Agni and Ama

The concept of digestive fire or agni, is of central importance in Ayurveda, in fact, the strength of agni in the body is among the most critical factors in determining overall health.

The concept of digestive fire or agni, is of central importance in Ayurveda, in fact, the strength of agni in the body is among the most critical factors in determining overall health. By contrast, ama is a toxic substance causing disease that forms as a result of impaired agni and that, in turn, destroys agni. Everything which we take in must be digested, from food and beverages to knowledge, information and all the stimuli in the environment. Even conversations, whether pleasant or unpleasant, need to be processed and find a place to be stored and assimilated in our bodies and minds, everything coming from contacts on social media, texts, etc., need to find a storehouse in the brain, even if it is put in the “delete” bin.  Negative emotions can aggravate the fire of the mind, which in turn vitiates our digestive fire, as both are interwoven. All the food we eat should be fully digested, but sometimes due to external negative influences (e.g. stress, strain, adverse weather, inappropriate food and habits) not all the food we eat is fully digested. Because of this, that part of food not completely digested cannot be identified as either nutrients or waste products, therefore it is neither absorbed nor expelled out. This half digested un-metabolised food product circulates in the body as toxins called ama.