Weight Gain and Mamsa Dhatu (Muscle gain) in Ayurveda
by Cagan Cinmoyii Gun Isikli
Mamsa Dhatu in Ayurveda is the muscle tissue. The muscular system has nearly half of the body weight. If a person weighs 120 pounds, we could assume that nearly 60 pounds belong to mamsa dhatu. Muscles have special bhoutic (There are five bhutas are basic elements air, space, fire, water and earth) composition derived from Earth and Water elements. These two elements are both heavy and exist ninety percent of muscular tissue. There is also fire element in mamsa dhatu to move muscles and to give them mobility, which is amount of about 10 percent of mamsa dhatu.
Producing well mamsa body needs to enough ahara rasa. The transformation from ahara rasa to sthayi mamsa (Theory of creation of dhatus) takes about 15 days. Well-developed muscle, mamsa sara, creates a handsome body which Dr. Vasant Lad describes as like a Roman statue. It is also responsible the appearance of the body. Besides, it provides covering, maintaining body posture, gives strength. It is also functioning as lepana, plastering or holding.
When we asess out how mamsa dhatu and meda dhatu(fat tissue) are vitiated we could easily differ that causes are nearly same.
· Intake of heavy gross food such as cheese, yogurt, milk, meat, food with deliquescent properties, heavy meals
· Excessive sleeping especially day time and after meals,
· Lack of exercise
· Potato coach life style habits
At the same time these are Kapha provoking hetus. In weighting gain Kapha dosha vitiation is on chart because bhoutica composition are same with meda dhatu and mamsa dhatu governed by Kapha itself. That is why when weight gain is on consideration, an Ayurvedic Counselor also needs to take into account mamsa dhatu for analysis. If one wanting to gain weight, eating four meals a day, sleeping and resting too much, and not even washing the dishes helps too much. This absolutely increases mamsa and meda dhatus.
As a yoga teacher, I would like to underline the subject here about movement like exercise and sport and the relation with mamsa dhatu vitiation and gaining weight.
Every tissue is created with the purpose of being beneficially used in the body. But if they are not used, then remains idle. These gives rise to Dosha imbalances, malfunctions, irregularities, diseases, and vitiations.
For example, when a person eats too much, excessive amount of ahara rasa is produced. Metabolic wisdom interprets this as thinking that manas knows best and decrees this person needs more meda dhatu because of busy lifestyle and heavy body works. Otherwise s/he doesn’t take such much amount of foods. So, with the help of bhuta agni it transforms ashtayi rasa into rakta and then excess mamsa dhatu produced, body keeps it as reserve.
But if person carries on a life style between the kitchen, television and bed and does not have enough physical activity like intensive sporting activities, workouts, weight lifting, athletics, or a busy life style including bodily activities in the extent of s/he has eaten, the excess meda dhatu will automatically be idle. The body puts it in fat storage and turns it into excess adipose and meda dhatu. This not also results with weight gaining, enlarged and degenerated physical appearance, but also important diseases and disorders like cysts, myomas, fibromas, fibrocystic changes in breast, uterine, congestions, breathing difficulties, cholesterol, blood pressure problems etc.
This is just as much of our houses with full of unused furniture, materials and clothes in wardrobes. We have liked them once, bought many, but use very less. The result is chaos at home, cluttered, excess dust, too much cleaning work, more ironing and so on.
This also indicates the violation of the famous Yama rule, Aparigraha. Everything that is more than we need leads to deterioration, less prana and spiritual development difficulties. For Chikitsa, a reducing Kapha Dosha protocol is quite needed, but more spiritual practices, yoga therapy, meditation, fasting, moderate and humble lifestyle and eating habits are necessary and beneficial in the long term.
Image:By Victovoi [Public domain], from Wikimedia Commons
