Tongue Analysis - Part 2

Part 1 is here.
We have quickly touched upon the basics and the high level concepts in Part 1. Lets quickly look at the following now:

3. Linkage between Element - Taste - Organs - Feeling

Remember in Ayurveda which follows the Vedic principle, everything originated from a single source and hence all are interconnected though the connections are not manifest & visible at the gross level. I am sure you would be surprised when you read the following:

• Space - Sour (Pulippu) - Liver – Gall Bladder – Eyes – Anger 

Eyes and Liver are of the same shape. After drinking alcohol if eyes are red then it means that space component is over used. When eyes are red it indicates problem with Liver.  

• Air - Pungent (Spicy hot - Karam) – Lungs – Nose - Large Intestine - Sadness / Grief

Nose and Lungs are same shape. Constipation and Wheezing, Asthma are related and they will coexist. Eat extreme Spicy then you may end up with dysentery.

• Fire - Bitter, Astringent - Tongue – Heart – Pericardium – Small Intestine – Triple warmer – Happiness 

They say that eating Bitter gourd is good for heart and small intestine.

• Water - Salt  – Ears – Kidney – Urinary Bladder – Fear

Ears and Kidney are of the same shape. Kidney filters and excretes salt and under fear we urinate without control, 'coz our kidneys give off. When we eat salt the kidney starts working and hence we feel thirsty. 

• Earth - Sweet – Spleen – Lips  – Worry

I am told that spleen and lips are of the same shape. When you are worrying you will not feel hungry since spleen is responsible for hunger. Interestingly we start worrying when we keep eating without hunger. 

Moral: Lets understand if we can draw some quick morals out of this:

•  Its important that we eat balanced diet not only in terms of nutrition but also of taste. It is told that we need to eat all the 6 tastes in every meal. If you don't taste sweet for diet reasons may be you would not be very contended in life as per this theory. I do not know how much it is true for you but I have a sweet tooth and pretty contended in life... so far. :)
• Healer Bhaskar (www.anatomictherapy.org) states that the current day life style disorders can be largely controlled if we chew well, eat all the 6 tastes and also listen to our body.
• The linkage between taste and feeling is simply fantastic since you can't see this anywhere else other than Ayurveda. (if there are any please do let me know.)

 4. Your Constitution and tastes:

While the above point was generic, this section would try to attribute how each and every taste interact with your constitution. While we know we are unique, the following may highlight how unique you are and why do you prefer, what you prefer to eat.

• First please find out what your constitution / prakruti is from one of the many websites. We are a combination of one or more of the 3 doshas - Vata, Pitta and Kapha.
• There are about 20 attributes which are related to water / fire element that defines the constitution and is given below. Every dosha has a specific attribute and since its water and fire, the attributes are bipolar in nature.

Cold/Hot, Wet/Dry, Heavy/Light, Gross/Subtle, Dense/Flowing, Static/Mobile, Dull/Sharp, Soft/Hard, Smooth/Rough, Clear/ Cloudy  

• The following are the Doshas, its attributes and its relation to specific tastes.
• Vata: Dry, Cool, Light, Subtle, Mobile, Sharp, Hard, rough, clear 
• Increased by: Astringent, Bitter, Pungent
• Decreased by: Sweet, Sour, Salty
• Pitta: Hot, slightly wet, light, subtle, flowing, mobile, sharp, soft, smooth, clear
• Increased by: Pungent, Sour, Salty
• Decreased by: Bitter, Astringent, Sweet
• Kapha: Cold, Wet, Heavy, Gross, Dense, static, dull, soft, smooth, cloudy
• Increased by: Sweet, salty, sour
• Decreased by: Bitter, Pungent, Astringent

The way to quickly interpret is this (Note - Its always better to consult a doctor instead of blindly following this. You can use this to understand the concept).:

• If you are a Kapha type or if you have frequent cold, cough or sinus issues then avoid sweet as it increases Kapha.
• Same way if you are Pitta constituency or have acidity problem you tend to reduce spicy / pungent intake. Now you know the scientific reason why based on this.
• It should be stressed that the experts suggest that we need to take all the 6 tastes in every meal but avoid larger quantities that you don't like or that should be avoided due to any reason. 

Would you not be amazed that irrespective of the region / cuisine our traditional Indian meals serve all the 6 tastes. Its sad that we tend to prefer Pizzas and pastas that is neither nutritious nor serve the taste buds enough.

Its possible that we may not get or served all the 6 tastes in every meal. How do we solve this problem and still consume all the 6 tastes? Are there items which consist of all the 6 tastes? Yes is my answer and I shall highlight this in the subsequent parts.

Happy reading!

Part 3