Category: Ayurveda
Hi Beautiful and Peaceful Souls,
The time when I decided to read ancient texts, the biggest problem was, where should I start from? I was reading randomly and this left me with great confusion. Then I decided to make a chart of ancient texts available at present. I have shared this chart in my blog (https://thepureknowledge.blogspot.com/2020/05/a-classification-and-elaboration-of.html). This chart really helped me to understand the basics of each ancient text and also helped to choose which texts should I read based on my intellect. So keeping this in mind, I decided to write down the details of Ashtanga Hridyam. So that, in future, whenever I share any information from Ashtanga Hridyam you should be aware of what am I talking about. Although, I have given a very brief introduction of Ashtanga Hridyam in my blog (https://thepureknowledge.blogspot.com/2020/07/ayurveda-protector-and-healer-of-human.html). Now, we will discuss it in detail. So, let's start.....
INTRODUCTION
Ashtanga Hridyam, "the essence of all eight branches of Ayurveda" is one of the primary root text of Ayurveda. Ancient literature of Ayurveda is in the form of Brihattrayi (3 major treatises of Ayurveda) and Laghutrayi (3 minor treatises of Ayurveda) and their commentaries. Commentaries are always helpful for better understanding of complex concepts described in ancient texts. Ashtanga Hridyam has the single honor of having highest number of commentaries than any other Ayurveda treatises. Though about 30 commentaries are known (3), most of them are either lost, available partly or remain in manuscripts form in various libraries of India. Only 6 of them are available in print, one complete and remaining in parts. The famous commentaries are Arunadatta's Sarvangasundara (Sanskrit), Chandranandana's Padarthguna Chandrika (Sanskrit) and Hemadaris's Ayurveda Rasayana (Sanskrit). The only commentary available in full and in print form is Sarvangasundara by Arunadatta. Sanketmanjri is also a commentary on Ashtanga Hridyam and a full manuscript is available. It is written by Mr. Damodar Ranade and remained unnoticed in the history of Ayurveda. Less contributions of this commentary in field of a Ayurveda may have lead to ignorance of this text by scholars of Ayurveda.
Charak, Sushruta Samhita and Ashtanga Hridyam are collectively known as Brihattrayi. Among all Samhita, Ashtanga Hridyam have got a wide acceptance as 3rd major treatise. It is considered as the Heart or essence of Ashtanga Sangraha. Ashtanga Sangraha itself mentions that Ashtanga Sangraha as compilation of work based on Charak (Acharya Aitreya) and Sushruta Samhita (Lord Dhanvantri) (https://thepureknowledge.sharirablogspot.com/2020/07/ayurveda-protector-and-healer-of-human.html). So, Ashtanga Hridyam is a comprehensive text which consist of quotes of Charak, Sushruta Samhita and Asthanga Sangraha.
MAHARISHI VAGBHATA:
Maharishi Vagbhata composed both Ashtanga Sangraha and Asthanga Hridyam in Sanskrit. Though Ashtanga Hridyam has its own significance over Ashtanga Sangraha but it is less prose and poetic in nature. This makes it comprehensive, simple and easy to understand. Acharya Vagbhata was the son of Simhagupta and grand son of Vagbhata. He was born in Sindh. His father and grandfather were Ayurveda scholars. Somewhere, it is mentioned that, he was the disciple of Avlokita. But, others believed that he was disciple of acharya Charak. He was follower of Buddha dharma. Late. Rajiv Dixit ji, said that Vagbhata did inspection on each sutra of previous ayurvedic text (Charak Samhita) for many times. According to acharya Vagbhata, 85% of all diseases can be cured without any consultation with a physician and only 15% diseases require a prescription from medical doctor. Acharya Vagbhata along with acharya Sushruta (Father of Surgery and Plastic Surgery) and acharya Charak (a medical genius) are considered as "Trinity" of Ayurvedic knowledge, with Vagbhata placed after the other two. There are multiple people famous by the name of Vagbhata, but he is better known as Vagbhata 1 or Vridh Vagbhata.
He gave a message to the society that the Purusharthas (Dharma-moral values; Arth- economic values; Kama- pleasure, love and psychological values) can be attained only by sukhaya (young, free from all physical and mental disorders). So, people who wish to attain Purusarthas should obey the rules of Ayurveda with great respect. He also composed "Rasratan Samuchaya".
DESCRIPTION OF ASHTANGA HRIDYAM:
Ashtanga Hridyam contains about 7120 poetic verses. For the first time, sub types of Kapha Dosha were discussed in it along with vata and pitta doshas and their subtypes. It mainly focuses on Kayachikista, one of 8 branches of Ayurveda (https://thepureknowledge.blogspot.com/2020/07/ayurveda-protector-and-healer-of-human.html), along with other branches of Ayurveda. It has been translated into Tibbat and German language. It is divided into Sutra, Nidana, Sharira, Chikitsa, Kalpa and Uttara sthanas.
A. Sutrasthanam: Consists of 30 chapters that gives information on basic principles of Ayurveda, preventative measures for a healthy being. It classifies diet (on the basis of specific days and seasons), diseases, methods of treatment, personnel hygiene, surgical instruments and substances such as herbs, fruits, vegetables, meats etc, (Sutra).
B. Sharirsthanam: Consists of 6 chapters that gives information on embryology, anatomy, physiology, physical and psychological treatment of human body (Sharir).
References:
1.https://dharmakshethra.com/ancient-ayurveda-text-asthanga-hridayam/
2.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/313823272_A_CRITICAL_STUDY_OF_SANKETMANJARI_COMMENTARY_ON_ASHTANGA_HRIDAYAM_WSR_TO_SHARIRASTHANA/link/58a7e8e3a6fdcc0e078af620/download
3.http://www.ccras.nic.in/sites/default/files/viewpdf/jimh/BIIHM_1997/25%20to%2032.pdf
4.https://dharmakshethra.com/ancient-ayurveda-text-asthanga-hridayam/
5.https://hi.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%97%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%9F
6.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/256227780_Ashtang_Hridaya_Cover
7.Book: Ashtanghridyam -Dr. Brahmanand Tripathi
OTHER ACCOUNTS:
1.https://twitter.com/Sampoorn10?s=03
2.https://www.instagram.com/
3. https://twitter.com/explore
The time when I decided to read ancient texts, the biggest problem was, where should I start from? I was reading randomly and this left me with great confusion. Then I decided to make a chart of ancient texts available at present. I have shared this chart in my blog (https://thepureknowledge.blogspot.com/2020/05/a-classification-and-elaboration-of.html). This chart really helped me to understand the basics of each ancient text and also helped to choose which texts should I read based on my intellect. So keeping this in mind, I decided to write down the details of Ashtanga Hridyam. So that, in future, whenever I share any information from Ashtanga Hridyam you should be aware of what am I talking about. Although, I have given a very brief introduction of Ashtanga Hridyam in my blog (https://thepureknowledge.blogspot.com/2020/07/ayurveda-protector-and-healer-of-human.html). Now, we will discuss it in detail. So, let's start.....
INTRODUCTION
Ashtanga Hridyam, "the essence of all eight branches of Ayurveda" is one of the primary root text of Ayurveda. Ancient literature of Ayurveda is in the form of Brihattrayi (3 major treatises of Ayurveda) and Laghutrayi (3 minor treatises of Ayurveda) and their commentaries. Commentaries are always helpful for better understanding of complex concepts described in ancient texts. Ashtanga Hridyam has the single honor of having highest number of commentaries than any other Ayurveda treatises. Though about 30 commentaries are known (3), most of them are either lost, available partly or remain in manuscripts form in various libraries of India. Only 6 of them are available in print, one complete and remaining in parts. The famous commentaries are Arunadatta's Sarvangasundara (Sanskrit), Chandranandana's Padarthguna Chandrika (Sanskrit) and Hemadaris's Ayurveda Rasayana (Sanskrit). The only commentary available in full and in print form is Sarvangasundara by Arunadatta. Sanketmanjri is also a commentary on Ashtanga Hridyam and a full manuscript is available. It is written by Mr. Damodar Ranade and remained unnoticed in the history of Ayurveda. Less contributions of this commentary in field of a Ayurveda may have lead to ignorance of this text by scholars of Ayurveda.
Charak, Sushruta Samhita and Ashtanga Hridyam are collectively known as Brihattrayi. Among all Samhita, Ashtanga Hridyam have got a wide acceptance as 3rd major treatise. It is considered as the Heart or essence of Ashtanga Sangraha. Ashtanga Sangraha itself mentions that Ashtanga Sangraha as compilation of work based on Charak (Acharya Aitreya) and Sushruta Samhita (Lord Dhanvantri) (https://thepureknowledge.sharirablogspot.com/2020/07/ayurveda-protector-and-healer-of-human.html). So, Ashtanga Hridyam is a comprehensive text which consist of quotes of Charak, Sushruta Samhita and Asthanga Sangraha.
MAHARISHI VAGBHATA:
Maharishi Vagbhata composed both Ashtanga Sangraha and Asthanga Hridyam in Sanskrit. Though Ashtanga Hridyam has its own significance over Ashtanga Sangraha but it is less prose and poetic in nature. This makes it comprehensive, simple and easy to understand. Acharya Vagbhata was the son of Simhagupta and grand son of Vagbhata. He was born in Sindh. His father and grandfather were Ayurveda scholars. Somewhere, it is mentioned that, he was the disciple of Avlokita. But, others believed that he was disciple of acharya Charak. He was follower of Buddha dharma. Late. Rajiv Dixit ji, said that Vagbhata did inspection on each sutra of previous ayurvedic text (Charak Samhita) for many times. According to acharya Vagbhata, 85% of all diseases can be cured without any consultation with a physician and only 15% diseases require a prescription from medical doctor. Acharya Vagbhata along with acharya Sushruta (Father of Surgery and Plastic Surgery) and acharya Charak (a medical genius) are considered as "Trinity" of Ayurvedic knowledge, with Vagbhata placed after the other two. There are multiple people famous by the name of Vagbhata, but he is better known as Vagbhata 1 or Vridh Vagbhata.
He gave a message to the society that the Purusharthas (Dharma-moral values; Arth- economic values; Kama- pleasure, love and psychological values) can be attained only by sukhaya (young, free from all physical and mental disorders). So, people who wish to attain Purusarthas should obey the rules of Ayurveda with great respect. He also composed "Rasratan Samuchaya".
DESCRIPTION OF ASHTANGA HRIDYAM:
Ashtanga Hridyam contains about 7120 poetic verses. For the first time, sub types of Kapha Dosha were discussed in it along with vata and pitta doshas and their subtypes. It mainly focuses on Kayachikista, one of 8 branches of Ayurveda (https://thepureknowledge.blogspot.com/2020/07/ayurveda-protector-and-healer-of-human.html), along with other branches of Ayurveda. It has been translated into Tibbat and German language. It is divided into Sutra, Nidana, Sharira, Chikitsa, Kalpa and Uttara sthanas.
A. Sutrasthanam: Consists of 30 chapters that gives information on basic principles of Ayurveda, preventative measures for a healthy being. It classifies diet (on the basis of specific days and seasons), diseases, methods of treatment, personnel hygiene, surgical instruments and substances such as herbs, fruits, vegetables, meats etc, (Sutra).
B. Sharirsthanam: Consists of 6 chapters that gives information on embryology, anatomy, physiology, physical and psychological treatment of human body (Sharir).
C. Nidanasthanam: Consists of 16 chapters that gives information on preventive measures (Nidan) for fever, leprosy, germs diseases, erysipelas, stomach problems, diarrhea, epilepsy etc,.
D. Chikitsasthanam: Consists of 22 chapters providing information on treatment (Chikitsa) of various diseases.
E. Kalpasthanam: Consists of 6 chapters dealing with information on formulations and methods pertaining to elimination therapy, management of complications and principles of pharmacy leading to rejuvenation (Kalpa).
F. Uttarasthanam: Consists of 40 chapters dealing with other seven branches of Ayurveda such as children diseases, psychological disorders, diseases and treatment of ENT and mouth, rejuvenation, aphrodisiac therapy and toxicology (Uttara).
LEGEND OF VAGBHATA AND LORD DHANVANTRI-ORIGIN OF ASHTANGA HRIDYAM:
E. Kalpasthanam: Consists of 6 chapters dealing with information on formulations and methods pertaining to elimination therapy, management of complications and principles of pharmacy leading to rejuvenation (Kalpa).
F. Uttarasthanam: Consists of 40 chapters dealing with other seven branches of Ayurveda such as children diseases, psychological disorders, diseases and treatment of ENT and mouth, rejuvenation, aphrodisiac therapy and toxicology (Uttara).
LEGEND OF VAGBHATA AND LORD DHANVANTRI-ORIGIN OF ASHTANGA HRIDYAM:
There is this famous legend related to acharya Vagbhata. It is said that Lord Dhanvantri was curious to know how people would be able to eradicate the diseases and attain good health in Kaliyuga. In order to search for an answer, he decided to find out the most knowledgeable Vaidh (Doctor). To do this, he took the form of a bird and visited all the famous vaidhs of their time and asked three question to everyone. But, none one gave right answer. During this journey in search of an answer, he finally reached to Vaghbhat's courtyard in Sindh region and asked the same questions. Acharya Vaghbhata, despite being busy with his patients could not resist to pay attention to the question from that beautiful bird. Being an intelligent man he realized that this is not an ordinary bird. So, he offered fruits to the bird but it rejected fruits and water and repeated it's question. Vaghbhata understood that the bird would not have anything without getting an answer. He replied:
1. Hitbhuk: A person who will eat nutritious food suited to time and season
2. Mitbhuk: A person who will have food in his limits and does not over eat
3. Ashakbhuk: A person who will eat nutritious food according to his Prakriti in limited amount
Lord Dhanvantri was delighted to listen to this answer. He happily accepted fruits and water offered to him and said, "I have roamed around Bharat to search for an able vaidh, now my journey is completed as I have found an Ayurveda expert". He also told Vaghbhata to compose the Ashtanga Hridyam for the welfare of society. This is how the idea and existence of Ashtanga Hridyam was originated. A person is able to remain healthy for the whole life by simple following the routine and life-style mentioned in Ashtanga Hridyam.
Eat to live and don't live to eat
Take care all of you,
Your's Sincerely
Purnima Ghai
References:
1.https://dharmakshethra.com/ancient-ayurveda-text-asthanga-hridayam/
2.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/313823272_A_CRITICAL_STUDY_OF_SANKETMANJARI_COMMENTARY_ON_ASHTANGA_HRIDAYAM_WSR_TO_SHARIRASTHANA/link/58a7e8e3a6fdcc0e078af620/download
3.http://www.ccras.nic.in/sites/default/files/viewpdf/jimh/BIIHM_1997/25%20to%2032.pdf
4.https://dharmakshethra.com/ancient-ayurveda-text-asthanga-hridayam/
5.https://hi.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%97%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%9F
6.https://www.researchgate.net/publication/256227780_Ashtang_Hridaya_Cover
7.Book: Ashtanghridyam -Dr. Brahmanand Tripathi
OTHER ACCOUNTS:
1.https://twitter.com/Sampoorn10?s=03
2.https://www.instagram.com/
3. https://twitter.com/explore
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