Samadosa samagni ca sama dhatu malakriyah.
Prasanna atma indriya manah svastha itiabhi dhiyate………
Acharya Sushrut has described the features of healthy person in the above quote where he states that only that person whose doshas are in equilibrium , Agni (digestive fire) is in balanced state and dhatus (tissues ) and malas(wastes) are in normal state is considered to be healthy being.
Agni ,the digestive fire has a major role in keeping body and mind healthy. Its deteoration leads to onset of several diseases .Now the question arises how it Deteorates. It happens due to faulty diet and change in lifestyle. Ahara (diet) and vihar, (lifestyle) are the key modalities of prevention and management of diseases in Ayurveda. The importance of diet can be understood with the fact that it has been called as Mahabhaishajya (super medicine) as per Kashayapa Samahita. It has been clearly mentioned that food should be taken keeping in mind the rule that one part of stomach should be filled with solid food second part with liquid and third part should be empty for proper action of doshas and regarding vihar (lifestsyle) chinta (anxiety) jagran (awakened state), Anashana (taking no food) vyavaya (sexual act), vyayam (exercise), pravarta (wind) cjana gamana (travelling) should be avoided and atapa sevana (exposure to sunrays) Mridushaya (soft bed) ushnodaka snana and pana(bath with warm water and intake of warm water)etc should be adopted.
Because of the sedentary life style and unhealthy eating habits food that is consumed even if it is healthy but not consumed at people intervals and in the mentioned quantity, does not get properly digested and leads to formation of aama (toxins) which clogs the srortas (channel) of the body, preventing nutrients from being delivered efficiently to the cells and preventing waste from being discharged efficiently from body. So to keep a person in healthy state, one has to keep his agni in balanced state which will prevent onset of several life style disorders like obesity, Hypertension, Dyslipidemia and cardiovascular diseases.
Criterion for assessment of different types of jatharagni
Pachakagni is stated to be responsible for digestion and metabolism. It is of four kinds
Samagni
1)Due to equilibrium state of doshas
2)Regular or balanced type of agni gets impaired by minor irregularities and it maintains normaly as long as the is no irregularity.
3.Such persons have balanced vata, pitta ,kapha
4.Depicts healthy state of digestion
Vishamagni
a)Manifests due to intake of vata provocating dieteties and activities
b)It is a state of agni in which improper digestion and metabolism takes place i.e. sometimes performs normal furction followed by abnormal and manifests , flatulance, abominal pain, upward movement of vata inside abdomen, diarrohea, heaviness.
c)These people eat good amount of food at time and don’t like to eat food at times.
d)Unable to cope up with changing environment in respect to seasons, places etc.
Tikshanagni
It manifests due to intake of pita provocating dietetics and activities.
It is a state in which hyperfunctioning of digestion and metabolic activities is observed common in adult person
These people are having excellent power of ingestion and digestion of food. These people likes to eat good amount of food all the time.
Mandagni
It manifests due to intake of kapha provocating dietetics and activities.
Mandagni is a state in which digestion process becomes weak and takes long time to digest the less quantity of food
Manifests heaviness in abdomen and head, gurgling sound in abdomen, flatulance, cough ,Dysopnea , excess salivation, vomiting, dryness of mouth and weakness of body.
Common in children
Conclusion
Being healthy throughtout is not only need of person but also right of a person. Agni is the one of important and basic phenomenon of life. It should be maintained at any cost to live a disease free life. In the present scenario of developed countries life style disorders are having more prevalance rate than infectious diseases. Ayurveda highlights Agni for maintenance of health and considers diminished Agni as the chief etiological factor for causation of diseases. State of agni is having dominant role in manifestation of lifestyle disorders. Hence a healthy life style is mandatory for normal Agni and prevention of life style disorders through vitiated Agni.
Dr.Sakshi Sharma
Govt.Ayurvedic Medical College
Asstt.Prof.(Department of Kriya Sharir)
