Prakriti and Vikriti are basic ideas in Ayurveda that assist perceive a person’s inherent constitutional physique kind and their present state of well being. These ideas are used to advertise steadiness and wellness by way of personalised approaches to weight-reduction plan, way of life, and remedy.

In easy phrases, Prakriti refers back to the pure structure we’re born with, whereas Vikriti represents our present well being situation

Each Prakriti and Vikriti are primarily based on the three doshas: Vata, Pitta, and Kapha, which type the physique’s structure. Every particular person is a novel mixture of 1, two, or all three doshas.

This text delves deeper into the ideas of Prakriti and Vikriti, explaining their significance and functions in Ayurveda.

On this article, we now have defined the ideas of Prakriti and Vikriti intimately.

Understanding Prakriti

The phrase Prakriti is derived from three elements: the prefix ‘Pra,’ that means “origin”; ‘Kri,’ that means “to do”; and ‘Ti,’ that means “to accentuate.” Collectively, Prakriti refers back to the entity that manifests on the time of origin.

Prakriti represents the unique physique structure or the inherent mixture of doshas that an individual develops on the time of conception.

It’s the nature you’re born with and is exclusive to you. Every particular person’s structure is predetermined at delivery and influenced by varied traits, together with look, persona, habits, and dietary preferences. Prakriti determines an individual’s bodily and psychological traits and stays fixed all through their life.

Based on Ayurveda, this occurs as a result of an individual’s Prakriti is set at delivery by the panch mahabhutas (air, hearth, water, ether, and earth), doshas (vata, pitta, kapha), and trigunas (sattva, rajas, and tamas).

Doshaja Prakriti

On the time of conception, the predominance of 1, two, or all three doshas determines a person’s Prakriti, often known as Doshaja Prakriti.

Doshaja Prakriti is additional categorised into three classes: Eka Doshaja Prakriti, Dwandvaja Doshaja Prakriti, and Sama Doshaja Prakriti.

• Eka Doshaja Prakruti – Because the identify suggests, people with a predominance of 1 (eka) dosha have an Eka Doshaja Prakriti. This kind is comparatively uncommon. Amongst these:
  • Vata physique kind is taken into account inferior (heena).
  • Pitta physique kind is taken into account average (madhyama).
  • Kapha physique kind is considered superior (uttama).

• Sama Doshaja Prakruti – Among the many rarest Prakriti sorts, people with a Sama Doshaja Prakriti have a balanced mixture of all three doshas. That is thought of the very best (sreshta) physique structure. Nevertheless, it’s difficult to keep up as a result of fashionable unhealthy existence and dietary habits.

Manasika Prakriti

Manasika Prakriti refers to a person’s psychological or psychological structure, which is set by the mix of the three Gunas Sattva, Rajas, and Tamas. Because of this, an individual’s Manasika Prakriti might be categorised as Satvik, Rajasik, or Tamasik.

Understanding Manasika Prakriti is essential for choosing the proper strategies to assist psychological and emotional well-being, similar to yoga, meditation, or tailor-made dietary and way of life practices.

Equally, realizing an individual’s Doshaja Prakriti helps an Ayurvedic practitioner perceive their persona, temperament, traits, and general well being, enabling them to advocate acceptable therapies and interventions.

What elements decide the Prakriti of a person?

The formation of Prakriti is linked to totally different parts, similar to earlier karmas, the bodily and psychological well being of the mom and father on the time of conception, the mom’s weight-reduction plan and train routine, social milieu, the observe of wholesomeness by the mom (throughout being pregnant) and baby within the postnatal interval, and a number of other others.

Owing to the above, the next are the first elements that decide the Prakriti of a person:

• Sukra-Shonit Prakruti (situations of sperm and ovum)
• Kala-garbhasaya Prakruti (time of the season of conception and situations of the uterus)
• Matu-ahar Prakruti (weight-reduction plan and way of life habits of mom)
• Pancha Mahabhuta Vikara Prakriti (affiliation of the 5 primary parts)

Different elements that additionally affect the Prakriti are:

• Jatiprasakta (Race/caste/ Occupation)
• Kulaprasakta (household/ancestry)
• Desha-anupatini (geo-climatic elements)
• Kala-anupatini (time scale)
• Vaya-anupatini (age) – determines the dominance of dosha
• Pratyatmaniyata (individuality)

Find out how to determine a person’s Prakriti?

A questionnaire is often used for Prakriti evaluation. It consists of questions on your habits, look, physiological processes similar to digestion and excretion, in addition to your moods and general nature.

The evaluation includes a scientific examination utilizing three methods: scrutiny (Darshan), palpation (Sparshan), and questioning (Prashna). It examines three elements:

1. Construction of the physique (Rachanaanusari) – Bodily traits.
2. Physiological (Kriyaanusari) – Bodily capabilities.
3. Psychological (Manoanusari) – Psychological and emotional traits.

The variations in these traits collectively outline a person’s Prakriti.

To precisely decide your Prakriti, it is suggested to seek the advice of an skilled Ayurvedic practitioner. They will assess your physique kind primarily based on the solutions offered in the course of the Prakriti evaluation take a look at.

Whereas there are quite a few on-line questionnaires, quizzes, and checks accessible, they need to be used with warning, as they could lack the precision of an expert evaluation.

Significance of Prakriti in Ayurvedic remedy

In fashionable utilization, the time period Prakriti typically refers back to the bodily structure, often known as Deha Prakriti. This structure is set by the distinctive dosha ratios that every particular person is born with.

The Ayurvedic idea of Prakriti is important for sustaining well being, understanding illness, and guiding remedy. Ayurveda emphasizes that by understanding your Prakriti, you’ll be able to determine the elements that affect your well being and well-being, enabling you to guide a wholesome, completely happy, and fulfilling life.

Understanding your Prakriti helps you keep well being by following the suitable weight-reduction plan and day by day routine. It additionally means that you can recognise what would possibly disrupt your steadiness, resulting in illness or sickness. With out this self-awareness, it’s possible you’ll wrestle to keep up steadiness, forestall sickness, or tackle imbalances to revive well being and wholeness.

Moreover, data of your Prakriti might help you in a number of methods:

• Adapting your way of life to forestall or handle dosha imbalances.
• Making use of preventive well being measures to keep up equilibrium.
• Customizing your weight-reduction plan based on your dosha to boost nutrient absorption, digestion, and elimination.
• Guaranteeing you eat the proper meals in the proper quantities and on the proper occasions.
• Personalizing your sleep patterns for higher relaxation and restoration.
• Selecting the best train routine to remain match and wholesome.

Understanding Vikriti

In Ayurveda, a person’s state of well being or imbalance is known as Vikriti. The Sanskrit phrase Vikriti, that means “after creation,” refers to an individual’s organic state, which might be influenced by their atmosphere from the second of conception.

A Vikriti evaluation in Ayurveda is used to determine how exterior elements have impacted an individual’s bodily, psychological, or emotional well being. Vikriti might be considered the manifestation of any present doshic imbalances.

After fertilization, the human embryo is uncovered to and influenced by its atmosphere. Optimum improvement happens when the embryo grows in a steady atmosphere. Equally, after delivery, a baby thrives in a super and nurturing environment, selling well being and well-being.

Nevertheless, in an atmosphere or way of life that’s lower than ultimate, the three doshas can fall out of steadiness, inflicting a deviation from the person’s Prakriti. This state of imbalance is Vikriti.

Not like Prakriti, which stays fixed all through life, Vikriti is dynamic. It will probably change from daily, with the seasons, or throughout totally different life phases. Thus, whereas Prakriti displays a person’s inherent structure, Vikriti represents their present state of imbalance.

What elements decide the Vikriti of a person?

To make selections to revive our equilibrium, it’s useful to know the traits of every of the doshas. This enables us to acknowledge what has gotten out of steadiness or what has collected.

Vikriti or doshic imbalances can happen as a result of a number of elements similar to weather conditions, dietary habits, way of life, sleep patterns, frequency of train, stress, and lots of exterior elements.

The aggregation of a selected dosha might be felt throughout quite a few seasonal modifications. We steadily purchase traits of the prevailing dosha all year long due to how carefully tied our physiology is to the world round us. Because the seasons change, this accumulation is most noticeable.

For instance, your prakriti is Pitta which comes with good digestion and a steady thoughts. Nevertheless as a result of a seasonal change, your digestive system could flare and it’s possible you’ll expertise psychological fog, an indication of Vata vitiation. In such instances, despite the fact that your Prakriti has not modified, the dominance of the vata dosha is figuring out the imbalances triggered in your physique.

Significance of Vikriti in Ayurvedic remedy

Understanding an individual’s Vikriti after which determining what elements of that particular person’s atmosphere have led to the disruptions is among the key goals of Ayurvedic remedy. The time period “atmosphere” right here refers to each the particular person’s way of life and the inputs they get by way of their 5 senses.

To determine the foundation signs of a illness, vikriti evaluation is step one in all Ayurvedic therapies.

One approach to determine the underlying causes for sickness or illness is to correlate the ratio of Vata, Pitta, and Kapha in an individual at any given second with their physiological composition. One can evaluate it to the particular person’s inherent prakriti and have a look at operational indications like digestion, elimination, or sleeping patterns.

As soon as understood, the aim is to rework the setting. 

Figuring out an individual’s Prakriti is vital for understanding their basic tendencies, however understanding their Vikriti is vital for making a remedy technique.

Distinction between Prakriti and Vikriti

Now that we now have understood some primary ideas of Prakriti and Vikriti, we are able to summarize the distinction between the 2 beneath:

• Our intrinsic structure is called Prakriti, and the imbalance that develops after we don’t dwell in accordance with that construction is called Vikriti.
• Prakriti refers back to the mind-body form or structure. Vikriti interprets to the current scenario.
• Within the Ayurvedic perspective, one’s Prakriti is often considered from the angle of dosha predominance within the physique structure. Alternatively, the vikriti is seemed into the imbalances or vitiations occurring within the doshas structure throughout the Prakriti.
• Understanding our Prakriti helps us grasp what our basic nature is. Studying our Vikriti gives us with the power to take cost of our well being path. 
• To find out prakriti, elements similar to situations of sperm and ovum, time of the season of conception and situations of the uterus, weight-reduction plan, and way of life habits of the mom, and affiliation of the 5 primary parts are seen. Whereas, the elements seemed into when figuring out vikriti are – the foundation explanation for the dysfunction, vitiating variables, vitiated elements, structure, location, time, energy, and signs.

How do imbalances in Prakriti and Vikriti manifest?

Doshas play an vital position in terms of imbalances within the physique and thoughts. Though most of us are a twin doshas structure (bi-doshic physique kind), the Prakriti is determined by the dominant dosha.

So, when your dominant doshas are vitiated it may possibly result in a ton of bodily and psychological diseases, ailments, or illnesses. Furthermore, the imbalance will also be triggered when the second dosha overpowers your dominant dosha. 

For instance, you’ve gotten been recognized as having a Vata-Pitta physique kind with vata because the dominant dosha. Which means that you’ve gotten a Vata Prakriti. When your Vata is imbalanced, you’ll expertise restlessness, fatigue, poor circulation, bloating, joint ache, and many others. There may be an opportunity that the pitta dosha has turn out to be imbalanced and also you would possibly expertise signs like indigestion, acidity, zits, pores and skin rashes, anger, irregular sleep, and many others.

Nevertheless, you also needs to perceive that we could or could not be capable to hyperlink our imbalances to our organic construction. There are additionally probabilities that you just might need a vata-pitta prakriti with each doshas dominant when in comparison with the kapha prakriti.

In such instances, if an individual exhibits indicators of sudden weight achieve, it could recommend that they could be experiencing kapha vitiation.

The manifestation of imbalances in Prakriti and Vikriti additionally is determined by the present way of life, seasonal modifications, and the atmosphere you’re dwelling in.

Merely put, the imbalances within the prakrit and vikruti are manifested within the type of bodily and psychological issues because of vitiated doshas.

• In case your vata is imbalanced, it could result in extreme issues with circulation, broken tissues, crackling joints, improper digestion, constipation, extreme weight reduction, psychological chaos, or insomnia.
• In case of pitta imbalance, ulcers, extreme sweating, sunburn, acidity, hair fall, vertigo, egoism, a rise of unfavorable feelings, and many others could also be skilled.
• Folks with a kapha imbalance will discover lethargy, weight achieve, lack of urge for food, oily pores and skin and hair, despair, lack of motivation, stubbornness, and many others as signs.

One other level to recollect is that in case your vata will get vitiated, there’s a excessive risk that the opposite doshas would possibly get affected as effectively. It’s because Vata is answerable for circulation throughout the physique and between the organs. So if the circulation is blocked, the organs won’t be able to work on the optimum stage.

Conclusion

To sum up, Prakriti is the mix of doshas you’re born with, influenced by elements such because the situations of the sperm and ovum at conception, the well being of the mom’s uterus, and the time and season of conception.

Vikriti, then again, refers to your present state of being, which is dynamic and modifications based on your atmosphere. It’s usually thought of an imbalanced state of the doshas.

An Ayurvedic practitioner diagnoses your well being situation primarily based in your Prakriti and Vikriti by way of a sequence of questions. This helps decide which doshas want consideration to revive steadiness.

From the traits of Prakriti and Vikriti, it’s clear that the aim of Ayurveda is to accumulate the data needed to acknowledge when a Vikriti imbalance arises, serving to to forestall sickness or illness. Ayurveda additionally aids in growing practices and rituals that maintain our Prakriti balanced.