A Pita Pacifying Program
Factors that affect Pita dosha
| Signs of pita balance | Signs of pita imbalance | |
| Strong powers of digestion, vitality, goal-setting inclinations, good problem-solving skills, keen powers of intelligence, decisiveness, boldness and courage, and a bright complexion | Angry, irritable, hostile, enraged, destructive, impatient, critical of self and others, argumentative, aggressive, bossy, controlling, frustrated, willful, reckless, acidity, heartburn, stomach ulcer, fitful sleep, disturbing dreams, diarrhea, food allergies, bad breath, sour body odour, very sensitive to heat, hot flushes, skin rashes, boils, bloodshot eyes, acne, weakness due to low blood sugar, fevers, night sweats,excessive body heat, digestive problems, a tendency to exert excessive effort to achieve goals, vision difficulties, prone to make errors in judgment because of mental confusion or because passion or emotion blurs powers of intellectual discernment, negative emotions such as hostility, hatred, intolerance, and jealousy | |
| How to balance – Pita | How to imbalance – Pita | |
| Eat main meal at midday with the bulk of the food being sweet, astringent, bitter in taste and slightly dry in texture. Make sure the food is pure and wholesome | Eat hot, spicy, oily food being mostly pungent, sour and salty in taste | |
| Work in a cool, dry environment where you feel you are in control (such as your own business) | Work in the hot sun for long periods of time, in a job where you feel you have little control | |
| Seek balance in all things, alternate hard work with leisure and rest | Being judgmental and overly critical | |
| Decrease the use of stimulants. Use cooling bitter herbs like aloe vera, dandelion, gentian and cilantro | Use stimulants – alcohol, coffee, tea, cigarettes | |
| For leisure time choose calming activities such as quiet walks in nature or parks | For leisure time do stimulating activities, amusement parks, disco’s, rock concert | |
| How to balance – Pita | How to imbalance – Pita | |
| Wear clothing made of natural fibre such as cotton or silk. | Wear clothing that is bright red, yellow, orange or black | |
| Take cool walks in the moonlight | Excessive heat like too much sun, hot tubs or saunas | |
| It is very important for Pittas to keep cool (literally and figuratively) and Do things that cool the mind, emotions, and body | Overwork, overexertion, and overheating.. | |
| Choose foods, attitudes, behaviors, personal relationships, and environmental circumstances which can be instrumental in balancing pitta characteristics. | ||
| Lead a pure and moderate lifestyle. | ||
| Avoid conflicts | ||
| Cultivate the virtues of honesty, morality, kindness, generosity, and self-control. |
PITA REDUCING IMPRESSIONS
Nature: sitting or walking by flowers, river, lake or ocean, particularly when it is cool, walking at night, gazing at the night sky, moon and stars.
Sensory:
- Sound – cooling and soft music like the sound of flutes, sound of water.
- Touch – cooling, soft and moderate touch and massage with cooling oils like coconut or sunflower.
- Sight – cool colours like white, blue and green
- Taste – food that is neither too heavy nor too light, abounding in sweet, bitter and astringent tastes, with few spices except those that are cooling like coriander, turmeric and fennel.
- Smell – cool and sweet fragrances like rose, sandalwood, vetivert, Champak, gardenia or jasmine.
Activity: moderate exercise, walking, swimming, cooling Asanas like shoulder stand.
Pranayama: Right nostril breathing – inhale through the left nostril and exhale through the right using thumb and middle finger to close an open alternate nostrils. This exercise creates a cooling effect in the body by enhancing the female energy.
Emotional: cultivating friendship, forgiveness, compassion and devotion; releasing anger, resentment, conflict and hatred.
Mental: anti-Pitta mantras like Shrim, Sham or Ma, practising non-judgment and acceptance, listening to other people’s points of view
Spiritual: meditation on benefic and peaceful deities like Shiva (in his peaceful form), Vishnu or benefic forms of the Divine Mother (like Lakshmi); prayers for universal peace, cultivating surrender and receptivity.
These guidelines can be used for pita mind-body constitutions, to maintain dosha balance and to restore balance if necessary regardless of the basic constitution. Pitta influences digestion and metabolism, body temperature, and biological transformations.
If your basic constitution is mixed (pita-vata or pita-kapha), to maintain balance, include smaller portions for the second dosha.
Pitta dosha is aggravated and increased during summer. During hot, dry seasons, all mind-body types can choose some of the above foods and decrease others.
Mental and emotional peace and constructive lifestyle routines are important to restoring and maintaining balance.
| Favour | Avoid |
| Cool or warm but not steaming hot foods | As far as practical use less butter and added fat. |
| Bitter, sweet, and astringent tastes | Since Pittas have strong efficient digestion, they can generally eat just about everything. Most Pittas get into trouble by continued use of too much salt, overuse of sour and spicy food and overeating. |
| Consume food with moderately heavy textures. | Reduce the consumption of salt, oil, and spices, all of which are “heating” to the body |
| Take cool, refreshing food in summer. | Avoid pickles, yogurt, sour cream, and cheese. Avoid vinegar in salad dressing; use lemon juice instead. Alcoholic and fermented foods should be avoided. Their sour Rasa aggravates Pitta. Coffee is also pitta aggravating due to the acid in coffee |
| Salads are good, so is milk and ice cream. | Avoid coffee, orange juice and doughnuts – they aggravate pitta. |
| Herb tea is good. Prefer mint, licorice root or other pitta pacifying tea. | Consuming red meat tend to heat the body from the fat. |
| Breakfast: Cold cereals, cinnamon toast, and apple tea is a good breakfast for Pitta. | Avoid oily, hot, salty, and heavy foods such as fried food. |
| The vegetarian foods are the best for pitta. | Avoid the tendency to overeat under stress. |
| Consume abundant amounts of milk, grains and vegetables. | Avoid processed and fast foods as they tend to be heavy on salt and sour tastes |
| Instead consume starchy foods such as vegetables, grains and beans | Avoid highly spicy food such as is found in Mexican restaurants |
| Japanese and Chinese food are good choices | Avoid egg yolks, nuts, hot spices, honey, and hot drinks |
| To bring down aggravated Pitta, take two teaspoons of ghee (clarified butter) in a glass of warm milk. (Avoid taking the ghee if you have a problem with high cholesterol). | Reduce use of sour tastes |
| Cool foods and drinks are better | |
| Add sweet, bitter, and astringent tastes | |
| Spices: black pepper, coriander, and cardamom |
2 replies on “Pita Pacifying Program”
Thank you – Yoga Ayurveda is my passion – and the more I live this lifestyle the more I see how our constitution affects a lot of what happens around us and the effects it has on others. It is really so simple, even some casting people seem to subconsciously put the Vata type into the role of fear
the Pita type into the role of anger
and the Kapha type struggling with motivation….
It is so evident in politics as well 🙂
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