Ayurveda doshas or humors play the central role in defining and managing both the health and disease in ayurvedic medicine. Ayurveda doshas or humors are three - Ayurveda Vata, Ayurveda Pitta and Ayurveda Kapha.

Health is the result of normal or balanced functioning of three ayurvedic humors. Whenever this dynamic equilibrium or balance is out of order, we are in the grip of disorders.

Each of the three ayurveda doshas are in turn governed by five primary natural elements - earth, water, fire, wind and ether. Ether and wind are dominant in ayurveda vata. Fire is dominant in ayurveda pitta. Ayurveda kapha has water and earth mainly.

According to ayurvedic principles, the physical part of our body has three main sets of structural and functional parts. First one is three ayurvedic doshas. Second is tissues and organs. And third part is metabolic waste materials that should be excreted out of body.

All these three parts of our physical body are essential but they are governed and affected by ayurveda doshas. The change in their structure and function can either lead to balance in three ayurveda humors or it can lead to imbalance. In short, they are chiefly responsible for our health and disease.

There are three another primary qualities of Consciousness that can be termed as psychological humors in Ayurveda. Satva stands for knowledge and wisdom and therefore it is not counted as psychological humor in Ayurveda.

Rajas stands for aggressive tendencies of mind. Tamas signifies all ignorance and inertia. These three psychological humors are active in all persons and it is the dominance of either one of them that characterizes our psychological nature.

Ayurveda bodily humors - Vata, Pitta and Kapha are connected with psychological humors. Their interlinking is reflected well in Body Mind medicine. The three psychological humors govern chiefly our feelings, emotions, attitude and behavior.

Charaka mentioned three main causes for the imbalance of three doshas - Vata, Pitta and Kapha and two psychological humors Rajas and Tamas. Actually this description includes all the cause of diseases - genetic, dietary, lifestyle, emotional, behavioral, spiritual and so on. Practically every cause is included in these three categories of causative agents.

First one is related to five cognitive senses and five executive senses. The use of these sense organs can be in three different ways. It can be excessive use, limited use and wrong use.

If we ponder over all things that can be had in this category, it would be astoundingly great figure. All of us carry our peculiar set of sensations that we like or dislike or we are comfortable with or uncomfortable.

The improper use consists of three types of use - excessive use, limited use and wrong use. Let us take the example of viewing TV. It is OK to see some of the good serials. Excessive use of TV and becoming a potato couch is definitely bad and harmful for health. Not viewing TV at all or very little can keep us limited of this wonderful resource of news, serials, stories, movies, entertainment, new debates, consensus and the like.

Second is the violation of principles of mind and intelligence. The principle of mind or intelligence is threefold. First one is decision making mind, second one is mind that can hold on the right decision and third one is the memory that supports the decision making and the perseverance of mind during the execution phase.

The improper use of the threefold intelligence occurs in three ways - excessive, minimal and wrong use.

The third type of violation is time bound. Time means day and night, weeks, fortnight, month, age, seasons, environmental conditions like climate, place like general, forests, hilly area, near ocean, icy mountains and likewise.

The improper use of time and place bound factors is also threefold like excessive, minimal use and wrong use.

Strenuous exercise by a child or old person or suddenly by anyone; not taking proper sleep; living in damp area, dark area and poorly ventilated home; unhygienic conditions; eating unripe fruits, eating too much preserved food are all examples of violations of time and place.

So we have found how ayurveda doshas are related deeply with our health and disorders, with our body and with our mind. We have touched the violations that cause imbalance of bodily and psychological humors and how we can help ourselves by being aware and informed of these violations. This practical wisdom of Ayurveda guides our moment to moment living so that we make wise decisions and enjoy greater and better health of body and mind.