Ayurveda for Children
May 23, 2017
Some of you are thinking, what the heck is Ayurveda. Others are already familiar with this ancient health system of India. The word itself means life (Ayur), and Veda (science/knowledge), so Ayurveda is the science or knowledge of life. Its two main tenets are that the mind and the body are inextricably connected, and that nothing can heal the body like the mind.
Ayurveda developed alongside Yoga and they are complementary practices. If you're practicing one, in some way you are also practicing the other. The main principle is that when something is out of balance, bring in the opposite. Makes sense, right? If you are cold, put on a sweater to warm up. If you are feeling tired, get up and get moving to increase energy. Ayurveda looks at this balancing of opposites through the lens of the five elements.
What do each of the elements represent?
The human body/mind consists of five elements; earth, water, fire, air and space or emptiness. The elements that combine to create us according to Ayurveda each have their own specific properties. Air is quick and ever-changing, while earth is stable and immobile. Fire is hot and light with water being the connector, the thing that flows. The last is a little more abstract. Space is the openness, the expansiveness in which all the other elements exist. The five elements combine in varying degrees to create doshas, or constitutions.
Ayurvedic Doshas Help Define a Child
The amount of each of the elements determines a person's demeanor and personality as well as bodily functions. The three primary doshas – Vata, Pitta, and Kapha – each combine two of the above elements.
Vata is made from space and air, it represents body movement, blood flow, and how the mind moves. Pitta is made from fire and water, which sounds counter-intuitive, but it represents a body's functions like metabolism, digestion, and energy. Finally, there's Kapha, which is formed from water and earth. No, that's not mud…well, it can be. It holds sway over the body's structural components like bone, muscle, tendons and even the cells in the body.
A child who naturally has a lot of earth and water in their constitution needs to bring in the opposite by adding more fire and air. Vigorous exercise, a change of routine and raw vegetables are all opposite of earth and water and bring about balance. A child with a fiery Pitta constitution needs to cool down. Non-competitive sports, rest during the hottest part of the day and cucumbers are all examples of opposites to balance pitta. Windy kids (vatas) need to be grounded – no, not that kind of grounded. They need more earth and water to balance out the higher amount of air and space. Regular meal and bed times help a vata child stay balanced.
It’s important to understand that balance doesn’t mean an equal 5th of all the elements. A child is born with a unique ratio and that unique ratio is balance. If a child has a lot of earth element in their constitution, he will always be reliable, loyal, perhaps heavy-set and somewhat resistant to change. However, when this earth quality is out of balance it can show up as stubbornness, obesity and dark moods. A child with a fiery constitution will always be a great leader, exacting and love to compete. When out of balance rashes and rash decisions may occur. Our windy kids will always be enthusiastic, quickly grasp new ideas…and then forget them. Out of balance, a child with this vata constitution can become worried and experience poor digestion. Regardless of your child’s ayurvedic constitution, understanding their dosha and how to bring it into balance can help them experience wellness in body, mind and spirit.
It just so happens that Winnie the Pooh and his friends in the Hundred Acre Wood beautifully illustrate the three main Ayurvedic doshas –kapha, pitta and vata. We have created a Lesson Plan that illustrates and balances these doshas.
