If you want to understand how an Ayurvedic doctor thinks, you must understand the
Gurvadi Gunas (the 20 Qualities).
Ayurveda does not view an apple as "95 calories, high in Vitamin C." It views an apple as *cold, light, dry, and rough*.
The Rule of Opposites
The fundamental law of Ayurveda is:
Like increases like, and opposites balance.If your body is suffering from too much heat (acid reflux, anger, inflammation), you do not add more heat (spicy chilies, aggressive exercise). You add the opposite: cold (aloe vera, cucumber, resting).
This sounds painfully obvious, yet modern humans constantly violate this law. A highly anxious, flighty person (too much spreading/mobile quality) will drink 3 shots of espresso (adding more spreading/mobile quality) and wonder why they have a panic attack.
The 10 Pairs of Opposites
Everything in the universe (your symptoms, your food, your thoughts, the weather) can be categorized into these 10 pairs:
1. Heavy (Guru) vs. Light (Laghu): A steak is heavy; a rice cake is light.
2. Cold (Sheeta) vs. Hot (Ushna): Mint is cold; ginger is hot.
3. Unctuous/Oily (Snigdha) vs. Dry (Ruksha): Ghee is oily; popcorn is dry.
4. Dull/Slow (Manda) vs. Sharp (Tikshna): Cheese is dull; cayenne pepper is sharp.
5. Smooth (Slakshna) vs. Rough (Khara): Avocado is smooth; toast is rough.
6. Dense (Sandra) vs. Liquid (Drava): Cheese is dense; water is liquid.
7. Soft (Mridu) vs. Hard (Kathina): Oatmeal is soft; nuts are hard.
8. Static (Sthira) vs. Mobile (Chala): Sitting is static; running is mobile.
9. Gross (Sthula) vs. Subtle (Sukshma): A rock is gross; a thought is subtle.
10. Cloudy/Sticky (Avila) vs. Clear (Vishada): Yogurt is cloudy; water is clear.
Try This Today: Next time you feel unwell, ask yourself: *What quality am I experiencing?* If your skin is dry and cracking, your joints are popping, and your stool is hard, you are suffering from an excess of the Dry (Ruksha) Guna. The cure? Drink warm milk with ghee, and massage your body with warm sesame oil to introduce the Oily (Snigdha) and Warm (Ushna) qualities.