Ayurveda Codex›Srotas›Udakavaha

Last verified: April 2026

Udakavaha Srotas

उदकवह श्रोतस् — Udaka (water) + Vaha (carrying) + Srotas (channel)

Udakavaha Srotas are the water-metabolising channels — regulating the intake, distribution, and excretion of fluids throughout the body. Charaka Samhita documents these channels as governing not just drinking water but all the fluid dynamics of the body including intracellular and extracellular fluid balance.

Charaka Samhita, Vimanasthana 5.10
Talu kloma moola Udakavaha Srotasam — The palate and the Kloma are the roots of the Udakavaha channels. When these channels are impaired: Atipravritta produces excessive urination; Sanga produces urinary obstruction and oedema; Siragranthi produces localised fluid accumulation.

Classical documentation

Roots: Talu (palate) and Kloma (pancreas — the classical term for the structure near the liver governing fluid metabolism)

Primary Dosha: Pitta and Kapha — Pitta provides the metabolic fire that processes water; Kapha's watery quality is regulated through these channels

Classical conditions: Trishna (excessive thirst), Shotha (oedema — accumulation of fluid in wrong channels), Mutraghata (urinary retention), Shosha (dryness from water channel depletion)

How these channels are impaired

Suppression of thirst; drinking impure water; excessive alcohol; dehydration from sweating without rehydration; eating excessively dry or astringent foods

Classical significance

Udakavaha Srotas maps to fluid regulation — lymphatics, interstitial fluid channels, and the hormonal regulation of fluid balance (antidiuretic hormone, aldosterone). The classical root in the Kloma (pancreas) reflects the classical observation that blood sugar regulation is inseparable from fluid regulation — diabetic thirst (Trishna in Prameha/Madhumeha) is the most classical Udakavaha symptom.

Primary herbs for this Srotas
Punarnava (primary Shotha/oedema herb), Gokshura (urinary channels), Ushira (cooling excess fluid heat)
The four types of Srotas impairment
Charaka Samhita documents four ways any Srotas can be impaired: Atipravritta (excessive flow — too much output); Sanga (obstruction — blockage stopping normal flow); Vimarga Gamana (flow in wrong direction — reflux, bleeding upward, etc.); Siragranthi (knotting/constriction — localised channel narrowing). These four apply to every Srotas — the specific disease produced depends on which channel is impaired and in which of these four ways.