What happens when our teas get cold — and what the classic Ayurvedic texts really say about hot days
Summer is not a calm season in Ayurveda. It is a time of intensity. The Charaka Samhita, one of the oldest surviving medical works in the world, describes the summer months — Grishma Ritu — as a phase in which the sun dries out the body, weakens the digestive fire, and the Pitta dosha, the principle of fire and water, tends towards dominance. What manifests externally as heat is reflected internally as exhaustion, irritability, and a tendency towards inflammation.
This does not mean that summer must be avoided. It means that it wants to be understood. Those who know the logic of Ayurveda — that like increases like and opposites balance — have a clear principle at hand: in summer, cooling, moisturizing, and light. Not because it sounds pleasant, but because it is physiologically effective.
The Ayurvedic Foundation
Understanding Pitta before regulating it
Pitta governs transformation — in the body, digestion, metabolism, body temperature. In summer, Pitta increases in the environment and thus inevitably in us. The classical texts precisely describe the signs of elevated Pitta: skin redness, heartburn, burning eyes, sleep disturbances, an irritability that intensifies with the afternoon heat.
"Always use things that create a balance between your constitution and the season; this way, you maintain the lightness of your body."
— Ashtanga Samgraha
This sentence summarizes the entire Ayurvedic seasonal doctrine, Ritucharya, in a single principle. It is not about rigid rules, but about adaptation: what the body needs in summer is fundamentally different from what was good for it in winter.
The Ashtanga Hridayam, the second great classical compendium of Ayurveda, specifies this for summer: sweet, cooling, fluid-rich food; reduction of pungent, salty, and sour flavors; physical activity only in the early morning hours; sleep in cool, shady rooms. Not a recipe for inactivity, but for intelligence in dealing with the season.
Nutrition in Summer
Light, cool, moist — the three principles
Agni, the digestive fire, is naturally weaker in summer than in winter. The body directs energy to temperature regulation instead of digestion — a biologically sensible compromise that is often ignored in everyday life when one continues to cook heavy winter meals out of habit.
Ayurveda recommends instead: fresh fruit, green vegetables with bitter and astringent tastes (arugula, endive, zucchini, broccoli), coconut products, steamed dishes instead of fried foods. Sweet taste — not in the form of refined sugar, but ripe fruits, rice, ghee — reduces Pitta and nourishes exhausted tissues. Pungent, sour, and salty, on the other hand, fuel what is already burning.
When it comes to spices, it's worth looking beyond the obvious: coriander, fennel, and cardamom — all three cooling in their post-digestive effect — are ideal summer spices. Ginger, although pungent in taste, also has a cooling deep effect, called Viraya, in small amounts.
"Great cold injures Agni — but heat exhausts Ojas."
— Charaka Samhita, Sutrasthana 21
Ice-cold drinks, though tempting, are explicitly not recommended in classical Ayurveda: they abruptly suppress the already weakened digestive fire and lead to Ama, unprocessed metabolic waste products. The alternative is cool, not ice-cold water — or, even better, a well-chosen herbal tea.
Tea Reimagined
Herba Verda and Ashwa Noir as Iced Tea
Here lies one of the most elegant bridges between Ayurvedic tradition and modern everyday life: herbal tea, cold-brewed or enjoyed at room temperature after cooling, combines the effect of the plant ingredients with the Ayurvedic recommendation for cooling, slightly bitter drinks in summer.
Our Herba Verda — a green herbal blend — is particularly well suited as a cold infusion due to its fresh, slightly tart notes: the bitter substances support a sluggish summer digestion, and the essential oils of the herbs it contains have a calming effect on an overheated system. Ashwa Noir, darker and fuller in taste, develops a deep, rounded note when cold-brewed — ideal for the evening, when the day's heat subsides and the body wants to rest.
Herba Verda Iced Tea
Fresh & cooling · for 1 liter · 10 minutes + cooling time
Ingredients
- 3 heaped teaspoons āsmi Herba Verda
- 1 liter water (hot, approx. 80°C — not boiling, to keep bitter substances mild)
- 1 tablespoon honey or agave syrup (optional)
- ½ organic lime, thinly sliced
- 4–5 fresh mint leaves
- Ice cubes for serving
Preparation
- Place Herba Verda in a teapot or heat-resistant carafe and pour 80°C hot water over it.
- Steep for 7–8 minutes, then strain.
- Stir in honey while the tea is still warm.
- Let cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
- Serve with lime slices and mint in tall glasses. Ice cubes as desired.
Ayurvedic Note
Honey instead of sugar: In Ayurveda, honey at room temperature is considered slightly warming-drying, but here it is used only in small amounts to enhance sweetness without increasing Pitta. If you are sensitive to sweetness, omit it — the tea is good even without it.
Ashwa Noir Cold Brew
Deep & aromatic · for 750 ml · 8 hours steeping time (overnight)
Ingredients
- 3 teaspoons āsmi Ashwa Noir
- 750 ml cold water (room temperature or slightly chilled)
- 1 slice fresh ginger (approx. 2 mm — only if Agni is weak, omit if highly sensitive to heat)
- 1 cardamom pod, lightly crushed
- Splash of rose water for serving (optional — roses cool Pitta directly)
Preparation
- Place Ashwa Noir, ginger, and cardamom in a carafe or sealable jar.
- Pour cold water over it, cover, and let steep overnight (8–12 hours) in the refrigerator.
- Strain and serve cold immediately — in a glass with a splash of rose water.
Ayurvedic Note
Cold brew is not a modern invention, but corresponds to the Ayurvedic principle of Sheeta Kashaya — the cold herbal infusion, described in the Ashtanga Hridayam as a gentle extraction method for certain plants. Deep aromas, gentle effect, no Agni shock.
External Care
What skin really needs in summer
The classical texts clearly distinguish between internal and external care in summer. The Ashtanga Hridayam explicitly recommends coconut oil for Abhyanga in the summer chapter instead of the warming sesame oil of winter — a detail often neglected in modern Ayurvedic presentations. Coconut oil has Sheeta Virya, cooling potency, and is particularly suitable for daily self-massage in the heat.
Almond oil ideally complements this: it is rich in vitamin E and unsaturated fatty acids, absorbs quickly, and forms a light protective film over skin stressed by sun, chlorine, and air conditioning. Those who use āsmi body oils after a long summer day are doing exactly what the classical texts recommend for the evening care routine — Sandhya Abhyanga: balancing moisture loss, calming the nervous system, preparing for the transition into the night.
Lifestyle
Everyday life in harmony with Grishma Ritu
Summer doesn't demand dramatic changes, just conscious adjustments. Get up early before the heat of the day sets in. Schedule sports and intense physical activity for the morning hours. Use the midday hours — Pitta time par excellence — for rest, not for high performance. In the evening, when the heat subsides, get moving again.
Sandalwood and roses, both described in Ayurvedic Materia Medica as Pitta-reducing, can accompany the day as external application (spray, oil) or in tea. Lively-dynamic sports like Ashtanga Yoga or intensive interval training heat up — calm Hatha Yoga, swimming, or walks in the shade, on the other hand, balance.
"In summer, moderation is not weakness, but the wisest form of strength."
— paraphrased from Charaka Samhita, Sutrasthana 6
Ayurveda teaches us in summer perhaps more than in any other season: that the body is not a machine that can be constantly run at peak performance, but a system that works with the rhythms of nature — and finds its best state in this harmony.
Teas & Body Oils for Summer
Herba Verda, Ashwa Noir and our body oils with almond and coconut — developed for this season. Ayurveda from Kerala, made for everyday life in Germany.
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