Agni Explained

The Digestive Fire

Digestion in Ayurveda is regarded as the key to health. Ayurveda offers an elaborate and detailed description of the body’s metabolic functions and their relationship to organ and tissue formation. It confirms the importance of efficient food conversion to supply the nutrients which enable each dhatu to perform its function.

If metabolic conversion of food is incomplete, it can produce sluggishness or low energy. The undigested food material also becomes the source of degenerative diseases.

Agni regulates appetite and a strong appetite. The purpose of a good appetite is to signal that the digestive system is ready for new food intake.

An appetite that is consistently variable, weak or excessive, or one that experiences abnormal cravings, indicates that something is wrong with the digestive agni.

Appetite is intended to guide us to eat what we need in suitable quantities and at those times when the body can derive optimum benefit from it. Eating when there is no hunger signal burdens digestion.

Waiting for the hunger signal to appear before eating enables the agni to regain its strength to digest what has already been eaten and to neutralise (digest) ama which has formed.