It eliminates some of the mahabhutas which are in excess and takes some of the mahabhutas which are in storage. This shortage of mahabhutas is replenished through the ingredients of herbs, food, drinks, etc. Vata is dry, cold, light, mobile, subtle, hard, rough, changeable and clear. It is the most powerful of the doshas, being the life-force itself, the strongest to create disease. It governs all movement, and carries both Pitta and Kapha.
Pitta is hot, light, fluid, subtle, sharp, malodorous, soft and clear.
It governs heat, temperature and all chemical reactions. Kapha is cold, wet, heavy, slow, dull, static, smooth, dense and cloudy. It maintains substance, weight and coherence in the body. Individual constitution is acquired at birth and remains constant through life. Through Ayurvedic books, teachers, and courses, one is able to determine one's individual constitution and thereby knowing which direction to take for self-diagnosis purposes.