Charaka-Samhita — trans. Kaviraj Avinash Chandra Kaviratna

The secreted juices cause 1 Qaithilya, 1 that is, slacken or loosen the particles. Of course, this implies dissolution, or, at least, semi-dissolution.

Time is a great factor. Jt accomplishes or causes the completion of the operation called digestion. What is meaut is this : heat may cook ; wind may draw ; the juices may slacken ; oil may soften ; yet all these operations require time before they can be completed, or reach that stage which is called completed digestion.

Lastly comes ‘ Samayoga ’ (and not ‘ Samyoga ’ as some texts read incorrectly). ‘ Samayoga, ' is contradistinguished from ‘ Ayoga ’ ‘ Atiyoga, ’ and ‘ Mithyayoga. ’ These words have been explained fully in Sutrasthana. By ‘Samayoga’ is meant the judicious correlation of the ingredients of food, in the absence of such correlation, digestion must be impeded.— T.

p. 794

CHARAKA SAMHITA.

The attributes of food after transmutation, when not hostile, attain, each according to its own nature, to the condition of the attributes of the body.

When hostile, destroyed by their opposite natures, they destroy the body.*21

The ingredients (or constituent elements) of the body are, briefly, twofold.

They are —

(1) Those whieh are Impure (Refuse), and

(2) Those which are Pure.

Amongst these, those are said to be Impure which are impediments of which the body must rid itself.

They are —

(1) Extraneous products, occurring in the holes and pores of the body, of separate birth ; and

* The original is exceedingly terse. I have endeavoured to present it in all its terseness. I fear, the English version, like the otiginid, would be unintelligble without a commentary. What the Rishi says here is this :

Heat, wind, the secreted juices, oil, &o., transfoim or transmute the food that is taken into such substances as become blood, bones, flesh, marrow, &c. The substances into which food is transmuted are called here ‘ aharasya gunah. ’

‘ Gunah— plural— is generall;. rendered ‘attributes. ’ It is technical term in such connections. That into which a particular thing is transmuted is called the ‘ guna ’ or attribute of gold.

The word ‘ guna ’ in ‘ garira-guna, ’ again, would imply the ingredients or elements which constitute the ‘ garira ’ or body.

There are other senses in which ‘guna' is used. With them we have nothing to do here.

Having said that the substances into which food is transmuted by heat, &c., become the ingredients or constituent elements of the body, the Rishi refers to the limitation under which this result takes place The limitation is that the substances must not be hostile to one another. In the second part it is stated that if those substances be hostile to one another, that is, if instead of Samayoga there be Ayog, Atiyoga, or Mithyayoga in the food one takes, the result is not nourishment but disease and destruction of the body.— T.

Sir Alfred Croft, M.A., C. I. E. Director of Public Instruction. Bengal : — I have been greatly entertained as well as edified by the examination in part IV of all the things which a man shall not do. A layman can unde rs.tand the precepts and such a guide to life cannot be other than valuable.

James W • Reese, Esq., Westminister , Maryland , U. S. A. : — You have undertaken agreat ana difficult work, and one which, it seems to me, deserves the approbation and encouragement of all who care to know what wise men of the past ages thought and taught on a topic so important as the preservation of health and the cure of disease.

William Emette Coleman, Esq., San Francisco , California. — * * * As each successive part is issued, the greater intrinsic value of the work is apparent. * * * There is much in it both of interest and value to the

Western mind, occidental medical science, therapeutic. American and Europe¬ an medical science has much to learn. * * *

Chas. E. Sajons, Esq., Philadelphia , U. S. A. : — You are entitled to the greatest praise. Next May or June the Satellite — a journal under my editorial management — will begin to review books, etc., and one of the first to be taken up will be yours.

Chas. 0. Court-man Esq., St. Louis, Ohio U. S. A. ' The work interests me very highly, and I have already, on last night, taken it to the meeting of one of our medical societies, and read extracts from it which excited a -lively curiosity and expressions of interest. I will send selections from it to a medical j ournal and also to a pharmaceutical monthly.

Professor E. B- Cowell, Cambridge:... A careful translation of this ancient work will be very interesting and valuable. I can only hope that you may succeed in translating the'entire work. It will be a great achievement when finished.

R. Or Eccless, Esq., Dean St. Brooklyn, New York :...The matter is certainly of great interest to me.

E. P. Davis, Esq., Editor of the American Journal of the Medical Sciences, Philadelphia : Thank you for this erudite and interesting contribution to the Medical literature.