Ayurveda in Yoga practice

Yoga Discussion Structural Yoga Therapy
#1

Dear Mukunda,
I have a question on Ayurveda in Yoga practice:

I understand that each of the doshas has to be balanced. In each person, one dosha is more dominant. So that person’s main practice would be to balance that dosha.
To balance Vata, one needs to do a Kapha practice: to slow down with slow movement and breath, gentle Vinyasas, to ground Vata’s airy nature and to release with restorative poses.
To balance Kapha, one needs to do a Pitta practice: to build fire and heat by holding their edges in terms of stretch and strength, and to circulate Kapha’s stagnation by moving with breath.
According to this reasoning, to balance Pitta, one would do a Vata practice. But for some reason, that doesn’t make sense. Since Pitta is fire and inflammation, one needs to cool down. But is that a part of Vata, to cool down? What is a Vata practice anyway, to expand?

Is my reasoning correct? Or am I missing something?

And one more question: What is the order of balancing these doshas in a Tri-Doshic class? My guess is V - P - K - and - V again.

Thanks, Mukunda. Any clarity on this would be greatly appreciated.

Namaste,
Surya

#2

My new book, Ayurvedic Yoga Therapy, is finished but still in manuscript form, it addresses this thoroughly. To balance your predominant dosha is the best focus to address. In the longer term of balance one should be doing a program that addresses each dosha and begins to elevate them to the higher kosha. My sequence is vata, pitta, kapha, then subtler vata at the end. Vata balance releives stress with slow gentle vinyasa harmonized with samavritti ujjaye. Pitta balance will relieve inflammation and anger by returing fire to belly center via mild stretches held without breath awareness; instead attention is focused on the sense of heat. Kapha balance restores the immune system and develops stamina by holding poses gradually longer and targeting a feeling of lymphatic flow to the heart. this opens the heart subtler realms and develops an inward directed cosnciousness which can be sustained by subtler vata practices of meditation, reflection on your guru’s teachings and feeling the divine presence. By doing sadhana in this manner on a regular basis the doshas become much more readily adapted to the current life situations and a sattvic lifestyle results more consistently. namaste mukunda