*Ayurveda has very descriptive language to describe energy within our body system.  Vastu like Ayurveda recognizes these five elements as the core subtle energies that make up the universe and consequently our bodies and homes 

  1. Earth
  2. Water
  3. Air
  4. Fire
  5. Ether (space)

Ayurveda’s describes these energies & the interaction and balance of these subtle elements in a system, the body, but a home is equally a system, Ayurveda’s articulate language of the elements  can be equally applied to our homes environment which is a system also in which the 5 elements interact.

The three guṇas.Sattva, Rajas and Tamas:

Ayurveda like Vastu also recognises These three gunas they are called: 

sattva (purity, goodness, constructive, harmonious, light ), 

rajas(passion, fiery, movement, active, confused), and 

tamas(darkness, stale, heavy, sedating quiet, destructive, chaotic). These relate to the dosha’s and the 5 elements they are all ways to describe energy.  

Imagine the guṇas as actual threads. An internal spider web of red, white and black strands that bind our Soul in our body. These threads exist in different proportions in each of us depending on our personal constitution. Rajas is fiery and passionate and red; tamas is dark and depressive and black. Sattva is pure and white. Just as when light passes through a prism, it is divided into the colors of the rainbow, sattva contains all the colours inside, holding the one and the many simultaneously.

The houses we live in, colours we wear, the foods we eat, the books we read, the work we do, the company we keep – they all influence the state of our guṇas. 

The three guṇas.Sattva, Rajas and Tamas:

These threads bind in the body ~ The eternal embodied Soul. 

Among these, Sattva is without stain,

Bright and shining and free from disease.

It binds the Soul by attachment to happiness, and by attachment to knowledge, 

Know that Rajas has the nature of passion,

Arising from thirst and attachment.

This binds the Soul to the body, by attachment to action.

And know that Tamas is born from ignorance,

Confusing all embodied beings, by intoxication, laziness and sleepiness.

This binds the Soul to the body. 

– Bhagavad Gītā 

These five elements also comprise three doshas : Vata, Pitta, Kapha.                          Think of doshas as types of energy that make up all universal energy.

Each dosha has its own flavour and feel.

 Dosha: Vata (air + ether)

  • Vata is all about change. Vata is airy, light, dry, lots of movement.
  • Vata is involved in unconscious processes like breathing, digestion.
  • Vata energy tends to be on/off. You have a burst of energy then crash. Energy, crash.
  • When imbalanced, vata energy may be spacey, airheaded, anxious, fast talking, and lack routine.
  • When balanced, vata brings ideas, creativity, enthusiasm, and expression through language.
  • We need vata for ideas and enthusiasm in our change!
  • Vata energy is at its peak in the fall.
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Dosha: Kapha (earth + water)

  • Kapha energy is the most stable. Kapha energy is cold, heavier, holding. 
  • Balanced kapha energy, is about stamina, strength, consistency.
  • Kapha is also about love; of people and things and relationships. 
  • We need kapha energy for follow-through in completing our change
  • Kapha imbalanced may manifest as attachment, or falling back into old ruts and habits, lack of change inability to move forward.  
  • Kapha dosha is most dominant in winter, although long stints of rain may bring about Kapha. 
  • Kapha tends to accumulate in the south west of a home and when in balance with here water to earth ratio it is beneficial  to hold energy.  

Dosha: Pitta (fire+ water)

  • Fire transforms matter, releasing energy, pitta is all about transformation.
  • Balanced pitta handles logistics and gets us into action, critical thinking, logical thought, planning, and organization
  • Imbalanced Pitta may present as anger or agitation. Listen to how pitta shows up in language: “hot temper” and “fiery rage.”
  • Pitta dosha peaks in the summertime. Spring is a perfect time to enlist pitta energy to help you make changes for new growth!
  • Pitta tends to accumulate in the SouthEast sector of a home. 

click here to for your personal Dosha questionnaire to determine your Dosha type.