Pachaka Pitta

The pitta present in the stomach and small intestine is called pachaka pitta. The Sanskrit word pachaka comes from the root pach, which means to digest, absorb, and assimilate. It includes hydrochloric acid, digestive enzymes, and pepsin. The intestinal digestive juice secreted from the villi of the small intestine is also pachaka pitta. Its governing element is fire, and it is the most important of the five pitta subtypes.

Pachaka pitta in the stomach digests starch, glucose, and fructose. The initial digestion of protein also begins here through enzymatic actions. Fruits, composed of fructose, are easily digested and leave the stomach within one hour. The digestion of starch begins with saliva in the mouth. Some precursors of pachaka pitta are present in the saliva (salivary amylase or ptyalin) and make the saliva acidic.

The pachaka pitta in the stomach is a part of jathara agni—the central gastric fire. When the gastric fire is high and there is increased secretion of hydrochloric acid and digestive enzymes, the stomach becomes grouchy and creates the sensation of hunger. Jathara agni is composed of pachaka pitta, prana vayu, samana vayu, and kledaka kapha.

Pachaka pitta governs digestion in the stomach within the first two hours after the ingestion of food. Then the pyloric valve opens and food passes into the duodenum, the upper part of the small intestine. The pachaka pitta in the stomach and the pachaka pitta in the small intestine work together.

The entire small intestine is divided into three parts: the duodenum (upper), the jejunum (middle), and the ileum (lower). The ileum opens into the cecum through the ileocecal valve. Inside the small intestine there are tiny protuberances called villi that move in waves. Through this movement, food particles pass through the villi. When they contact the villi, samana vayu helps to secrete pachaka pitta, which enters into the particles of food. The hot, sharp, and penetrating qualities of pachaka pitta break down the food so that the blood vessels of the villi can absorb the nutrients.

The end products of digested foodstuff are absorbed through the small capillaries, enter the blood vessels, and are sent to the general circulation. This transformation of foodstuff into the essence of food is called ahara rasa—chyle, the nutrient precursor or primordial foodstuff.