Ayurveda

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        Symptoms described in the Samhithas deal with pathological conditions and diseases, including diabetes mellitus, pulmonary tuberculosis, malignant growths, leprosy, gangrene, erysipelas, jaundice, diptheria, tetanus, calculi, paralysis, insanity, epilepsy, epidemic diseases, bites of poisonous snakes and animals and hydrophobia. Rational and apparently efficacious surgery is described for many conditions including complicated fractures and dislocation, piles, fistulae and sinuses, tumours, carbuncles, malignant growths, cataract, complicated ophthalmic operations, strangulated hernia, urinary stones causing uremia, impacted gall stones, intestinal perforations and protrusions of the viscera, accidental injuries, amputations of the major limbs, tonsillitis, bone abscess and abscess of internal organs, serious head injuries with exudation of brain matter, and major obstetric operations including removal of the foetus. Interestingly even plastic surgery involving grafting of skin and muscular tissues from surrounding areas and/or other parts of the body was also discussed to help people whose noses and ears were removed for penal reasons, an apparently common practice of that period.

There are eight specialised branches of Ayurveda, called the chikitsas (the treatments), as follows:

A. KAAYA CHIKITSA, B. BAALA CHIKITSA, C. GRAHA CHIKITSA,

D. SHALAKYA OR URDHWANGA CHIKITSA, E. SHALYA CHIKITSA

F. VISHA CHIKITSA, G. JARA CHIKITSA, H. VAAJIKARA CHIKITSA

THE PHILOSOPHICAL AND THEORETICAL BASIS OF AYURVEDA

A. THE PANCHAMAHABHOOTHAS, B. THRIDOSHA, THE HUMORAL THEORY OF AYURVEDA, C. THE SAPTADHATHUS

        There are over 70 books that provide about 8,000 recipes of Ayurvedic medicines. The medicines are in the form of arka (distillates), aasava and arista (fermented products), avaleha (linctus), bhasma (incinerated matter), choorna (powder), ghritha (in ghee), tailas (in oil), vati and gutika (tablets and pills) and kwatha and kashaya (decoctions). In recent times, Ayurvedic medicines are also being dispensed as capsules or even injections, which naturally attracted a considerable criticism.

        Dravya is a substance, the drug, and guna is its attribute or property. Virya is the drug’s potency, vipaka the taste, and karma its action. Dravyaguna is that aspect of Ayurveda which describes the sources and properties of substances used as food and medicine, and is equivalent to materia medica. The materia medica of Ayurveda is extensive and utilises substances of animal, vegetable and mineral origin. The Ayurvedic texts make it abundantly clear that the drugs included had each been selected after careful clinical experiments and long experience. The specific properties like tastes, assimilability, potency and physiological actions are described in almost all cases.

        These experiments were naturally conducted mainly with materials available to the pioneers in their own environment, which explained the strong preference shown by classical Ayurveda for indigenous plant remedies. A second reason for this preference was that the plants being composed of all the five elements (the panchamahabhoothas) had a natural flexibility to a wider range of application.

        In Charaka samhitha, 341 drugs from plants, 177 drugs from animals and 64 from minerals and metals were discussed. The corresponding numbers, for Sushruta samhitha are 395, 57 and 64, respectively. The animal products are found less and less in the later works, due to the prevalence of Buddhistic and Jainistic philosophies. Plants provided the natural and traditional drugs for most oral and non-oral medication. A clear understanding of their properties had led to a rational classification into different groups according to their therapeutic action.

PRINCIPLES OF TREATMENT IN AYURVEDA

1.FOOD IS MEDICINE, 2.THE PREVENTION OF DISEASE, 3.IMMUNOENHANCING IN AYURVEDA

STRATEGIES OF AYURVEDIC TREATMENT

Ayurveda deals with the disease and health management through the following strategies:

a) Chikitsa dhatu satmyartha: to bring about balance in tissues;

b) Swabhaavoparma: to augment the body’s efforts to ward of disease, through fasting, warm water, rest;

c) Nidana parivarjana: avoidance of causative factors;

d) Chikitsa rukpratikriya: treatment that is antagonistic to disease;

e) Saamanya and Vishesha Siddhantha: treatment by the principle of similarity and dissimilarity, of the body, food, medicine, etc.;

f) Satvavajaya, Aatmanigraha: by the control of body and mind;

g) Chayaeva jayeddosha: to treat at the initial stage of the disorder; and

h) Samprapti vighatana: to disrupt pathogenesis.

DIAGNOSIS BY ROGA PAREEKSHA AND ROGI PAREEKSHA

The Ayurvedic physician examines (pareeksha) the patient (rogi) and the disease (roga), to obtain information regarding dushya (body tissues), dosha (humours), desha (state of the body), bala (severity of the disease), kaala (time of the disease), anala (strength of digestion and metabolism), prakriti (constitution of the patient), vaaya (age of the patient), satva (psychological condition), saathmya (life style of the patient) and aahara (dietary habits).

The examination of the patient constitutes the following aspects: nadi (pulse), mootra (urine), pureesha or mala (faeces), jihwa (tongue) and netra (eye) through shabda (auscultation, sound response), sparsha (tactile stimulation) and aakriti (the appearance and feel of different parts of the body).