20 Gunas - qualities

The 20 ‘Gunas’ or qualities and traits, are what Ayurveda describes all matter to possess.

From substances to experiences to imbalances in dosha, these gunas give you a framework to understand and verbalize them and thereby also helps you cater to your needs more clearly.

The gunas are organized into the following 10 pairs of opposites:

Heavy – Guru    Light – Lagna 

Cold – Sita          Hot –Usna 

Slow/dull-Manda     Sharp – Tiksna 

Oily – Snegdha           Dry –Rusksa 

Smooth – Slasksna     Rough – Khara 

Dense - Sandra     Liquid – Drava 

Soft – Mrudu     Hard – Kathina 

Stable/Static – Sthira    Unstable/Mobile – Cal 

Cloudy/Sticky – Picchila      Clear – Visada 

Gross – Stula                Subtle -Suksma