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2018 | Vol 1 | Issue 4 

 
 

A Preliminary Clinical Evaluation of Prakriti 
Ragitha1 ,  M .Rakesh2 , C H Maanu3 

123
Assistant Professor 

Community Healthcare Center of Shangzhuang 
 

ABSTRACT 

     Ayurveda explains 10 important processes in the examination of patients, one of which is determining the patient's 

Prakriti (individual constitution). It is believed that the best people have a balanced Vata, Pitta, and Kapha 

constitution, whereas individuals with a predominance of only two of these doshas are inferior. People that have one 

Dosha dominating their constitution are categorized as either inferior, average, or excellent. Various factors have led 

to the neglect of Prakriti evaluation in modern clinical practice. The purpose of this research was to examine the role 

of external characteristics in determining Prakriti at the most basic level. Substances and Techniques: Twenty-five 

healthy adults gave their agreement to participate in the current pilot investigation, which was a single-group, single-

center, selective-sampling survey study. They were given a specifically designed questionnaire to determine how 

they rated on 16 physical characteristics of the various Prakriti described in the old Ayurvedic texts. A percentage 

was computed by adding together the values assigned to each characteristic based on the observations obtained. The 

percentages for each Dosha were used to evaluate Prakriti. The results showed that 36.75 percent of the 25 subjects 

exhibited characteristics indicative of Vata Dosha, whereas 38.75 percent exhibited Pitta Dosha characteristics and 

24.5 percent exhibited Kapha Dosha characteristics. Eighty percent of the subjects were found to be Tridoshaja 

Prakriti types, whereas twenty percent were Dwidoshaja Prakriti types. Lumbago, menstrual abnormalities, digestive 

issues, and constipation were among the main clinical complaints reported by the individuals. Conclusion: Direct 

observation during clinical examination allows for a rough estimate of an individual's Prakriti, which is a useful tool 

in the formulation of primary health care methods in modern clinical practice. Individuals with communication 

impairments were also assessed for Prakriti in the research. Further proof will need studies on a wider scale. 

 
Keywords: Individual Constitution, Physical Features, Pratyaksha Pramana, Prakriti, Tridosha 

 

 

Introduction 

Ayurveda is the science of life which stick on to the 

individualistic approach in both health care and cure 

of diseases. According to the principles of Ayurveda 

all individuals cannot be considered or treated in the 

same way or with same medicines. One of the major 

factors which makes individuals different from each 

other is Prakriti (Individual constitution) which 

influences their physical, mental, emotional and 

spiritual attitudes. The formation of individual 

constitution happens at the time of formation of 

Grabha (embryo). [1] This individual constitution is 

formed due to the dominance of three Dosha (body 

humors) which are called as the three pillars of life 

and on which the formation, health and disease state 

of an individual are dependent upon. At the time of  

formation of embryo which Dosha dominates, the  

 

constitution of the individual will be of the same 

Dosha dominancy. [2] The individuals possessing Prakriti  
 
 

 
 
formed by the balanced state of three Dosha is said 

to remain disease free in general and those who  
While describing the examination of patients, Acharya 
Charaka specifies that to understand and analyze the 

strength of an individual and the affected disease a 

clinician should examine a patient on the basis of 

Dasha Vidha Pariksha (Ten parameters of examination). 
[5] Prakriti is the first among them which shows the 

importance of its assessment in successful health care. 

There are seven major types of constitution 

explained in the classics of Ayurveda depending upon 

the predominance of individual Dosha namely Vata, 

Pitta and Kapha; predominance of two Dosha namely 

Vata Pitta, Vata Kapha and Pitta Kapha and equal 

dominance of three Dosha named Sama Dosha Prakriti. 
[6] Prakriti of an individual is influenced by these Dosha 
and accordingly physical, mental, emotional and 

intellectual features are seen in individuals. Thus a 

precise analysis of Prakriti incorporates exploration of 

multiple factors due to which it becomes time 

consuming task in routine clinical practice. 



 

 

Many a times assessment of Prakriti considering 

multiple factors stay unfeasible due to lack of proper 

time, effort and interest of individuals in current 

clinical practice. But to have a proper treatment or 

health care strategy, examination of Prakriti of an 

individual is of utmost importance in clinical practice. 

Many a times it happens so that the patient or 

individual will be suffering from some disorders which 

hamper effective communication as in deafness, 

dumbness, behavioural disorders, psychological 

disorders and paralysis. Especially in younger children 

lack of proper communication stands as a major 

problem in history taking and clinical examination 

too. These issues initiated the present study as a 

preliminary attempt of Prakriti assessment by means of 

physical features alone which may give a gross idea 

about the Dosha involvement and thus a clinician can 

plan a primary treatment protocol or healthy lifestyle 

and diet based on the same. The present study was 

aimed at analysis of Prakriti at a gross level by 

assessment of physical features. 

Methodology 
The present study was planned as a pilot study which 

was single centre single arm selective sampling survey 

study to monitor the feasibility and significance of 

assessment of Prakriti depending upon the physical 

features of the selected participants. The inclusion 

criteria was fixed as healthy volunteers of age between 

17 to 70 years and those who gave consent to be 

included in the study. The exclusion criteria was those 

individuals suffering from any active illness and who 

are under treatment for the same. A total of 25 

healthy volunteers were included in the study. 

The method of data collection was by the use of a 

specially prepared questionnaire containing 16 

selected physical features of Prakriti assessment 

according to the classical textual references in 

Ayurveda (Table no. 1). Each response was recorded 

and given scores accordingly from 0 to 1 to calculate 

the final score of individual features related to each 

Dosha. The sum was calculated and percentage of 

each Dosha specific features and according to each 

Dosha involvement, gross Prakriti was assessed. 

 

Observations & Results 
Among the 25 participants, physical features of each 

Dosha was calculated and presented as percentage. 

The features of Vata, Pitta and Kapha Dosha were found 

to be in the following percentages respectively. (Chart 

no.1) 

 

Chart No.1: Percentage of individual Dosha 
features in the participants 

 

 
By analyzing the features of individual Dosha, 

percentage of participants belonging to Tridoshaja and 

Dwidoshaja Prakriti were also calculated as per shown in 

the Chart no.2. 

 

 
Apart from Prakriti, it was also observed that the 

participants had a few clinical symptoms in common 

such as lumbago, menstrual irregularities, digestive 

disorders and constipation. 

 

Discussion 
Prakriti is a state where there will be balance of all 

Dosha and when there is derangement in this balanced 

state, onset of a disease happens. Assessing Prakriti is a 

better tool in selecting diet and lifestyle and planning 

the treatment strategy. Being one among the Dasha 
Vidha Pariksha, it is necessary to assess Prakriti of every 

individual during clinical examination. Although 

questionnaires are available which incorporates all the 

features of individual Prakriti, many times patients or 

individuals do not spare their time and take efforts to 

answer those questions to assess their Prakriti. 

Table no. 1: Questionnaire containing 

16 selected physical features of 

Prakriti assessment 



 

 

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anguli Pramana (measuring through ones 
own finger). The size of middle phalanx of 

middle finger of the volunteer is measured 
and converted into cms. Later the above 

parts are measured through tape and 
converted into Anguli Pramana, based 
upon which Small, Medium and Big sizes 

are defined. 

The present study was planned to assess Prakriti at a 

basic level by observing the physical features of the 

participants which can be done in an easier way even at 

clinical set up. Although Prakriti assessment is based 

upon the physical, mental and emotional characteristics 

of an individual, assessing all the parameters in a 

limited time always stand as a challenging task. To 

overcome this limitation, the present study was planned 

to check the feasibility of assessing gross level Prakriti by 

considering only physical appearance of an individual. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ayurveda insists on four Pramana (tools which helps 

in gaining any sort of knowledge) namely, 

Aptopadesa (Words of wisdom by scholars/sages), 

Pratyaksha (Direct observation), Anumana 
(Supposition) and Yukti (Logical reasoning). [7] In the 

present study for analysis of Prakriti, both Aptopadesha 
and Pratyaksha Pramana were used. Pratyaksha 

Pramana (direct observation) is a tool to validate the 

knowledge in the form of inspection of patients 

which can be adopted as an easy method to assess 

Prakriti at a gross level. By direct observation of 

physical features, the participants have filled the 

questionnaire with the assistance of the researchers. 

Features Vata Pitta Kapha 

Frame of arms Short and thin Medium Tough, thick, well built 

Forehead Small irregular margin Medium sized irregular 

margin 

Large straight margin 

Eyebrows and 

eyelashes 

Scanty, dry, irregular Scanty brownish Dense, smooth and 

moist 

Hair Scanty dry irregular Brownish baldness Dense, smooth and 

moist 

Eyes Small sized lacks glow, 

round unsteady, remains 
partially open during sleep 

Medium sized reddish/ 

yellowish 

Almond sized and 

beautiful 

Sclera Smoky, blackish Reddish/yellowish White, glowing 

Iris Blackish Blue/green/grey Black 

Nose Small with their covering 

skin 

Suitable for face Big with thick covering 

skin 

Lips Dry, small sized cracked Thin, red, small sized Thick moist 

Big sized 

Teeth Irregular in shape & 

placement cracked & muddy 

Yellowish regular in 

shape and placement 

With big sized, regular 

in shape and placement 

Tongue Dry, small sized cracked Thin, red small sized Thick, flashy moist, big 

sized 

Skin Thin, dry, cracked rough Soft, oily, has tendency to 

develop skin disease 

Thick moist smooth 

Complexion Dark brown blackish Pinkish Fair 

Palms Small sized, dry, cracked has Medium sized, soft hot Big sized fleshy, soft less 
 numerous palm lines on touching sweating palm lines 

Soles Small sized, dry cracked Medium sized, soft, 

sweating 

Big sized, fleshy, soft, big 

sized moist 

Nails Small sized, dry, brittle Medium sized, pinkish, 

soft 

Medium sized, pinkish, 

soft 



171 

 

 

 

Among the 25 participants, those with Tridoshaja Prakriti 
were more compared to Dwidoshaja Prakriti. As this was 

a pilot study involving only physical features, the 

importance of type of Prakriti according to number of 

Dosha involved stands trivial. The clinical ailments 

revealed by the participants such as lumbago, menstrual 

irregularities, digestive disorders and constipation need 

more thorough evaluation to connect its incidence in 

relation to their Prakriti. It is stated in Ayurveda that the 

individuals are prone to suffer from similar complaints 

to that of predominant Dosha forming their Prakriti. 
 

The present study of Prakriti analysis plays an important 

role in case of individuals  with defective 

communication such as disorders of speech, deafness, 

dumbness, facial palsy, psychological disorders and also 

in infants and children. In such cases, information 

regarding emotional and physiological factors involved 

in Prakriti cannot be assessed well. So to assess Prakriti in 

such cases direct observation of physical features will be 

an effective tool. 

 

On an average, the time taken by the selected 

participants to fill the questionnaire of Prakriti was 

10-15 minutes. Thus this can be made use of in the 

large scale study of Prakriti. The data analysis of the 

present study was a preliminary assessment which 

should be under the guidance of a statistician for the 

large scale study. 
 

Conclusion 

The present study demonstrated the preliminary 

assessment of Prakriti on the basis of only physical 

features of participants using questionnaire method. A 

main study with large sample size will be feasible with 

the same protocol for assessing gross Prakriti of 

individuals by analyzing physical features. As Prakriti 
does not only depend upon the physical features of an 

individual, the present method may be used as a 

preliminary tool to assess Prakriti and specifically in 

such individuals who are restricted in effective 

communication both in healthy and diseased. The 

protocol followed in this study is limited to only 

physical features in relation to Prakriti and so this 

cannot be considered as a complete assessment of 

Prakriti. 

     References 
1. Vridha Jivaka, Kashyapa, Kashyapa Samhita, 

Sutra Sthana, Lehadhyaya, edited by Hemaraj 

S a r m a , Re p r i n t E d i t i o n , Va r a n a s i : 

Chaukhambha Sanskrit Sansthan; 2013, p.2 

2. Sushruta, Sushrutasamhita, Sarira Sthana, 

Chapter 4, edited by Yadavji Trikamji, 9th ed. 

Varanasi: Chaukambha Orientalia; 2008, p. 

3. Ibidem Pandit Kashyapa Samhita (1) Sutra 

Sthana, Lehadhyaya, p.3 

4. Agnivesha,   Charaka,   Dhridhbala,    Charaka 

S a m h i t a , S u t r a S t h a n a , K h u d d a k a 

Chatushpada Adhyaya, Chapter 9, Verse 4, 

Translated by Banwari Lal Gaur, 1st ed. New 

Delhi: Rashtriya Ayurveda Vidyapeeth; 2014, 

p.312 

5. Ibidem Charaka Samhita (4), Vimana Sthana, 

Rogabhishagjitiya Adhyaya, Chapter 8, Verse 

94, p.511 

6. Ibidem Charaka Samhita (4), Vimana Sthana, 

Rogabhishagjitiya Adhyaya, Chapter 8, Verse 

95, p.515 

7. Ibidem Charaka Samhita (4), Sutra Sthana, 

Tisreshaniya Adhyaya, Chapter 11, Verse 17, p. 

358 

 

 

 

 

 

 


