These 13 Natural Urges should not be Suppressed

The word ‘vegadharan’ has two components Vega + Dharan. Vega means natural urge & Dharan is suppression,thus Vegadharan means suppression of natural urges.

The human body is a wonderful complex system which has a number of ways to balance or eliminate the materials which could be harmful to the body. In order to facilitate the elimination of these substances, the body is equipped with urges that appear naturally. This process is timely carried out by body at regular intervals & controlled by nervous system, suppression of which not only stops the elimination of waste products but also brings strain and disorders of nervous system causing many diseases. Suppression of natural urges causes vitiation of the humors (doshas) of the body mainly vata-dosha and further cause accumulation of toxins (Ama) in the body. This develops in those who have regular habit of suppressing urges over long period and not instantly.

Ayurveda explains that there are different natural urges exerted by human body,and for well-being of the human body some urges are to be suppressed and the rest should never be suppressed. Granthakaras describes thirteen urges which should never be suppressed( Adharniya vegas).

Ashtang hriday and Charak both describe 13 non suppressible urges but there is a slight difference that Acharya Charak has explained ‘Udgara vega’(urge to belch) instead of ‘kasa vega’(urge to cough).

Know moe about these 13 non suppressible urges and the consequent implications that may arise from suppressing them.

• 1] Vata vega (Urge of passing flatus) – Vata vega refers to Apan vayu (adhovata) which is related to lower abdomen. Suppression of urge of flatus causes abdominal tumor,udavarta (painful upward movement of vayu in abdomen),debility,obstruction to pass flatus,faeces,and urine,diminished or loss of vision,and heart diseases.
• 2] Purish vega (Urge of faeces) – Purish vegavrodha gives rise to cramps in calf muscles,headache,cutting pain in rectum(fissure in ano),upward movement of air in abdomen,faecal vomitting,opperession in heart region.
• 3] Mutra vega (Urge of urine ) – Urge of urine when controlled causes urinary calculi,cutting pain all over the body, pain in urinary bladder,penis & groin.
• 4] Kshavathu vega (Urge to sneeze) –Suppression of sneezing results in headache, debility of the sensory organs, neck stiffness, & facial paralysis.
• 5] Trushna vega (Urge of thirst) – Regular controlling thirst or delaying drinking of water causes emaciation, generalised debility, deafening,delusion, giddiness and heart diseases.
• 6] Kshudha vega (Urge for hunger) –Suppression of hunger urge leads to splitting pain all over the body,aversion towards food, exhaustion, emaciation, pain in abdomen, and giddiness.
• 7] Nidra vega (Urge to sleep) – Timely sleep is very necessary for well-being of our body,staying awake for long nights very often causes delusion, heaviness of head, eyes, laziness, yawning, and pain all over the body.
• 8] Kasa vega (Coughing urge) – Suppression of cough causes in its increase and further leads to dyspnoea, anorexia(loss of appetite), heart disease, emaciation, and hiccups.
• 9] Shramashwas vega (Urge to breathe heavily on exertion) – Suppressing heavy breathing after exertion leads to ‘gulma’(abdominal tumor), heart disease, and delusions.
• 10] Jrumbha vega (Urge to yawn) – To suppress a yawn means to indirectly vitiate vata dosha by inhibiting its gati (flow) which is almost similar to that in case of sneezing.It thus produces all the symptoms similar to that of suppressing sneeze.
• 11] Ashru vega (Urge to cry) – Ashru means tears,controlling weeping can cause; running in the nose,pain in eyes, head & heart, stiffening of neck, anorexia, giddiness,and gulma.
• 12] Chardi vega (Urge to vomit) – Visarpa(herpes), rashes, various skin diseases, irritation of eyes,itching, fever, anaemia, cough,dyspnoea, nausea, discolored patches on face, & oedema.
• 13] Shukra vega (Urge to discharge seminal fluid) – suppression of urge to void semen often results in its increased flow, swelling and pain at genitals, fever, pain in heart region,and all over the body, obstruction in micturation(passing of urine), enlargement of scrotum, seminal calculi and impotence.

Acharya Charak has explained ‘Udgara vega’(urge to belch) instead of kasa vega. Suppression of Udgara vega causes hiccup, dyspnoea, aversion towards food, tremors, heaviness or gripping pain in chest & heart region.

In today's cultured & civilized world sneezing, coughing, yawning, passing flatulence, crying etc. are considered as uncultured and non civilized manners. But these urges when constantly and repeatedly suppressed lead to serious disorders. So it is very important to respond to these urges in time, do not ignore when the next nature call comes, and attend to it on priority. This health promoting and sickness preventing guidance is emphasized in Ayurveda.

Although it is very true that one should never control a non-suppressible urge, but it is also equally important not to forcibly initiate an urge,as it can create an imbalance in functioning of vata dosha causing related diseases.