Here is a list of most common biocharacteristics recognized across various medical traditions that use Biocharacteristics theory (Ayurveda, Unani Tibb, Greek Medicine, Chinese Medicine):

Primary Biocharacteristics

Each biocharacteristic below can be in one of these states:

• Deficient / Excess

  Ayurveda:

  • Excess of substance is vruddhi
  • Excess of activity is ati-pravrutti.
  • Deficiency of substance is kshaya.
  • Deficiency of activity is Low Agni

  Chinese Medicine: Deficiency of substance can be equated to blood deficiency. Deficiency of activity to Qui deficiency.
  - Example: Underweight is a deficiency of substance. Hyperactive an excess of activity.
• Corrupted (Vitiated)

  Ayurveda: Vyaput
  Chinese Medicine:: Rebellious Qi
  - Example: ADHD is a corruption of nervous system activity
• Generally, these could refer to a change in either substance or function (activity).

6 Cardinal Biocharacteristics

• Moisture (Dry / Wet)

  In biocharacteristics systems, moisture is not merely water but a synonym for nourishment, such as the nourishment found in health blood plasma.

  Ayurveda: Dry / Oily
  Chinese Medicine: May be called 'damp' or 'misting'.

• Temperature (Hot / Cold)
• Tension (Tense or Stimulated / Lax)

  Ayurveda: Classified under Mobile

Secondary Biocharacteristics

These are called secondary because, treatment-wise, they are subclasses of the cardinal biocharacteristics above.

• Weight (Light / Heavy)
• Penetration (Sharp / Dull)

  Ayurveda: Sharp is synonymous with Fast. Dull is synonymous with Slow
• Viscosity (Thin / Thick or Congealed)

  Ayurveda: Dense / Liquid
  - i.e. Gallbladder sludge, mucus
• Continuity (Discontinuity / Intact)

  Ayurveda: Classified as Rough / Smooth. Rough also includes sira-granthi (distension). Smooth is sometimes translated as slimy (mucus) but a better term for this is Coated.
  - i.e. Rough, degenerated, distended, or broken (Fibrosis, Broken Bone, Kidney failure, etc)
• Solvency (Dissolved / Precipitated)

  Ayurveda: Hard / Soft
  - i.e. Kidney stone
• Mobility (Mobile / Stagnant)

  Ayurveda: Stagnant could be stable or slow. Slow is stagnancy due to obstruction. Stable is stagnancy due to hypotonic muscle, or low energy.
  - Stagnant could also imply obstruction
• Manifestation (Subtle / Gross)

  Ayurveda: Synonymous with Size (Small / Large)
• Opacity / Coating (Clear / Coated, Cloudy, Slimy or Sticky)
• Processed (Cooked / Raw)

  Ayurveda: Classified under Toxicity (Ama) in Ayurveda.
• Toxicity (Pure / Toxic)

  Ayurveda: Ama
• Regularity (Regular / Irregular)

  Ayurveda: Irregularity is classified as Mobile in Ayurveda.
• Duration (Chronic / Acute)
• Infection / Parasite

Note the measurement of Strength (Strong / Weak) and levels of Function (High / Low) are synonymous with Deficiency / Excess.

Mutagens, Doshas, Temperaments

Pathogenic processes that change your body are sometimes used in a biocharacteristic manner:

• Doshas (in Ayurveda) - Vata, Pitta, Kapha, Blood (Sri Lankan Ayurveda)
• Temperaments (in Greek Medicine) - Phlegmatic, Sanguine, Choleric, Melancholy
• Organs (in Chinese Medicine) - Liver, Gallbladder, Spleen, Stomach, Heart, Small Intestine, Lung, Colon, Kidney, Bladder, etc.

See more on Mutagens, Doshas, Temperaments.

Tastes & Elements

Classical medicine also used tastes and the elements in a biocharacteristic manner.

• Tastes - Sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter, astringent
  • Subtastes - Acrid, aromatic, bland
• Elements - Earth, Water, Fire, Air, Ether, Metal, Wood

Location

The biocharacteristic is not increased abstractly but in a location. Examples of locations include:

• Systemically
• In tissues - Blood, lymph, phlegm, muscle, fat, bone, skin, nerve, etc
  • Ayurveda Dhatus, Ojas, Tejas, Prana
• In an organ or organ function - Liver, Kidney, Heart, Stomach, Intestines, etc
  • TCM also includes: Yin, Yang, Qi, Essence, Blood, Phlegm, Triple Burner etc.
  • Ayurveda also includes: Agni
• In a system or system function (Respiratory, Circulatory, Digestive, etc).
  • Ayurveda: Srotamsi - Energy, Digestion, Water, Above Dhatus, Bowels, Urine, Sweat, Menses, Lactation, Mind

Pathogenesis in Biocharacteristics Medicine How the Biocharacteristic Theory of Medicine Works