The Six Tastes of Ayurveda

by Melissa Eisler

SWEET, SOUR, SALTY, BITTER, PUNGENT, AND ASTRINGENT

Ayurveda recommends including each of

the tastes in every meal. The belief is that
incorporating all six tastes in your meals
and adjusting the amounts to your personal
constitution will help you maintain balanced
nutrition and good health, and feel satisfied
overall.

It doesn’t matter whether this exploration of

taste is a new endeavor for you, or one you’re
refining with time and experience. The fact is
that taste, rasa, is an inherently potent means
of fine tuning the flavor of your life – wheth-
er through diet, lifestyle, relationships, or
through the types of experiences you pursue.

Evolving a deepened relationship with taste SWEET

can shed light on your unique strengths,
vulnerabilities, and needs. At the same time,
you’ll be implementing a powerful tool in
support of your path toward perfect health.
May your life taste rich and rewarding in
every way.
THE SIX RASAS
Taste is made from the same five elements
that make up the doshas: space, air, fire,
water and earth. And each taste has an effect
on Vata, Pitta, and Kapha. When your doshas
are out of balance, these six tastes can help
you repair this imbalance.
Decreases Vata & Pitta, increases Kapha
The sweet taste is comprised of water and
earth, and is good for balancing Vata and Pit-
ta. Of the six tastes, sweet is known to be the
most grounding and nourishing. When eaten
in moderation, it promotes longevity, strength,
and healthy bodily fluids and tissues.
If you’re trying to gain weight, sweet is the
taste to emphasize. Its heavy, oily, and moist
attributes slow digestion.
The sweet taste is prominent in foods such as
wheat, rice, dairy, cereals, dates, pumpkins,
maple syrup, and licorice root.

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SOUR
Decreases Vata, increases Pitta & Kapha
The sour taste consists of water and fire. It
stimulates appetite and saliva production,
and is balancing in its light, heating, and
oily properties. The sour taste awakens the
thoughts and emotions, and can improve ap-
petite, digestion, and elimination. It needs to
be eaten in moderation because if you eat it
in excess, it can quickly lead to aggression in
the body.
Some sour foods are lemon, vinegars, pickled
and fermented foods, tamarind, and wine. considered the coolest and lightest of all the
SALTY
Decreases Vata, increases Pitta & Kapha
The salty taste consists of earth and fire. It’s
best for Vata because of its grounding and
hydrating nature. Its heat may aggravate Pitta
and Kapha. It also adds taste to foods, stimu-
lates digestion, helps electrolyte balance,
cleanses tissues, and increases absorption of
minerals. However, too much salt can have a
negative impact on the blood and skin.
Examples of salty foods are sea vegetables,
sea salt, tamari, black olives, Himalayan salt,
rock salt, and processed foods that contain
salt, although processed foods are not an
ideal or recommended source of salt.
PUNGENT
Increases Vata & Pitta, decreases Kapha
Fire and air make up the pungent taste.
Pungent food is the hottest of all the rasas,
and therefore stimulates digestion, improves
appetite, clears sinuses, stimulates blood cir-
culation, and heightens the senses. Pungent
food may help you think quickly and clearly,
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and understand complicated matters more
easily. Too much pungent food, however, can
make you overly critical. Pungent foods will
aggravate Pitta quickly and balance Kapha.
Vata handles pungent tastes best when they
are combined with sour, sweet, or salty foods.
Some examples of pungent foods: hot peppers,
ginger, onions, garlic, mustard, and hot spices.
BITTER
Increases Vata, decreases Pitta & Kapha
Bitter taste consists of air and space. It’s
tastes. Because of its cool qualities, it’s highly
detoxifying and can help remove waste prod-
ucts from the body. Bitter foods also help
mental purification by freeing you from pas-
sions and sultry emotions. It’s best for Pitta,
good for Kapha, and least beneficial for Vata.
Among bitter foods are raw green vegeta-
bles, turmeric, and green, black and most
herbal teas.
ASTRINGENT
Increases Vata, decreases Pitta & Kapha
The astringent taste is made up of air and
earth. It’s cool, dry, and firm. Many beans
and legumes are astringent and can cause
gas, which is why it’s a taste Vata should
eat in moderation. Pitta benefits most from
astringent taste’s coolness, and its dry, light
attributes balance Kapha. Like bitter food,
astringent food will help mentally purify and
strengthen you.
Unripe bananas, green grapes, pomegran-
ates, cranberries, green beans, alfalfa sprouts,
and okra are all astringent foods.
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