The six tastes—sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, and astringent—are known as Shadrasa in Ayurveda. These preferences are crucial for diet, health, and the avoidance of lifestyle diseases.

Panchamahabhoota and Rasa

Every taste has a unique mahabhoota combination, which determines how it affects the body’s dosha.

Madhura Rasa-sweet Taste

Madhura rasa promotes profound strength of dhätüs as it is adapted to, right from birth. It is extremely desirable for young children, the old, those exhausted of chest injuries, and for improving the complexion, promoting hair growth, improving the perceptive power of senses and vital energy. It nourishes the body, promotes voice, is a galactagogue, and promotes healing. It is guru (heavy), snigdha (unctuous), increases life span and is life sustaining. It pacifies pitta and vāta and is anti-toxic. Excessive use of madhura rasa causes diseases due to vitiation of kapha and medas (adiposity) such as sthaulya (obesity), agnisāda (poor digestion), sannyāsa (coma), prameha (diabetes), galaganda (goitre”), arbuda (tumors) etc.

Amla Rasa-sour Taste

Amla rasa increases digestive power, is snigdha (unctuous), cherished for (hrdya, in this context, relishing), pācana (digestive, breaks down ‘äma”) and rocana (provides and increases taste). It is usna (hot) in virya (potency), cold in touch, is prinana (nourishing), bhedana (purgative) and is Laghu (light). It increases kapha, pitta and rakta and is müdha vāta anulõmana (facilitates evacuation of stranded flatus). Consumed in excess, it causes slackness of the body, timira (diminished vision), bhrama (giddiness), kandu (itching), pându (anemia), visarpa (cellulitis), śõpha (edema), visphõța (skin eruptions), traça (thirst) and jvara (fever).

Lavana Rasa-salty Taste

Lavana rasa destroys stambha (inactivity/inertness), disintegrates sanghata (consolida-tion) and bandha (adhesions), increases digestion, brings about unctuousness, and causes perspiration. It is tikshna (sharp in action), increases taste and is chedana (abrasive in action) and bhedana (piercing). When consumed in excess, it causes rakta väta (a term used for inflammatory swellings, especially of the ankles), baldness, greying of hair, wrinkling of skin, thirst, skin ailments, toxicity, cellulitis and weakness of the body.

Katu Rasa- Acrid/pungent Taste

Katu rasa cures throat ailments, udarda (urticaria), skin ailments, alasaka (stagnated food within stomach) and lõpha (oedema). It is vraņāvasādana (abrasive to hyper-granulation in ulcers) and effects drying up of sneha (unctuousness), keda (mucous), and mēdas (lipids). It is carminative, increases digestion (also metabolism], improves appetite, cleans up the body channels, withers food that is taken, disintegrates obstructions, opens up the metabolic pathways and pacifies kapha. Its excessive use leads to thirst, loss of strength and libido (also, reproductive ability], fainting, muscle cramps, tremor and ache along hip, back etc

Tikta Rasa-bitter Taste

Tikta rasa by itself is not tasty. It cures loss of appetite, worms, thirst, toxicity, skin ailments, fainting, fever, over secretion of mucous and burning sensation. It pacifies pitta and kapha and causes upaśōşaņa (drying up) of kleda (mucous), mēdas (adiposity), vasa (subcutaneous fat), majja (bone marrow), faeces and urine. It is laghu (light), śita (cold) and rükşa (dry), promotes the intellect, purifies the breast milk and clears the throat. In excess, it causes dhātu kşaya (wasting of tissue) and vāta rogās.

Kashaya Rasa- Astringent Taste

Kaşāya rasa pacifies pitta and kapha, and is guru (heavy), purifies blood, pidana (extracts/squeezes abscesses), is rōpaņa (healing) and śita (cold). It brings down kleda (moisture /mucous) and mēdas (lipids). It procrastinate āma formation, is grāhi (constipative), cause rūkşa (dryness) and is ati tvak prasādana (a great skin tonic). Its excessive use causes abdominal distress, abdominal distension, precordial pain, thirst, wasting, lack of sexual prowess, obstruction of channels and constipation.

Dosha Action Of Each Rasa

Author – Dr. Shilpa V. Rajan