summarized through this pictorial representation : -
DECIPHERING YOUR AGNI
As we saw above, each Dosha is associated with a particular Agni. All Agnis should aspire to reach the state of SAMA Agni. Hence, deciphering your Agni becomes the most important step.
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF VISHAMA AGNI —
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF TIKSHNA AGNI —
SIGNS AND SYMPTOMS OF MANDA AGNI —
A LITTLE MORE …..
It is very likely to have more than one type of impaired agni acting on the system at once.
- Tikshna-Vishama Agni — where the appetite is strong but the digestion is irregular, such that when one eats a large meal, they get gas, bloating, and discomfort.
- Vishama-Manda Agni — where the appetite is irregular and digestion is sluggish, causing fairly persistent lethargy, bloating, and sleepiness.
- Vishama-Tikshna-Manda Agni — although this is a rather serious imbalance, but any combination of the three varieties of Agni is possible. At this stage, the most important thing is to identify the major players or causative factors in your situation and take whatever small steps you can to support your Agni in returning to balance.
MYTH AND FACT
I have heard this statement from most of my patients, “Ma’am, I eat so less, yet I am obese, but my sister-in-law, who is constantly eating the entire day is as thin as a rake. Why is this the case?”
MYTH — Being Thin means being Healthy.
FACT — The above excerpt would now possibly break this common myth. But if I explain this in simple words, the thin person (usually VATA predominant) who is taking excessive food has a VISHAMA Agni, i.e. an erratic metabolism. Only proper digestion of food will lead to the formation of fatty tissues. However, in the Vishama Agni case, the improperly digested food is causing other health related issues. These include, different kinds of allergies, irregular bowels, respiratory distress, sinusitis, frequent cold, joint related problems and a lot more, which one doesn’t see on the outside.
MAJOR TAKEAWAYS
- Importance of Agni or the power of digestion.
- The need of designing your lifestyle and food habits depending on your Agni and Prakruti. (For more insights about how to balance your Agni, do wait for my next blog on Digestion)
The healthiest food in the world is the deadliest of poisons, if you cannot digest and assimilate it properly.
All images have been assembled by Dr.Sanhita Negi, founder of Yogada Clinic.