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Ancient Science of Life 2010 January ; 29 (3) :6-18
Establishing the scientific validity of Tridoshas: Doshas, Subdoshas and Dosha Prakritis

Abstract
In traditional Ayurveda, basic concepts such as Tridosha are introduced didactically. Students of Ayurveda learn to appreciate their practical value through clinical experience; their validity is empirical. In an age where validity of concepts is judged by their scientific relevance, establishing the scientific validity of Tridosha is a program of significance.It requires translating concept and practical application into the idiom of modern biology and medicine. Four different complementary approaches have been proposed to do so: factor analysis of human physiology; systems analysis of organism function; correlation of dosha and genomic variations – Ayugenomics; and correlation of dosha and cellular function. Together these four independent approaches present compelling evidence that the family of dosha based, Ayurveda fundamental concepts – the three doshas, their fifteen subdoshas, innate dosha balance in the individual (prakriti), and dosha imbalances (vikriti) – are scientifically valid. This paper concerns the first three. Statistical (factor) analysis of Prakriti questionnaires has the power to confirm that raw Tridosha concepts are fundamental variables describing individual differences in physiology. The systems approach summarized in this paper identifies fundamental organism regulatory functions that can be equated with the three doshas. The program of Ayugenomics correlates different dosha Prakritis with variations in the human genome, providing each dosha with a basis in modern molecular biology. The electrophysiological approach suggests that such differences influence fundamental cellular functions, and their integration in tissue function, as in e.g. networks of neurons. Finally, analysis of dosha vikritis (given in Paper 2) confirms that Ayurvedic etiology is consistent with this overall analysis. It shows that stages of dosha vikriti form an integrative basis for etiolgy. The systems approach shows how Tridosha applies to every living organism from the first cells, and how it is inherited and diversified in the history of life. Ayugenomics confirms doshas' inheritance. Each dosha is responsible for regulating an essential aspect of organism function, connected to a recognised definition of life: Vata, Input/Output (homeostasis); Pitta, Turnover (negative entropy production); Kapha, Storage (inheritable structure).

DHARA ID: D000003 Pubmed ID: 22557353


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