Śivasaṃhitā 3.36

Six flavors to eliminate, each with a precise physiological reason according to classical āyurveda. Sour (āmla) agitates bilious fire; dry (rūkṣa) increases vāta, disturbing prāṇa circulation; pungent (tīkṣṇa) inflames the subtle channels; salt retains fluids and densifies tissues; mustard excites the nervous system; bitter excessively cools the digestive agni. Together they create turbulence in the prānic field, preventing the stillness needed for deep kumbhaka.

Āmla (sour), rūkṣa (dry, rough), tīkṣṇa (sharp, pungent), lavaṇa (salty), sārṣapa (mustard, literally «of mustard») and kaṭu (bitter, pungent) are precise terms from the āyurvedic pharmacopoeia. The category of rasa (taste) in āyurveda is not merely gustatory: each taste carries energetic qualities that directly affect the doṣas and, through them, the condition of the nāḍīs.

This dietary list finds echo in virtually all medieval haṭhayogic texts. The Haṭhapradīpikā (I.62) recommends laghu (light) and snigdha (unctuous) foods for the yogin — direct opposites of those prohibited here. The continuity between texts evidences an oral tradition of yogic dietetics that the Śivasaṃhitā formalizes with Śaiva authority.