Ayurveda is a traditional Indian system of medicine. The influence of Ayurveda on the medical traditions of other countries. The main psychological types of a person
India surprises both with its exotic centuries-old architectural "highlights" and no less exotic ancient works, which contain the most unique knowledge about the world around us and the nature of man himself. Buddhist traditions have roots that go back to the distant past, but they contain truly impressive knowledge that is not so inferior to modern achievements. Among such ancient Indian knowledge is the traditional medical system Ayurveda, the foundations of which were formed in ancient times, but to this day they enjoy considerable authority in the field of medicine.
The science of long life from a Buddhist deity
The main goal of Ayurveda is to help every person live a long and disease-free life. Translated from Sanskrit, the name of this ancient system of ordered medical information and recommendations sounds like “knowledge about life” (“knowledge about long life”) or “the doctrine of the principles of a healthy life”, which most subtly defines its main purpose.
According to ancient Indian legends, Ayurveda is part of the great knowledge about the Universe and arose even before the appearance of people, and its creator was the god-healer Dhanvantari. It was he who transmitted this system of medical knowledge to earthly sages.
The first mention of this system of healing is found in the Vedas. One of the collections of these ancient Indian scriptures is devoted exclusively to medical aspects. It not only describes a variety of medicinal plants and the use of the first antibiotics (lichens with similar properties), but also provides a description of human bones. The ancient Ayurvedic treatises, which were created by the most ancient Indian medical dynasties, contain information about more than 600 medicines about plant and animal origin and their areas of application, about poisons and antidotes, about operations and instruments for surgical interventions.
The art of healing with philosophical overtones
Ayurveda is a combination of medicine and philosophy. Unlike Western medicine this practice is based on 6 philosophical ideas set forth in the Vedas, which suggest a close relationship between man and the universe. Ayurveda considers a person as a whole, implying the unity of body and spirit, thoughts and feelings, and taking into account not only the physical, but also the psychological, emotional state of a person, taking into account their harmonious combination. Violation of this state provokes the occurrence of diseases, therefore the main task of Ayurvedic medicine is to restore this harmonious integrity. According to Ayurveda, the key to a healthy life is in the harmony of a person with himself and with nature, and one of the basic principles of healing is to change the way of life. If the human body is in balance, then no, even the most dangerous microbes, can damage it. Therefore, the first thing the doctor seeks to return the body to this state.
The ancient Indian method of treatment provides for 2 ways to fight the disease: shaman and shodhana. The first path involves only the mitigation of the signs of the disease, the second direction is responsible for eliminating the cause of the disease, which often may not be an infection at all. If in the first case the disease can continue to progress, then the second method completely excludes the progress of the disease, providing only a complete recovery of the patient.
Principles of Ayurvedic Medicine
The treatment principles of Ayurveda are very different from other medical systems. This technique involves an individual approach to each person. Treatment is based on the study of prakriti - structural features of an individual and his psychophysiological parameters. Medicinal mixtures and preparations are also selected purely individually.
Most Ayurvedic medicines are based exclusively on herbs that grow mainly in the Himalayas. The Rig Veda lists about 700 medicinal plants. Ayurveda also provides for the use of medicines of animal origin and treatment with minerals (including precious and semi-precious stones). One medicine is prepared in such a way that it can help for several ailments. It must be strong medical effect and keep well for a long time. Ayurvedic texts contain more than 1000 prescriptions for medicines, but every doctor should be able to combine them based on his experience and intuition.
To cleanse the body of structures that disturb its balance, Ayurveda uses the Panchakarma technique, which means “5 actions”, since its course includes 5 areas, the main of which are diets, the use medicinal herbs and massage using specific oils. This is the real body cleansing therapy. Religious practices (chanting of mantras, meditation and deity worship) also have a place in Ayurvedic practice. This medical system offers more than just valuable advice for diagnosis and treatment, and for many chronic diseases can be of more help than traditional Western medicine.
Ayurveda in modern world
Ayurveda has had a significant impact on the development of traditional Tibetan medicine and the medicine of the Arab world, and also underlies many modern techniques recovery. By the middle of the 20th century traditional Indian doctrine of health and medical aspects has become widespread in the West. By the end of the 20th century Ayurveda began to be studied by medical students in the United States and Israel. Such training includes a mandatory internship in India.
The main procedures of Ayurveda have entered the world medical practice, and many of its ancient practices have completely passed into modern medicine. In the modern world, Ayurveda, as before, is widespread and popular in India, where it is recognized by the state. medical practice, as well as in Nepal and Sri Lanka, and is of particular interest to tourists seeking to get acquainted with the most ancient methods of treatment in the homeland of this alternative medicine.
In the second half of the 3rd millennium BC. in the river basin Indus formed the oldest civilization in South Asia. It goes back to the name of one of the rivers in the north-west of the country - Sindhu (Sindhu), which the Iranians called Hindu (Hindu), and the Greeks - Indos (Indos). From here came the name of the people - "Indians" and their country - "Country of the Indians". Currently, modern states are located on its territory: India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal.
The heyday of the Indus culture falls on the end of the 3rd - the beginning of the 2nd millennium BC. Its characteristic features are monumental architecture, planned development of cities, a high level of their sanitary improvement, the development of artificial irrigation, crafts, and writing.
Periodization of medical history:
1) Indian civilization (XXIII - XVIII centuries BC, Indus River valley) - proto-Indian civilization, the oldest in South Asia.
2) the Vedic period (XIII-VI centuries BC, the Ganges river valley).
3) Buddhist (V - III centuries BC) and classical (II century BC - V century AD).
characteristic features of the sanitary business of the period The Indian civilizations are:
1. monumental architecture,
2. planned development of cities,
3. high level of their sanitary improvement,
4. development of artificial irrigation,
5. development of crafts (ceramics, metal and stone products),
6. creation of proto-Indian writing.
By the size of the territory, the level of urban construction, sanitary improvement, etc. Indus culture significantly surpassed the ancient civilizations of Egypt and Mesopotamia of the corresponding period.
The construction of cities in the Indus Valley was carried out according to a predetermined plan. In different parts of the city there were wells lined with burnt bricks. Residential houses were also built of burnt bricks. Drainpipes through the thickness of the walls went into the sewage system of the city. None other ancient civilization even the Roman one did not have such a perfect drainage system.
At the same time, the splendor of the sanitary facilities of the Indus civilization does not characterize general level sanitary construction in ancient india in general - in subsequent periods of the history of ancient India, it decreased significantly.
Its causes, according to researchers, were internal phenomena (floods, droughts, depletion of internal resources), the penetration of more backward tribes into the Indus Valley.
Intelligence about the healing of the Vedic period are very limited. Thus, only three ailments are mentioned in the Rigveda: leprosy, consumption, and bleeding. Some sections of the Rigveda contain texts about the rituals of magical healing - the healing knowledge of the Vedic period was closely intertwined with religious beliefs and magical rites.
In the Vedic religion, there are mythological characters who are directly or indirectly associated with ideas about healing, health and illness. Important deities were considered Agni - the god of fire, hearth, mediator between gods and people, and Surya - the deity of the Sun and the all-seeing eye of the gods. The main deity of the Vedic religion was considered Indra - the god of thunder and lightning, the king (raja) of the gods, the generous patron of people; the embodiment of strength, courage and fertility. Along with good deities in ancient Indian mythology, there were also evil spirits and demons: asuras and rakshasas - enemies of gods and people, as well as pichashas - who brought misfortune, illness, ruin and deprived of offspring.
These ideas are reflected in the Atharva Veda. On the one hand, it looks empirical experience people on the use of medicinal plants, the action of which was understood as healing power opposing evil spirits. On the other hand, diseases in the Atharvaveda are associated with evil spirits or regarded as a punishment of the gods; and the cure of ailments is explained by the action of sacrifices, prayers and spells.
ancient healers so they were called bhishaj("exorcist"). This name was retained for them in the later periods of the history of ancient India, when the healer-caster turned into a healer-healer. Over time, ideas about the causes of diseases have also changed. Thus, the Yajurveda mentions the juices of the body.
Only representatives of the three highest varnas had the right to engage in healing and study the Vedas - brahmamas (knowing sacred teachings, i.e. priest), kshatriyas (endowed with power, i.e. military nobility and members of royal families - the ruling class, the historical Buddha was a kshatriya) , vaishyas (a free community member, i.e. mainly farmers, cattle breeders, merchants). Shudras and pariahs: practically had no rights. They were not allowed to listen and repeat the Vedas.
By the beginning of our era in ancient India, a highly developed traditional healing system - Ayurveda(ayurveda - the doctrine of long life).
Ayurveda, or Ayurvedic medicine, uses the natural medicines of the region, based on the national philosophical tradition. For two thousand years, it has been successfully developed and highly valued in India and beyond.
In ancient times, the outstanding figures of traditional Indian medicine were the legendary healers Charaka (I-II centuries AD) and Sushruta (about IV century AD) - the authors of two classic Ayurvedic treatises: "Charaka Samhita" (dated from I-II centuries AD), which describes the treatment of internal diseases, and "Sushruta Samhita" (dated from the 4th century AD), which is largely devoted to surgical healing.
Representation about the structure of the human body in ancient India were the most complete in ancient history. The study of corpses in ancient India was not forbidden by religion and was easily bathed cleansing baths, touching the sacred cow or looking at the sun.
According to Sushruta, Indian healers believed that the human body consists of six members (head, torso and four limbs), seven membranes, 500 muscles, 900 ligaments, 90 tendons, 300 bones, including teeth and cartilage), which were divided into flat, round long , 107 joints, 40 main vessels and 700 of their branches (for blood, mucus and air), 24 nerves, nine sense organs and three fluids (mucus of bile and air). Some areas (palm, soles, testicles, inguinal regions, etc.) were highlighted as especially important. Their damage was considered life-threatening. At the same time, the ancient Indians did not have a clear idea about the purpose of the brain and believed that the seat of the mind is the heart (the ancient Egyptians had similar ideas).
The knowledge of Indian healers in the field of the structure of the human body played a significant role in the development of ancient Indian surgery.
Ideas about the causes of diseases in the classical period, the history of ancient India changed somewhat. Healers began to move away from the supernatural understanding of the disease that dominated the Vedic period. Man was considered in close connection with the surrounding world, which, according to the ancient Indians, consisted of five elements: earth, air, fire, water and ether. The vital activity of the organism was considered through the interaction of three substances: air, fire and water, the carriers of which in the body were considered to be three primary fluids: wind, bile and mucus (mucus is above the heart, bile is between the navel and the heart, air is below the navel). From the five elements and three fluids, seven organic products that make up the human body are formed: blood - the first source of life, muscles, fat, bones, brain and male seed.
The wind in nature is the carrier of light, coolness, sound spreading in space, quickly rushing streams. Inside the human body, the wind controls blood circulation, digestion, excretion, and even metabolism, which involves active movement complex molecular biochemical complexes. Accelerating or slowing down the "movement of juices and substances" through the Wind disrupts the normal vital activity of the organism.
Bile is represented in nature by fire, and in the body it causes "natural heat", maintains body temperature and provides activity. digestive organs and activity of the heart muscle.
Phlegm in space and man was associated with all sorts of "soft" substances. It has been compared to a lubricating oil that coats all solid and rough substances and facilitates their movement and interaction.
With any disturbances in the action of wind, bile and mucus, a disease occurs. It is all the more dangerous and difficult, the deeper the harmony between the three primary elements is broken. And the doctor restores health, bringing all three primary elements into the necessary balance through strictly prescribed medical indications.
Sushruta divided all diseases into natural, related to nature (for example, air causes 80 diseases, bile - 40, mucus - 30), and supernatural, sent by the gods (leprosy, venereal and other contagious diseases, the causes of which were still impossible to understand at that time). ).
Diagnosis of diseases was based on a detailed survey of the patient and the study of body heat, skin color and tongue, discharge, noise in the lungs, voice characteristics, etc. Sushruta describes sugar diabetes, which he determined by the taste of urine.
Treatment of internal diseases most fully presented in the treatise "Charaka Samhita", which contains information on more than 600 medicinal products of plant, animal and mineral origin. Their use is reported in eight sections: treatment of wounds; treatment of diseases of the head area; treatment of diseases of the whole organism; treatment of mental illness; treatment of childhood diseases; antidotes; elixirs against senile decrepitude; drugs that increase sexual activity.
Tactics of treatment in ancient India, as in other countries ancient world, was determined primarily by the curability or incurability of the disease. With a favorable prognosis, the healer took into account the characteristics of the disease, the season, age, temperament, strength and mind of the patient (they said that “fools are more easily cured, because they follow the advice more accurately”).
The treatment was aimed at restoring the disturbed ratio of fluids (substances), which was achieved, firstly, by diet, secondly, by drug therapy (emetics, laxatives, diaphoretics, etc.) and thirdly - surgical methods treatment, in which the ancient Indians reached a high level of perfection.
Only healers were involved in the preparation of medicines, poisons and antidotes (for snake bites).
Art surgical treatment(surgery) in Ancient India, in terms of its skill and effectiveness, was the highest in the Ancient World (it was famous in all countries and in the Middle Ages).
Sushruta considered surgery "the first and best of all medical sciences, a precious work of heaven, a sure source of glory". The Sushruta Samhita describes more than 300 operations, over 120 surgical instruments and at least 750 herbal medicines, among which there is not a single remedy of European origin.
Still without scientific knowledge about antisepsis and asepsis, Indian healers, following the customs of their country, have achieved careful observance of cleanliness during operations.
Surgical instruments were made by experienced blacksmiths from steel, which they learned to produce in India in ancient times. They were stored in special wooden boxes.
Wounds were bandaged linen, silk and woolen fabrics soaked in melted cow butter, as well as bandages made of leather and palm bark. Used for seams linen and tendon threads and horsehair.
The healers of Ancient India performed amputations of limbs, laparotomies, stone, hernia repair, plastic surgery, stitched wounds on the head, face, and even the windpipe. The plastic surgeries of the ancient Indians deserve special attention. They “knew how to restore noses, ears and lips lost or crippled in battle or by sentence. In this area, Indian surgery was ahead of European surgery until the 18th century.
In ancient Indian texts, the operation of removing a clouded lens - a cataract - was also described for the first time. Sushruta described 76 eye diseases and their treatment.
obstetrics in ancient India it was considered an independent field of healing. Sushruta's treatise details advice to pregnant women on cleanliness and proper living; deviations from the normal course of labor, fetal deformity, caesarean section (used after the death of a woman in labor to save the baby), fetal rotation on a leg and embryotomy (which was recommended in cases of impossibility of turning the fetus on a leg or head) are described.
Hygienic traditions long developed in ancient India. The first attempts were made to prevent contagious diseases, including smallpox. Great importance was attached to personal hygiene, beauty, neatness of the body, cleanliness of the home, the influence of climate and seasons on human health.
Empirically developed hygiene skills are also enshrined in the "Laws of Manu":
“One should never eat food ... of the sick, neither on which the hair of insects turned out, nor deliberately touched by the foot ... nor pecked by a bird, nor touched by a dog.”
“Let him not bathe either after eating, or when he is sick, or in the middle of the night ... or in an untested pond” -
“It is necessary to remove urine, water used for washing feet, leftover food and water used in cleansing rites far from the dwelling.”
“In the morning you need to get dressed, bathe, brush your teeth, rub your eyes with collyrium and honor the gods.”
“Having cut hair, nails and a beard, humble, in white clothes, clean, let him always be engaged in the study of the Vedas and deeds useful to him,” etc.
In cities and villages, it was forbidden to throw sewage into the streets. The places and methods of burning the corpses of the dead were regulated. In doubtful cases of human death, an examination (autopsy) was prescribed; the body of the deceased was examined and covered with special oil in order to prevent decomposition. Severe penalties were also established for mixing poisons in food, medicines and incense.
Urban planning in the classical period of Indian history did not reach the high level that distinguished the ancient Indus civilization.
In ancient India, earlier than in Western Europe, there were almshouses (at Buddhist temples) and rooms for the sick - dharmashala (hospitals).
Physician position in ancient India was not the same at the stages of history. In the Vedic period, the practice of medicine was not reprehensible. In the final period of the history of the Ancient World, with the development of the caste system and social inequality, the tendency to consider certain occupations as ritually "unclean" and those engaged in them as untouchable intensified. This applied to those caring for horses and chariots, carpenters, healers (in all likelihood, those who were involved in surgery and were associated with ritual "impurity"), conjurers, acrobats, dancers, etc. Nevertheless, in general, the practice of medicine is spoken of with great respect in the ancient texts.
Important role monasteries and monks, among whom there were many knowledgeable healers, played a role in the development of healing in ancient India. All the monks had some knowledge in the field of medicine, since it was considered a high virtue to provide medical assistance to the laity.
Medicine in ancient India was closely connected with religious and philosophical teachings, among which special place takes yoga. She combined religious philosophy, moral and ethical doctrine and a system of exercises-poses. great attention yoga focuses on cleanliness of the body and a peculiar way of life.
Among centers medical education Taxila occupied a special place in ancient India. A student of medicine had to master all the facets of medical art: “A doctor, inexperienced in operations, comes to a patient’s bed with confusion, like a cowardly soldier who first got into battle; a doctor who knows only how to operate and neglects theoretical information does not deserve respect and can endanger even the lives of kings. Each of them owns only half of his art and is like a bird with only one wing,” says the Sushruta Samhita.
At the end of the training, the teacher gives a sermon to his students, which is given in the Charaka Samhita.
“If you want to achieve success in your activities, wealth and fame and heaven after death, you should pray every day, rising from sleep and going to sleep, for the well-being of all beings, especially cows and brahmins, and you should wholeheartedly strive for healing sick.
You must not betray your patients even at the cost of your own life...
You must not drink, you must not do evil or have evil companions...
Your speech should be pleasant...
You must be reasonable, always strive to improve your knowledge.
When you go to the home of the sick, you must direct your words, thoughts, mind and feelings to nothing else but to your sick person and his treatment ...
Nothing that happens in the house of a sick person should be told elsewhere, and the condition of the sick person should not be told to anyone who, using the knowledge gained, could harm the sick person or another.
Right medical practice gave the raja. He also controlled the activities of healers and compliance with medical ethics.
medical ethics Ancient India strictly demanded that the healer, “who wants to be successful in practice, be healthy, neat, modest, patient, wear a short-cropped beard, diligently brushed, trimmed nails, white clothes scented with incense, leave the house only with a stick and an umbrella, in particular avoided chatter ... ".
Remuneration for treatment was forbidden to demand from the disadvantaged, friends of the doctor and brahmins; and vice versa, if wealthy people refused to pay for treatment, the healer was awarded their property. For improper treatment, the healer paid a fine depending on the social status of the patient.
Unlike the great civilizations of the Middle East (Mesopotamia and Egypt), the Indian civilization (like the Chinese) did not die - it continued its progressive development after the era of the Ancient World. In the Middle Ages, Indian doctors were famous all over the world, and Indian medicine had and continues to have a great influence on the development of medicine in various regions of the globe.
Features of medicine in Ancient China(middle of the 2nd millennium BC - III century AD).
The most ancient state in the history of China, Shang (later it was called Shang-Yin) was formed somewhat later than the early civilizations of Mesopotamia, Egypt and India - in the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. in the Yellow River Valley - Huang He.
The creation of Chinese hieroglyphic writing dates back to this time. Ancient China gave the world silk and porcelain, paper and ink for writing, a compass and black powder. Paper was invented in China in the 1st century BC. BC.
For millennia, China has provided a unique example of the stability of national culture and traditional medicine.
Periodization of history and medicine.
1) the Shang-Yin period (7th-11th centuries BC), when the first early class society and the Shang state in the history of China was formed (from the 12th century BC - Yin);
2) the period of the Zhou dynasty (XI-III centuries BC), when many independent states existed on the territory of China;
3) the period of the Qin Empire (221 - 207 BC), when the country was first united into a single Empire.
4) the period of the Han Empire (206 BC - III century AD) - the time of the highest flourishing of Ancient China; the adoption of the laws of the Empire; approval of Confucianism as a single state ideology.
In the III - IV centuries. feudal relations developed on the territory of China, which persisted until the 20th century.
In the history of medicine Ancient China is clearly defined by two large periods:
1) the period of formation of the traditional Chinese art of healing (XVII - III centuries BC), when philosophical concepts were formed, traditional Chinese medicine was developing and oral tradition prevailed;
2) the period of the Han Empire (III century BC - III century AD), when medical writings that have come down to us were recorded and chronicles of the Han dynasty were compiled.
Philosophical Foundations of Chinese Medicine
original Chinese philosophy went a long way of formation and development: from the cult of nature (mountains, Earth, Sun, Moon and planets) to religious and philosophical systems (Confucianism and Taoism from the 6th century BC) and the philosophy of spontaneous materialism (natural philosophy), which was formed in China by the middle of the 1st millennium BC. and was developed in the works of Chinese scientists in the era of ancient empires.
The ideas of ancient Chinese philosophers about the surrounding world and human nature formed the basis of their understanding of health and the causes of illness. Traditional Chinese philosophy is set forth in an anonymous natural-philosophical treatise of the 4th-3rd centuries. BC. “Xi ci zhuan” is as follows.
The single original matter of tai chi gives rise to two opposite substances - yang and yin, which are one and indivisible. Initially, yin meant "northern, shady", and yang - "southern, sunny mountainside". Later, yin was perceived as negative, cold, dark and feminine, and yang as positive, light, warm and masculine. The concept of yin-yang has been adopted by traditional medicine.
The interaction and struggle of these principles give rise to five elements (primary elements): water, fire, wood, metal and earth, from which the whole variety of the material world arises - “ten thousand things” - wan wu, including man. The five elements are in constant motion and harmony, mutual generation (water gives rise to wood, wood - fire, fire - earth, earth - metal, and metal - water and mutual overcoming (water extinguishes fire, fire melts metal, metal destroys wood, wood - earth, and the earth fills up with water).
The objective world is cognizable and is in constant motion and change. Man is a part of nature, part of the great triad Heaven - Man-Earth and develops in harmony with the surrounding world.
The structure of the human body and the work of its organs were also understood through the prism of traditional Chinese philosophy. In traditional Chinese medicine, each organ of the body is associated with yang or yin substances. Thus, the yin substance corresponds to five zang organs - the liver, heart, spleen, lungs and kidneys. They "perform the function of preservation" and do not give away the "substance stored in themselves." Yang substances correspond to six ortans-fu - gallbladder, stomach, large intestine, small intestine, three heaters and bladder. These organs are "constantly emptied and retain nothing in themselves." The concept of "three heaters" refers to a system for maintaining internal heat, which depends on breathing, digestion and urination.
Anatomical representations began to form in China in ancient times. However, after the approval of Confucianism as the official ideology (around the 2nd century BC), the dissection of the bodies of the dead was stopped, as it came into conflict with religious ethics: according to the teachings of Confucius, the human body that he received from his parents could not be mutilated after death - it was to be returned to the parents intact and safe. These traditions existed for centuries (up to the Chinese revolution), so the bodies were dismembered extremely rarely and secretly. The anatomical knowledge of the ancient Chinese was significantly lower than the anatomical understanding of the ancient Indians.
Ideas about health and disease in ancient China were also based on traditional Chinese philosophy. Health was understood as a result of the balance of the beginnings of yin and yang and the five elements of tires, and illness was a violation of them. correct interaction. Various ratios of these disorders were combined into several syndromes, which were divided into two groups: syndromes of excess - yang syndrome and deficiency syndromes - yin syndrome.
The variety of diseases was explained by the breadth of the organism's interactions with the outside world and nature, the characteristics of the organism itself, a long stay in one of the emotional states (anger, joy, sadness, reflection, grief, fear and fear) and others. natural causes. For example, cold and wind, dryness and dampness can adversely affect a person and be one of the causes of his illnesses.
Much attention was paid to the study of the area where the sick person lives.
On this fertile soil, during the Early Middle Ages, the doctrine of the four temperaments developed.
concept "Traditional Chinese Medicine"(or rather, "traditional Chinese art of healing") includes the traditional method of zheng-jiu therapy (acupuncture, moxibustion, breathing exercises (qi-gong), acupressure (an-mo), medicinal healing, dietetics, traditional Chinese gymnastics, i.e. the whole complex of Chinese traditional health maintenance system. Methods of treatment are chosen after a thorough examination and diagnosis.
Diagnostics in ancient China was based on the above provisions of traditional Chinese philosophy.
“The doctor, perfect in the art of diagnosis, will carefully examine the state of the five zang organs and the six fu organs, determine the direct and reverse sequence of circulation. It will clarify the relationship between the substances of yin and yang, between the superficial and deep levels between the male and female principles, ”says the Nei Ching treatise.
Four main methods of examination were used in the diagnosis:
1) examination of the skin, eyes, mucous membranes and tongue of the patient;
2) listening to sounds that occur in the human body and determining its smells;
3) a detailed survey of the patient;
4) palpation, which includes the study of the pulse and pressure on active points. (For comparison, we note that the diagnostic methods used by doctors of the classical period of the history of Greece in the 5th-4th centuries BC are largely similar to the ancient Chinese methods listed above.)
According to legend, these methods were introduced by a legendary healer who lived in the 6th-5th centuries. BC. and known under the pseudonym Bian Chue. Bian Chue is also considered the founder of pulse diagnostics. The doctrine of the pulse became the pinnacle of the art of diagnosis in Ancient China: “He who knows how to make a diagnosis studies color, feels the pulse, first of all distinguishing between the actions of yin and yang substances, examines clean and muddy, and establishes in which part of the body the disease is localized ...”.
Chinese healers studied the pulse in at least nine points and distinguished up to 28 types of pulse. The main ones were considered: superficial, deep, rare, frequent, thin, excessive, free viscous, intense, gradual. Pulse diagnosis is closely related to the idea of the circular motion of blood, which is one of the greatest achievements of the philosophical thought of Ancient China. The Nei Ching treatise says: “The vessels communicate with each other in a circle. It has no beginning and no end... The blood in the vessels circulates continuously and circularly... and the heart rules over the blood.”
Outside of ancient China, the doctrine of the pulse spread relatively late. In the ancient Indian treatises of Charaka (I-II centuries) and Sushruta (IV century), the pulse is not mentioned. This is due to the relatively late establishment of mutual contacts between China and India (the first centuries of our era).
In the Middle Ages, the method of pulse diagnostics penetrated the territory of Central Asia - the diagnostic characteristics of the pulse in the "Canon of Medicine" by the outstanding physician of the Middle Ages Ibn Sina (980 - 1037) are largely similar to the provisions of traditional Chinese medicine.
Zhen-jiu. The first written evidence of acupuncture is contained in Sima Qian's Historical Notes and Zuo Zhuan, compiled by Zuo Chiu Ming, who lived between the 5th and 3rd centuries. The empirical roots of this method go back to ancient times, when it was noticed in Eastern China that injections, cuts or wounds at certain points of the body lead to the healing of certain ailments. For example, compression of the fovea upper lip allows you to bring the patient out of a state of fainting, the introduction of needles at the base of the first and second fingers from the back of the hand cysts cures insomnia.
The first needles were made of stone. They had the thinnest hole through which, as they believed, the active principle of yang moves. Subsequently, needles began to be made from jasper, bone, bamboo, bronze, silver, gold, platinum, stainless steel.
The method of acupuncture was used for the prevention of diseases, for pain relief during operations, and also in combination with massage and the method of cauterization with smoldering cigarettes, i.e. thermal effect on vital points» through lit cigarettes stuffed with dry leaves of medicinal plants, such as moxa - wormwood).
Medicines in Ancient China reached a high level of perfection. Into world practice from Chinese traditional medicine entered: from plants - ginseng, lemongrass, camphor, tea, rhubarb, resin; from products of animal origin - antlers, deer, liver, gelatin; from mineral substances - iron, mercury, sulfur, etc.
In handwritten medical writings of the late II century. BC. contains 280 prescriptions for the treatment of 52 diseases (including fevers, nervous disorders, hernias, women's and children's diseases). The recipes include more than 200 ingredients of medicines, moxibustion and acupuncture, therapeutic exercises and recommendations for various diets.
In ancient China, there were already institutions that today are called pharmacies. The first “pharmacopoeia” that has come down to us is the Shen Nong Book of Medicines, compiled between the 2nd century BC. BC e. and II century. n. e. and became the basis for all subsequent Chinese pharmacopoeias. Its author, Shen Nong, collected more than 300 prescriptions for simple and complex medicines used in his time in China.
First special medical schools also appeared in China only in the Middle Ages (from the 6th century). Until that time, knowledge of traditional healing was passed down by inheritance or in a narrow circle of initiates.
Development of surgical treatment in ancient China (as well as the autopsy of human corpses) was constrained by religious prohibitions that arose in connection with the approval of Confucianism.
Hua Tuo (110 - 208) is considered to be the largest surgeon of Ancient China, who became famous as a skilled diagnostician, an expert on Zhenjiu and the inventor of pain relief (using needles and medicinal infusions). He was a contemporary of Galen. Hua Tuo successfully treated injuries and fractures, performed operations on the skull, thoracic and abdominal cavities. Hua Tuo developed the basis of the famous Chinese remedial gymnastics Wu Chin Shi - the game of five animals, based on the imitation of a stork, a monkey, a deer, a tiger and a bear.
Disease Prevention was the forte of ancient Chinese medicine. For the Chinese, "a real doctor is not the one who treats the sick, but the one who prevents the disease."
The treatise "Nei Ching" says: "The perfectly wise heals the disease when it has not yet appeared. It puts the body in order not during turmoil, but when it is not yet ... If you take medicine when the disease has arisen, if you start to put things in order during turmoil, this is very similar to digging a well during thirst, similar to making weapons, when the battle has already begun. At this stage, it is too late to take such measures.”
There is evidence of widespread adoption variolations for the prevention of smallpox. So, according to legend, in the XII century. BC. during the smallpox epidemic, Chinese healers tried to prevent the spread of the disease by rubbing smallpox pustules into the nostrils of healthy children (for girls - in the right nostril, for boys - in the left).
Among the most important therapeutic and preventive measures in ancient China were massage, therapeutic exercises (wu rank shi) and breathing exercises (qi-gong).
In Chinese chronicles reported on the improvement of ancient cities from the middle of the 1st millennium BC. (pavements, sewerage, water supply).
Thus, the traditional Chinese art of healing is based on traditional Chinese philosophy (the doctrine of the surrounding world and human nature) and the centuries-old empirical experience of the Chinese people (folk healing).
The traditional Chinese art of healing is a classic example of stability. For a long time it developed in isolation from other healing systems and cultures of the globe. In Europe, the first information about traditional Chinese medicine penetrated only in the XIII century.
Many achievements of the traditional Chinese art of healing - the study of the pulse two thousand years before the discovery of W. Harvey, pain relief two centuries before our era, variolation almost two thousand years before E. Jenner - show that, in a number of positions, ancient Chinese medicine has important priorities in history of science.
Ayurveda as a trend in alternative medicine originated in ancient India and is closely related to the Vedas. The Vedas are a universal science of life, a whole philosophical system. While Ayurveda is a method of prevention and treatment of various diseases, establishing harmonious relations between a person and the world, a person and society, this is the system of regulation of the body (the desire of the body to restore the damaged part), the nutrition system. Ayurveda: the science of life - what is it?
Today, Vedic medicine Ayurveda is of increasing interest. Let's try to understand what is Ayurveda?
Ayurveda: the science of life
Vedic medicine Ayurveda does not consider the treatment of a person as the treatment of a specific physical body, a disease in its manifestation. Ayurveda believes that if the disease appeared on the material level, then the elimination of symptoms is only the first step in recovery, the whole person must be treated, namely the body, soul, behavior, and the emotional and mental (intellectual development) levels must be regulated. Man is the unity of all of the above.
Western culture differs from Eastern culture primarily in that its inexorable love for the analysis of the division into parts of everything in the world. Oriental man, on the contrary, strives for unity.
Ayurveda (from the word "veda" - "knowledge") - the science of life extension or the art of life, one of the most universal systems created in the East. The formation of the science of Ayurveda took place in India about 5 thousand years ago and developed at the junction of religion, philosophy, medicine and the natural sciences, which were inextricably linked, today we can say that this is not just a teaching - this is Ayurveda treatment.
The basis of Ayurveda is the ancient Indian treatises - the Vedas, written in Sanskrit. A significant place in them is given to medical topics: more than a thousand names of medicinal plants are given, many medical terms are found, several interesting methods are mentioned that were used in ancient times, but have not lost their significance even in our time.
In the science of Ayurveda, there are many texts devoted to the preservation and strengthening of human health. Ancient healers believed that the basis of well-being is absolute harmony, which helps to get closer healing herbs, massage, nutrition specially selected for each person and other methods. Violation of harmony leads to diseases of the soul and body, inextricably linked with each other.
The science of Ayurveda relies on many techniques: treatment with oils and mummy, herbal and aromatherapy, vegetarianism and naturopathy, acupuncture, massage, urine therapy, etc.
Basic principles of Vedic medicine Ayurveda
Vedic medicine Ayurveda as a system of human health has five levels.
Many authors are grossly mistaken in reducing Ayurveda only to the system of nutrition and treatment of the body, since this is only the first and First level, it does not concern the rational principle in a person, and the treatment of the body is (no matter how miraculous the medicine) is only a temporary result. It is necessary to treat a person in all directions.
The first level of Vedic medicine in Ayurveda is the treatment of the body with all kinds of herbs, massage, special system nutrition and exercise.
The second level of Ayurveda is the level of purification, prevention of diseases of the body and psyche, as well as the creation and rooting in a person of all kinds good habits.
The third level of Vedic medicine is devoted to the character of a person, his relationship with everything around him.
The fourth is the transitional level of Ayurveda. Having reached it, many stop: there are some difficulties that people cannot always cope with due to a lack of strength - will, determination, confidence in the correctness decision.
At the fourth stage of Ayurveda, a spiritual mentor is needed, here the directly theoretical, if I may say so, religious part begins. This is the level of asceticism, where people read mantras, various prayers, sing hymns, expand their consciousness in every possible way.
The fifth level of Vedic medicine represents spiritual practice: meditation is studied, and the higher laws of life are known.
Vedic medicine Ayurveda is aimed at connecting the body and soul of a person, developing his harmonious relationship with society and nature.
Doshas of Ayurveda
According to Ayurveda, nature is governed by three main forces called doshas. Each of them has its own name: Vata (wind), Pitta (bile) and Kapha (phlegm). Depending on the content of the elements, people are also divided into three groups.
Vata is the constitution of the "people of the wind". Representatives of this type are identified with the air element, the predominance of the energy of air and ether. Home them distinguishing feature- lean, tall, dry skin. The behavior of people of the “wind” constitution is often unpredictable, and at any moment their mood can change. However, these people love everything new and often surprise others by changing themselves. People of this type are sanguine or melancholic, they are emotional, romantic and often naive. They do not have outstanding abilities, but thanks to perseverance they often achieve good results.
Vata in the science of Ayurveda
Vata is the strongest energy of the human body, responsible for the most important life processes: blood circulation, respiration, mental activity and muscle activity. Representatives of the "wind" constitution usually do not differ good health and a lot depends on lifestyle. The weak points of Vata people are the bones, joints, as well as the organs of vision and hearing. They often suffer from insomnia, chronic diseases of the stomach, have problems with digestion, nervous and cardiovascular systems.
Pitta in the science of Ayurveda
Pitta is the constitution of "people of bile". Representatives of this type are identified with the elements of fire and water. This type includes people with a good figure and good posture. They are bold, assertive, they have a developed sense of humor, a desire for fame and achievement of a goal. In love, they give themselves entirely to their partner, but they also demand the same from him.
People of the "bile" constitution, as a rule, are choleric - they are emotional, quick-tempered, unbalanced, but quick-witted. People of the "bile" warehouse are prone to hasty decisions that are not always correct. These are passionate natures, but they are quickly disappointed, even if the goal is achieved and gives positive results.
People of this type do not have good health. To prolong life, they should be wary of colds and hypothermia, they need to eat right and observe personal hygiene. The weak points of people of the constitution of "bile" are the liver, kidneys, stomach and gallbladder. They suffer from many skin diseases, various allergies, hypertension or hypotension, diseases gastrointestinal tract.
Kapha in the science of Ayurveda
Kapha are people of the "mucus" constitution. Representatives of this type are identified with the elements of earth and water. They are usually short, stocky, heavily built, strong, but kind by nature. As a rule, they are satisfied with life, calm, reasonable, unperturbed, although they are slow - they are phlegmatic or sanguine. In life and in those around them, they value stability and reliability most of all, remember for a long time, but do not forget anything.
People of this type have high immunity, they are not susceptible to viral and other infections, they are naturally endowed with good health, among them there are many centenarians. At the same time, they often suffer from diseases of the cardiovascular, endocrine, respiratory systems, some species pose a certain danger to them oncological diseases. Their weak points are the heart and head. Kapha people need to carefully monitor their diet, daily routine, normal sleep and rest are extremely important for them.
Eastern healers say: people with a predominance of one of the doshas are rare. In order for a person to be healthy and strong, beautiful and self-confident, a harmonious combination of all three doshas is necessary. However ideal people in fact, no, because the combination of doshas is uneven and in any of us one or two predominate. This ratio determines the individuality of a person - his character, abilities, temperament, appearance and, of course, health.
Three types of food in Ayurveda
The ancient science of Ayurveda states that for a healthy life, you need to eat in such a way that all three doshas remain in balance. According to Ayurveda, a person can have three types of natural constitution: Vata, Pitta and Kapha. Depending on what type you are, you need to draw up a nutrition plan, and then your body will be in a state of harmony. The topic of our conversation today is nutrition in Ayurveda.
Vata constitution - you can eat sweet, salty food, heavy and oily, feel free to add various spices, but avoid spicy and bitter.
Pitta constitution - the use of cold dishes, drinks, various salads, cold milk, sweet fruits is recommended. Preference should be given to dishes with a bitter and sweet taste. Hot as well as light foods should be avoided.
Kapha constitution - light, warm and dry food, tart in taste, spicy, will do. Eat less salt, cold, heavy meals, refuse fatty foods.
Nutrition according to Ayurveda: general principles
In general, in Ayurvedic nutrition, great importance is attached to taste (for example, spicy food warms, stimulates metabolism, sweet helps the pancreas, bitter cleanses the liver, salt enhances appetite).
What should be Ayurveda - nutrition? Ayurveda gives some recommendations about food intake. Here is some of them.
You should only eat if you are very hungry.
If you have the thought that you should have a snack, you need to ask yourself a question and answer honestly: “Am I really hungry?” If you are not hungry, you do not need to overload the body: the food eaten at this moment will only bring harm.
For a healthy life, it is necessary to listen to your body, determine which dishes it has a special disposition for, and boldly introduce them into your diet.
Nutrition in Ayurveda is a harmonious interaction of the soul and body, therefore it attaches great importance to the inner voice, arguing that the intellect can make mistakes, while the voice comes from the heart, from the very being of a person.
It is very useful for a healthy life to drink hot water. It is recommended to drink only purified water, after boiling it. Take several sips after 1 hour and before meals. Hot water cleanses the body of toxins and rejuvenates it.
According to Ayurvedic nutritional science, it is advisable to avoid eating meat and replace it with fish or poultry.
The ancient sages - rishis - during their time on Earth discovered that suffering and pain entered the lives of people. So they gathered in the Himalayas and meditated for a long time. As a result of this, their leader Baradwaja accepted knowledge of Ayurveda from the Absolute and passed it on to all the other sages orally. This tradition persisted for a long time, but 6,000 years ago, the rishi Agni Vesa wrote a treatise on Ayurveda and passed the first of these texts to his student Charaka. Since then, these texts on Ayurveda are called Charakasamgita. Charakasamgita consists of three large and three small treatises. In them, ancient Indian medicine - Ayurveda is presented in the form of ten sections.
There are eight specialties in Ayurveda:
Kayachikica - internal medicine.
Shalakaya - knowledge from diseases of the head, neck, to the subclavian region.
Shawl - surgery.
Agadya - tantra - toxicology.
Phutvidya - psychiatry.
Kaumarbhritya - pediatrics, obstetrics.
Rassayana - rejuvenation, strengthening the immune system.
Vajikorana - how to give the system additional energy.
Basic principles of ancient Indian medicine Ayurveda
Based on the knowledge that Shakti - Prakriti - Nature gives birth to five tatvas, five primary elements, ancient Indian medicine - Ayurveda indicates that this Nature is based on three basic principles, the three main rulers of nature are Doshas. These three Doshas are formed from the interaction between the five primary elements. So, the first Dosha is called Vata, it is formed from the interaction of such primary elements as Space and Air. The second Dosha - Pitta - is a combination of primary elements - Fire, Water. The third Dosha - Kapha - is a combination of Water and Earth.
Vata - governs movement life energy, breath and blood.
Pitta - governs Fire, bile, digestion, metabolism.
Kapha governs structure, excretion and lymph.
These principles, individualized in each individual person, form the ten main types of Prakriti.
So, the main cosmic Primary Elements, the number of which is equal to five, are manifested in the human body as three fundamental principles, as three signs of Activity.
They were known in the Indo-Tibetan medicine tradition under the name "Tridosha". From Ether and Air, “body air” or Vata is born. Fire in conjunction with Water gives rise to "bodily fire" or Pitta. Earth with water forms body water or Kapha.
Three elements - Vata, Pitta and Kapha - are responsible for all biological, physiopathological and mental functions of the body, mind and consciousness. These three forces act both as the main component of the body and as a protective barrier against aggressive environmental factors, creating a normal psychological status of the body.
In Tibetan medicine traditions, these Forces are respectively called Rlung (“air”), Mkhris (“fire”) and Badkan (“water”). When these three forces are in perfect balance, the health of the body reaches its maximum. When these Three Forces are out of balance, disease develops.
The concept of the Three Forces, or “Tridosh”, is very difficult to translate into the language of modern objective scientific concepts of the West, although understanding the essence of this model, according to many specialists in Oriental medicine, in the future should have a revolutionary impact on the improvement of Western medical theory, not to mention the development of practice, diagnosis and treatment in line with Eastern medicine.
Ancient Indian doctors believed that the Three Forces, Three Processes, Three Qualities-Energies perform their action constantly and immediately throughout the body, connecting different parts of the body and organs that are far from each other. The Three Forces are moving directly in everything and everywhere - in the tree, in the stream, and in every smallest particle of the human body. The movement of these three forces occurs in all organs and tissues, in every cell of the body. There is not a single place in the human body where all the Three Processes would not be constantly performed in their continuous interaction.
It is necessary to understand that the terms Watta, Pitta and Kapha are abstract concepts, complex constructs of the theoretical and applied model of Indo-Tibetan pathophysiology. They are of a complex systemic nature - a multi-level character both functionally and structurally. Therefore, at present they do not have an adequate interpretation in the language of modern pathophysiology, focused on the study of the relationship of certain specific functions with specific, clearly localized anatomical (organ or subcellular) structures. These Three Forces are systems that show signs of unity within the definition of each of them through a spectrum of functions and structural elements. And the causes of disease were considered in antiquity solely as violations of the harmonious unity of these regulating Forces.
It should not be forgotten that the Three Forces have not only a material-corporeal and subtle-energetic (“bio-field”) meaning, but also a highly-informational meaning, i.e. psychoenergetic. All Three Forces in their interaction cause highly spiritual processes in human consciousness. By the way, precisely because of its applicability, the concept of the Three Forces is actively used not only in medicine, but also in the psychosomatic practice of Yoga in the form of the concepts of “Prana” (in the narrow sense, one of the varieties of Vata), “inner fire” (one of the forms of Pitta) and “soma” (“life-giving nectar” is a form of Kapha, which is responsible for the energy supply of intuition and manifests itself in the base of the brain).
One of the most valuable ideas of Indo-Tibetan medicine, ancient Ayurvedic and Yogic medicine, as well as Eastern Human Science in general, is that all the wisdom of physiological, natural treatment has its full representation in the high spiritual spheres of human consciousness.
BASIC PSYCHOLOGICAL TYPES OF PERSON
The first thing a doctor needs to do is to determine for each person his individual traits.
1 type - Cotton wool
Type 2 - Pitta
Type 3 - Kapha
Type 4 - Vata - Pitta
Type 5 - Pitta - Kapha
Type 6 - Pitta - Vata
Type 7 - Kapha - Pitta
Type 8 - Vata - Kapha
Type 9 - Kapha - Vata
Type 10 - Vata - Pitta - Kapha
Thus, with the help of pulse diagnostics, it determines which of the ten types a particular patient belongs to. Using the same pulse diagnosis, it determines the level of dysfunction in the human body. Further, based on the twenty approaches to treatment that exist in Ayurveda, he produces a treatment.
AYURVEDIC TREATMENTS
1. The first method of treatment is the method of influencing the patient's consciousness. To do this, he is taught in a special technique of transcendental meditation, the result of which is achieving a certain degree of silence. This brings the patient to the attainment of Pure Consciousness - as a state of connection of the individual with the source of his being.
2. The second method - where it is used premordial sound. it Vedic first sounds that synchronize the entire human essence. Their doctors select them individually for each patient and recommend saying them to yourself or listening to them a certain number of times a day to improve well-being.
3. The third method is intellectual, that is, they ask the patient to engage in self-knowledge of himself. Because cause of illness according to Ayurveda always lies in the errors of the intellect- (Pratya parade), therefore, having understood his wrong thoughts, actions, the patient gradually restores order in his nature.
4. The fourth approach is emotional. Explain to the patient that the underlying emotion is bliss. Having revived the bliss in the patient, doctors achieve that they revive the point of transition of his consciousness into his material body. And this leads to the harmonization of biochemical processes in the body.
5. The fifth approach is language. The essence of this method is to choose the right the right words for this patient, which could inspire hope for recovery.
6. Sixth - Gandarvaveda. This is the use of special melodic sounds, melodies selected according to the time of day, which, like premordial sounds, restore harmony within a person, cause the prevention and treatment of diseases.
7. The seventh approach at the level of feelings. Every sense can be used for healing. Thus, vision is used for color therapy, hearing - for sound therapy(music therapy), smell - for smell therapy(various aromas), taste - herbs - diet therapy, touch - massage.
8. Eighth - pulse diagnostics . Using this method, the doctor not only establishes a diagnosis, but also produces a treatment based on the feedback principle.
9. Ninth - psychopharmacological integrity. It is a mental technique similar to autogenic training.
10. Tenth - neuromuscular integration. In other words, these are yogic exercises - asanas.
11. Eleventh - neurorespiratory integration or breathing exercises - pranayama.
12. Twelfth - physiological cleansing various body cavities.
13. Thirteenth - diet therapy.
14. Fourteenth - herbs, minerals.
15. Fifteenth - scattered. This is a special category of herbal preparations for rejuvenation, longevity and strengthening the immune system.
16. Sixteenth - behavioral approach. Sick learn correct behavior in the family, society and in relation to oneself.
17. Seventeenth - JYOTISH, which means the study of the natal chart of the patient, that is, the astrological chart.
18. Eighteenth - Yagya is Vedic engineering that restores harmony between the environment and the person through Jyotish.
19. Nineteenth - creating a collective consciousness through transcendental meditation in groups.
20. Twentieth - peace to the world, health to the world.
Thus, we see that the responsibility of the Ayurvedic physician is not limited to one patient. He creates health not only for himself and the patient, but also for the whole world, which distinguishes Ayurvedic medicine from other oriental medicines. .
In the Vedic era, Ayurveda was created - "the science of longevity." Often Indian medical writings are called Ayurvedic. Brahmins were considered the keepers of Ayurvedic knowledge about a long life devoid of suffering in India.
The Ayurvedic system of medical knowledge was divided into 8 main sections, including: wound healing; treatment of diseases related to the head area; treatment of diseases affecting the whole body; treatment of mental illness and mental disorders which were attributed to the action of evil spirits. The doctrine of antidotes stood out in a special section.
Vedic texts contain references to various diseases eyes, ears, heart, stomach, lungs, skin, muscles and nervous system. Listed about three hundred various parts and organs of the human body. A sudden illness is considered a manifestation of an evil inclination, coming either from demons or from worms penetrating the body. Great importance is attached to diet, with milk, honey and rice occupying a special place in dietary prescriptions. Later medical writings called milk a sacred drink, which preserved the strength and mind of a person, protected from diseases. Honey has traditionally been part of the recipes medicines curing many diseases. It was considered the main antidote for poisoning with mineral, plant and animal poisons.
Often, extracts of medicinal plants were used for the preparation of medicines. Healing properties Indian medicines prepared on the basis of plants were known far beyond the borders of Ancient India: they were taken to the Mediterranean by sea and land trade routes, Central Asia and China, to many other countries of the Ancient World. The best medicinal plants were brought from the Himalayas.
Yoga as a way to manage.
Information about yoga was collected in the III century. BC. Indian sage Patanjali in the Yoga Sutra. In this collection, the worldview of yogis, the system of breathing and physical exercises are presented in the form of short sayings - sutras. As a rule, modern ideas about yoga attach great importance to physical training. In this case, the philosophical aspect of the doctrine is often not taken into account.
Yogi philosophy seeks to bring a person to harmony and balance not only by physical exercises, but by the entire worldview system. “A clear, cheerful and happy mood of the mind,” yoga teaches, “creates the normal functioning of the physical body; depressed state of mind, melancholy, torment, fear, hatred, jealousy and anger also have an effect on the body and cause physical disharmony and temporary diseases in it.
Medical treatises of ancient India.
The medicines used by Indian medicine were prepared from products of plant, mineral and animal origin. Precious metals played an important role in the art of healing. The composition of ointments often included zinc, lead, sulfur, antimony, ammonia, but mercury and its salts were most often used. The widespread use of mercury in ancient Indian medicine was associated with a high level of development of alchemy. The combination of mercury with sulfur was supposed to open the way to obtaining the elixir of immortality. Alchemical information was contained mainly in medical texts.
Charaka and Sushruta are the great doctors of ancient India.
The main directions of the art of healing the ancient Hindus are reflected in the medical treatises "Charaka-samhita" - about internal diseases(I-II centuries BC), and "Sushruta-samhita" - about surgery (IV century AD). The first treatise belongs to Charaka, the great physician of ancient India. Much attention in this work is paid to the diagnosis of the disease: the doctor had to take into account the age of the patient, his physical features, living conditions, habits, profession, nutrition, climate and terrain. It was necessary to carefully examine the urine and excretions of the body, check the sensitivity to various stimuli, muscle strength, voice, memory, pulse. It is interesting to note that the Charaka Samhita mentions such cases when a drop of blood taken from a patient should be examined, and also describes methods of actively influencing the body in order to exacerbate the disease on short term to identify its symptoms.
Charaka gave a detailed description of the methods of treatment of internal diseases, including plague, smallpox, malaria, cholera, tuberculosis. The treatise contains sections on anatomy and the art of bloodletting.
The author of the treatise "Sushruta Samhita" was another great Indian physician - Sushruta. The medical information in his treatise consisted of six sections, the first of which contains a special section on surgery: the author considered it the most important part of medicine. In addition, the treatise contains information on anatomy, therapy, the doctrine of poisons and antidotes, as well as the treatment of eye diseases.
Medical treatises constantly emphasize that a real doctor, in addition to a good knowledge of theory and practice, must have moral virtues: disinterestedness, honesty, courage, self-control. Medicine requires more moral fortitude from a person than other professions. Duty to the patient should be prioritized over self-interest. In the case of an incurable disease, the doctor must honestly admit his impotence. The prescriptions of medical ethics also concerned the appearance of a doctor: it was required that “a doctor who wants to be successful in practice should be healthy, neat, modest, patient, wear a short-cropped beard, diligently cleaned, trimmed nails, white clothes scented with incense, leave the house not otherwise than with a stick and an umbrella, and in particular he avoided chatter.
Surgery.
Surgery was the area of medical art in which India surpassed many countries of the ancient world. Sushruta called surgery "the first and best of all medical sciences, a precious work of heaven and a sure source of glory." He described over 300 operations, over 120 medical instruments and over 650 medicines. The anatomical knowledge of the doctors of ancient India can be judged by the fact that Sushruta's work lists 300 bones, 500 muscles, more than 700 vessels and about 100 joints.
Indian surgeons were especially good at plastic surgery on the face. Doctors were able to restore noses, lips and ears lost or maimed in battle or by court order. In this area, Indian surgery was ahead of European surgery until the 18th century. European surgeons learned from the Indians the art of rhinoplasty (from the Greek "rhinos" - nose) - the restoration of a lost nose. This method is described in detail in Sushruta's treatise and entered the history of medicine under the name of the "Indian method": the nose was restored using a skin flap cut from the forehead or cheek.
No less brilliant was the operation to remove the clouded eye lens - cataracts. Indian surgeons have managed to achieve meticulous cleanliness during operations. Experienced blacksmiths made surgical instruments from steel, and not from copper or bronze, as in other countries of the Ancient World. These tools were stored in special wooden boxes and were sharpened so that they could cut hair. Before the operation, they were disinfected with plant juices, washing in hot water, calcination on fire. However, the modern term "disinfection" does not quite fit these actions. The impact on the doctor's instruments with fire and water necessarily accompanied the treatment, like any sacred art.
