Winter Tips—changing tastes as the seasons change
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Photo by Sadananda
Along with dinacharya, daily routines, ritucharya or seasonal routines are key components of Ayurvedic selfcare. In both daily and seasonal routines, the Ayurvedic texts advise proper use of the six tastes. (If you’re new to Ayurveda, and not familiar with the six tastes, please watch our video Ayurveda Basics 2: The Six Tastes https://youtu.be/OExS0B7GRhc)
In dinacharya, we make use of the tastes most appropriate for our prakriti or body type, while in ritucharya, we adjust the tastes in our diet for the changing seasons.
Whereas we are accustomed to a four seasons model, the Ayurvedic texts consider six seasons, each made up of two lunar months. Since there are six seasons on this model, each one of them relates to one of the six tastes.
We’re now in Hemanta, the cold season, which just started with the new moon, a couple of days ago. Hemanta is paired with Shishira, the season of snow, to make up the four-month winter season. So, between now and March, we’ll be dealing with winter routines. This is the time of year when people have the maximum strength and their digestion is also at its strongest.
The sweet taste is predominant in Hemanta. It’s a time when the elements of earth and water predominate. Pitta dosha, which has been building up throughout the hot time of year, finally calms down, but vata tends to get disturbed. This is a time when it’s important to focus on the vata-soothing tastes, sweet, sour and salty. As we mentioned in our previous piece, we can also increase our oil intake at this time. Switch from cooling drinks to warm beverages like tulsi tea, fresh ginger tea, lemon balm tea and saffron milk. You can make kichari with added sweet potatoes or winter squash for the sweet taste, have mung dal seasoned with lemon for a touch of sourness, enjoy fruit chutneys, with their sweet and sour tastes. Have desserts such as carrot halvah, sweet potato khir and almond and rice dessert with pomegranate seeds. Since wheat is recommended at this time, bake an apple pie or apple crumble or celebrate with a warming lasagna.
In the second half of winter, Shishira, the snowy season, the bitter taste becomes predominant. Instead of the darkening days of Hemanta, we see the days lengthening in the Northern hemisphere, as the sun embarks on its northerly journey. It’s time to double down on our heavier winter diet with sweet, sour and salty tastes. This is the time to relish winter citrus fruits like orange, blood orange, kumquat, clementine and tangerine, all of which offer a blend of sweet and sour tastes ideal for the season, along with immune-boosting vitamin C. Make nurturing root vegetable soups with beets and carrots, both rich in the sweet taste. Use warming herbs and spices like bay leaves, garlic, rosemary and cinnamon.
In shishira, we also want to add in some special foods for this season. Sesame is recommended at this time of year, so it’s a good time to enjoy sesame treats. Ayurveda highly recommends garlic as a winter tonic—in fact there is a whole chapter in one of the texts, Kashyapa Samhita, explaining how to do a special rejuvenative practice that involves eating huge amounts of garlic and sipping medicinal wines. In our current lifestyles, I don’t recommend garlic in massive amounts, but it’s definitely a good winter food. You could add garlic-ginger paste as a seasoning or try some garlic chutney. If you have winter aches and pains or are not sleeping well, try garlic milk at bedtime. Mix 1 cup milk, ¼ cup water and 1 clove chopped garlic, and boil down to 1 cup.
And ginger, known as the universal medicine, is also a great thing to increase in the depths of winter. Start your day with a warming cup of ginger tea or tulsi-ginger tea.
While many of us may dislike winter or prefer other seasons that are warmer, each season has its own beauty and unique enjoyments. I hope these tips help you have a great winter!
Alakananda Ma M.B., B.S. (Lond.) is an Ayurvedic Doctor (NAMA) and graduate of a top London medical school. She is co-founder of Alandi Ayurveda Clinic and Alandi Ayurveda Gurukula in Boulder Colorado, as well as a spiritual mother, teacher, flower essence maker and storyteller. Alakananda is a well known and highly respected practitioner in the Ayurveda community both nationally and internationally.
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