Agni

Agni is the fire principle responsible for all transformation in the body and mind. In Ayurveda, agni primarily refers to digestive fire - the capacity to break down food and absorb nutrients. But agni operates at every level: cellular metabolism, sensory perception, and mental processing all depend on agni.

When agni is strong and balanced, digestion is efficient, immunity is robust, and the mind is clear. When agni is weak or disturbed, food is incompletely digested, creating ama (toxins), and vitality declines.

The state of one’s agni is considered the root of health or disease. Ayurvedic treatment almost always includes measures to protect and strengthen agni.

There are 13 types of agni described in the classical texts: one main digestive fire (jatharagni), five elemental fires (bhutagnis), and seven tissue fires (dhatvagnis).