Dosha Paka Lakshanas Symptoms Of Digestion Of Doshas

By – Dr Raghuram Y.S. MD (Ay) And Dr Manasa, B.A.M.S
Among many pathological states of the doshas, saama doshas (Ama mixed with Dosha) is one.  When doshas are associated with ama, it becomes difficult to eliminate them from the body as they tend to stick to the walls of the cells, tissues, channels, passages and organs and cause blocks. When we try to expel these doshas forcibly, they may tend to damage the tissues because we are trying to expel the doshas which are sticking in the body.

Related reading – Ama Definition And Meaning
The doshas which are not adhering to the body tissues and channels, when they are free and have accumulated in the koshta i.e. viscera, only then we can remove them from the body by administration of cleansing treatments, mainly therapeutic emesis and purgation.

Pakwa Doshas or Niraama Doshas – doshas detached from ama association
The doshas which have been separated from their vicious association with ama are called niraama doshas or pakva doshas.
Read – Treatment For Dosha Imbalance, Ama – Ashtanga Sutrasthana 13

Detoxification

How do we separate ama from the doshas?
Ama can be separated from their association with the doshas by administration of digestive or ama digestive (pachana) treatment.

Ama pachana means digestion / ripening of ama.
This can be achieved by administering medicines, diet and lifestyle practices like exercise etc which are capable of digesting and destroying ama.

The ama destroying medicines and foods will have qualities opposite to those of ama. Due to these antagonistic properties, they destroy ama and free the doshas from the association. These doshas separated from the ama are called pakwa doshas.
Read related: Yogavahi: How Vata Dosha Interacts With Pitta And Kapha

The procedure, measures and treatments by administering which the ama is destroyed and the doshas released from the association is called Dosha Paka.

Panchakarma

What to do after separation of ama from doshas?
After separation of ama from doshas, i.e. when the doshas become ripened i.e. pakwa doshas, they should be brought to the koshta or visceral organs, mainly stomach. Once the doshas have reached the koshta, they should be removed from the body by administering emesis or purgation. In this state, the doshas can be easily be expelled from the body.

Clinical importance

Importance of dosha paka and its knowledge
Dosha paka is a stage which is favorable for the treatment of the diseases. This is because ama is separated from the doshas in this condition. The doshas get digested. The vitiation of doshas get settled down. The doshas which have got dissociated from ama either tend to become normal or start moving towards the visceral organs.

Digestion of dosha here means
1. Doshas becoming free from ama. In this case the ama effect on dosha will not be there. So a physician can either balance down dosha to their normalcy or expel it out through purification procedure.
2. Doshas which were previously spread across a larger area, mixed with tissues, come together to a more condensed form. This makes expulsion process (shodhana) easy.

The treatment administered to bring about dosha paka will totally depend on the strength of the gut fire.
Read – Ayurvedic Home Remedy To Improve Digestion

When the doshas move and get collected in the stomach, they should be drained out by proper method of purification either emesis or purgation.

The knowledge of dosha paka helps a physician to know the difference between doshas associated with ama and those which are separated from ama. This will help him to avoid doing mistakes while treating the doshic conditions.
When he unknowingly administers cleansing treatments without judging the status of doshas, in presence of association of ama, he would be responsible for causing ashaya nasha i.e. destruction of the structures of the body, including the tissues and organs from which he is trying to expel the doshas.

The knowledge of pakwa doshas and symptoms of dosha paka will help the physician to make appropriate choices in treatment and follow the chronology of treatment. This will enable him not only to cure the disease comprehensively but also help him safe guard strength and life of the patient.
Read related: Qualities And Symptoms Of Ama – Ama Guna Lakshana

The dosha paka is an indicator for reversal of disease process.

Classical reference

Symptoms of dosha paka
When the process of  dosha paka starts, the disease process begins to diminish and is manifested by the presence of below mentioned symptoms.

Dosha prakriti vaikrutyam –
The symptoms of the doshas taking part in the pathogenesis of a disease will start diminishing once the dosha paka begins.
By the time the doshas become totally ripened or digested i.e. devoid of ama, the symptoms would almost reduce. This indicates that the morbid doshas gradually attain their normal form.
After this, they would either settle down or subside if the immunity of the person is good or they would tend to move towards the koshta.
Once the doshas reach the visceral organs they can be expelled out of the body by administering emesis or purgation.
Read – Dosha Gati: Normal And Abnormal Movements Of Doshas

Laghuta jware, jwara mukti –
Dosha paka would reduce fever or its intensity.
This is seen by the reduction of temperature and discomfort caused by fever and subsequent reduction in the symptoms of fever.
In most diseases caused by sama doshas, there is rise in temperature or manifestation of fever. When dosha paka completes, the fever and its symptoms too get reduced.

Laghuta dehe –
The presence of ama in the body or association of dosas with ama produces heaviness and discomfort in the body.
As the doshas and ama start separating from the tissues and channels of the body following dosha digestive treatments and subsequent dosha paka, the body is relieved of its heaviness.
Once the heaviness and discomfort gets reduced, the person starts feeling lightness in the body and feel relaxed. The lightness is also experienced in the mind and senses.
Read – The Easiest Way To Understand Doshas

Indriyaanaam cha vaimalyam –
Indriyas means sense organs, its strength and perfection of perception of sense organs. When there is ama in the body tissues and blocking the channels of the body, the sense organs, its perception and also the power of perception of mind is affected in a bad way.
When dosha paka takes place and the ama is destroyed, the sense organs and mind get relaxed from the heaviness and depressive effect of sama doshas. The sense organs start perceiving their objects properly and their health is restored. This is called indriya vaimalya or cleanliness of sense organs.
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