Jun 28, 2006

BYJ Seen Through Ayurveda -Part 2


By satovic
Translated by flowerbossa


I will first give the characteristics of the “fire” type.
The characteristics of the energy symbolized by fire (called “pitta”) is heat and sharpness, therefore, people with the pitta constitution tend to possess a lot of heat in their bodies. They perspire a lot, feel uncomfortable in hot weather, and are also “hot” in their temperament. In other words, they tend to be passionate and subject to temper tantrums.

The “sharpness” is evident in the intensity of their eyes and their minds – they are very intelligent. They are orderly and focused. If they moved something, they would not be content unless it is returned to the original position, and they are perfectionists at work, planning things carefully in the process. They like practical things. Pitta also has the function of giving color to objects, so their skin has a lot of moles or freckles. Their skin is warm, moist, and tend to be reddish or yellowish. Lips are red and give a sensitive impression. The light in their eyes is intense, but the eyes themselves are neither big nor small. They tend to get blood-shot easily.

Pitta people have good digestion, resulting in strong appetites. They tend to enjoy cold food and drinks, however, when this energy is out of balance, they crave for food that stores heat in their bodies like hot food, chicken, and alcohol. They are very sensitive to smell, and enjoy nice fragrance – especially aroma that cools, such as lavender and sandalwood.

They are passionate people, very brave and open to challenges. They have a warm heart that enables them to help other people, even enemies, however, once they are betrayed, they will never trust the other again. They are very stubborn. They are good leaders, and have a strong sense of responsibility, and very proud. They enjoy exhibiting their wealth. They like beautiful objects, and are fashionable. They are very interested in fashion and decorative objects, and sometimes like name brand goods, but have their own value system and are proud about that. Because they do not compromise, others may find them stubborn. Once under stress, they tend to develop problems caused by acid, such as skin disease and stomach ulcer, and tend to have diarrhea. People of this constitution move their bowels more than once a day. Because they have strong will power, they are able to manage their daily lives to be orderly, but persevere too much when they are busy. They get irritated when they are hungry. Favorite colors are red and yellow. Also, they tend to be argumentative.

Next, I will talk about the “water” type.
The energy symbolized by “water” or “kapha”, is like water itself - heavy, cold, slow-moving, easygoing, and smooth. Also, just as water solidifies when it turns into ice, kapha has the quality of solidifying.

Therefore, people of the kapha constitution tend to gain weight. They have well-developed bodies, and their build is larger than average and stocky. Because they are slow moving and slow-paced emotionally, they are calm and tolerant. They even may give the impression of being thick. Their way of speaking is smooth and not aggressive. They have a resonant voice that is thick and full, giving a gentle impression. Because they like to keep still, they enjoy staying at home. They like water, and water related places, and such places appear in their dreams.

Because solidification means aspects coming together to stabilize, their personality has a similar trait. People of this type like to collect memories and preserve them. They also like to collect knowledge. They are slow in learning, but what is learned is definite.

When this characteristic is applied in financial matters, these people like to collect money, exhibiting traits of greed, and can be stingy. Also, because they do not like to be active, they tend to be lazy and slob around.

They enjoy things like reading, listening to lectures, and like to spend time meaningfully by doing something that does not require movement. They are slow in taking action because they are slow in comprehension, and contemplative. But once they start something, they have the perseverance to complete it. Kapha people are not very interested in things such as fashion, and care little about what they are wearing, because substance means more to them than the exterior. However, they like things to be clean.

This type likes the colors blue and white. Skin tends to be fair, smooth and cool to the touch. They are quiet people, kind at heart, appreciative and tolerant.
They are considerate towards others. Like sweet things. Has the tendency to be resistant to disease – asthma and respiratory problems are some of the few disorders that this type may face. Is patient and complains little of discomfort such as pain and itchiness. Eyes tend to be big and captivating, lips are big and full, and teeth are white. Hair is black, straight and tends to be moist and heavy. This type likes to eat, but because digestion is slow, they can tolerate hunger.

There you have it, and I did not give the descriptions with Yong Joon in mind. They are all typical traits. But don’t you think many of these apply to wuri man? To sum things up, we can find the characteristics of pitta and kapha in Yong Joon, so therefore we can guess that he has the constitution of a “pitta – kapha” or a “kapha – pitta” (the predominant one comes first). Actors require “vata”, or the “wind” quality, but this seems to be scarce in Yong Joon. When one possesses this quality, inspiration comes first, so emotions can move quickly.

But I think Yong Joon is more of the type that needs to comprehend the situation in his head first, and then make his body take in the information through repetition. “Fire” and “water” is the polar opposite. Therefore, people who have both of these characteristics have an easy time maintaining their health, but if they placed themselves in either of the extremes, they would loose their balance. So, it is very important to keep the middle path.

If Yong Joon-ssi would ask me directly for advice on his diet and general care, I would be so willing to give him everything there is to know!
I would like to suggest this to all of you, too - if you could find out your constitution type, you will have a better idea of how to care for yourself on a daily basis. As for me, after I received Ayurveda treatment, and started to eat in the way suitable for my constitution, I became free of most of my physical problems such as asthma and constipation. And because my days have become more refreshing and pleasant, I am more able to concentrate on a variety of things. This is why it is my wish to share this knowledge with many people as possible.

In Japan, too, there seems to have been a period when Ayurveda was introduced. In the ancient city of Nara, lies the Imperial Repository, called the Shosoin, and this building built in the seventh century contains numerous items from the Nara period. Among the medical herbs preserved there, there are a substantial number of plants with Sanskrit names printed on them, which is used in Ayurveda. Buddha himself received Ayurveda treatment, as it is recorded in Buddhist scriptures, and it is considered that these documents came to Japan through China. If this is so, it would be no surprise if this knowledge went through Korea as well. As a matter of fact, there are many aspects of the diet and bathing methods (such as sauna) in Korea that show great resemblance to that recorded in the classic documents of Ayurveda. When I saw this on television for the first time, I was amazed. In Korea, the knowledge of ancient India is applied in their daily lives, to a greater degree than in Japan. So, I hope one day to visit Korea to collect such knowledge.

And, it is my dream to give a luxurious massage to Yong Joon’s beautiful back with oil containing herbs…oh, but it’s no good…
I will probably be too mesmerized by him….(^ ^;)

Thank you for reading, everyone!

15 comments:

yokee 요키 said...

really wonderful and very informative. interesting to know about ayurveda.

but now im curious about the 'wind' type...

thank u so much flowerbossa for the trans work. and of cos to satovic for such knowlegable writing ^^

bbmag said...

that was fast! thanks, flowerbossa!

my only 'complaint' is... the passage's so short! wish there's more :) i really enjoyed it.

hee... now flowerbossa, help me ask satovic again, what type am i...? i got the order of the traits confused... i know i'm not 'windy' :p

yokee 요키 said...

haha...

bb u not 'windy' huh?
hmm think i hv to email satovic tonite to ask her what type i am.
wonder if she can remember how i look from our so very brief meet last autumn...

btw..ive shovelled tis wonderful piece to my bloggy ^^

arigato gozaimasu~

bbmag said...

hee.... ya, satovic told me what type she thought i was, but i forgot if she said i was fire-water, or water-fire :p

i want to be the same as YJ :0

flowerbossa said...

Hi, yokee, there is a "wind" version, so I'll try to translate that, too.

I think satovic will need more info from you to determine your type. Maybe you can take a guess after I give you "wind".

flowerbossa said...

BB, yeah I agree.
I would like to read more, too!

Maybe you can talk satovic into it!

yokee 요키 said...

ok ok..thanks so much flowerbossa i will wait for the 'wind'

bb...be the same with him? mmm..i think i would prefer to be one that can compliment him and him too hehehehehe...

oh oh..come to think of it..do u think satovic can do one on MY OM?
ok ok too much to ask for..sorry..mianhae yo...

Anonymous said...

Thanks flowerbossa,

I learn so much from you and satovic. This is truly a fascinating study on your body, mind and habits.

I am amazed especially about the remedies satovic took after knowing her own type to improve on her own health. God knows, at this age, any kind of medicine helps!This is very similar to Chinese school of medicine in identifying a person's internal body type before the doctor prescribed the appropriate herbal medicine.

I still remember those medicine tasted awful and bitter when I took it as a small child. Mommy always gave me a dry plum afterwards (no candies back then) to make me smile again!

Thanks for your fantastic translation! Your writing made it a pleasure to read.

bbmag said...

hee... flowerbossa, i laughed out loud when i read about how you wanted to 'give yokee wind' :p

flowerbossa said...

Hi, jaime,

I'm happy to know that you enjoyed
reading this.

Yes, I'm sure ayurveda and Chinese traditional medicine have a lot in common. The sad thing is, many Asians (including myself) are not
very knowledgable about these traditions. It would be good if we could take the middle path between east and west.

flowerbossa said...

bb...


.....okay....I'm too modest....
mind telling me....by mail?

Anonymous said...

Thank you for the traits, flowerbossa. After reading them again, you have inspired me to re-visit Ayurveda, because my fire traits have been tipping the scale a bit too much lately. Thank you for the positive inspiration.

marissa said...

Thanks flowerbossa,

After reading your posting I think I have the same constitution as our Yong Joon. With fire being more dominant than water but I'm curious to know more about the "wind" too.

I hope you can share more of satovic's writings here.

flowerbossa said...

Hi, melissa,

I'm so happy to hear that this piece helped to reflect upon yourself. satovic would be, too!

It's the same with me.
I lose my balance very easily, so the teachings of Ayurveda and yoga really helps me out.

flowerbossa said...

Marissa, thank you as always!

Yes, I would very much like to share satovic's writings. That is much as I can. The depth of her experience and knowledge revealed in her writings are quite a challenge to translate!