Taste

In Ayurveda, there are six tastes: sweet (madhura in Sanskrit), sour (amla), salty (laana), pungent (katu), bitter (tikta), and astringent (kasaya). Each is believed to consist of a combination of two of the five elements (earth, water, fire, air, and ether) and through them to act on the body in specific ways. Eating properly for health in the Ayurveda view involves balancing tastes, eating a slightly sweet dish to balance a sour or tart one, and so on.