An English Translation of the Sushruta Samhita, Vol. III: Uttara-tantra — trans. Kaviraj Kunja Lal Bhishagratna (1916)

t The Pstyasa of S'atdvari and A' malaki should be prepared by duly cooking S'atdvari or A' malaki) as the case may be, with milk and sugar. According to others, however, it means the gruel (Yavagu) prepared with the expressed juice of S'atdvari or A' malaki.

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THE SUSHRUTA SAMHUA. Chap. XVIL

of Triphald and a copious quantity of clarified butter would remove (an attack of) Timira. The use of such edibles as Jivanti^ Sunishannaka , Tandtiliyaka , Vdstuka ) Chilli , Mulaka as well as meat of birds (such as Lava, etc.) and Jdngala animals (eg. deer, etc.) should be considered as invigorating to eye-sight. The use of the leaves or fruit (as the case may be) of Patola , Karkotaka , Kdravella , Vdrtdku , Tarkdri , Kariui (tender bamboo plants), S'igru or Artagala , cooked with clarified butter, proves beneficial (invigoratiog) to the sight. 31.

Blood-letting (venesection) should never be resorted to in a case of Timira, marked by the redness of the affected eye in as much as it might bring about an aggravation of the deranged Doshas ending in blindness of the patient. 32.

Prognosis : — A case of Timira marked by the absence of any redness of the eye and in which the first Patala (coat) of the organ is the seat of the disease, is curable (S^dhya). The case in which the eye assumes a bright red hue and the second coat or Patala of the organ is the seat of the disease, may be regarded as a curable one though only with the greaterst difficulty (Krichchhra-Srfdhya). The case in which the third coat or Patala of the organ is the seat of the disease (characterised by the redness of its outer coat) should be regarded as (an incurable affection) admitting only of palliative treatment (Yfifpya). Proper palliative measures and remedies mentioned before should be employed in cases of Timira marked by a redness (of the affected organ), and leeches may also be applied to the region of the affection (to relieve it of its exuberance of the Dosha in cases of emergency). 33.

Surgical treatment of Kaphaja Linga-nasa 5— Now we shall describe the (surgiChap. XVII.] UTTARA-TANTRAM.

cal) measures to be employed for curing a case of Lingan&'a (obstruction or choking up at the pupil with a cataract) due to the action of the deranged Kapha. In cases where the deranged Dosha in the organ, i.e, } the affected part of the organ does not appear semicircular or thin in the middle, nor, fixed, (hard) nor irregular (in shape), nor marked by a large number of lines or a variety of tints, or where it docs not resemble a pearl or a drop of water in shape, or if it does not become painful and red coloured, the patient should be first treated with Sneha and Sveda at a season of the year which is neither too cold nor too hot for the purpose. Then the hands, etc., of the patient should be secured with proper fastenings and he should be made to sit, looking simultaneously (with his two eyes) at (the tip of) his nose. Then the intelligent surgeon leaving off two portions of the white part of the eye-ball from the end of the Apinga (the end of the eye) and having fully and carefully drawn apart the eye-lids with his thumb and the index and the middle fingers, should insert the Yava-vaktra (needle) instrument* through the sides of the natural apperturelike point near the external angles of the eye, neither above nor below, care being taken not to pierce the veins. The left eye should be pierced with the right hand, and the right with the left. The satisfactory nature of the operation (perforation) should be presumed from the characteristic report or sound and the emission of a drop of water f from the affected region, following upon the perforation. 3^-35. v,

* Both S'rikantha Datta and S'ivadafia, the commentators respectively of Vrinda and Chakradatta, read meaning that the

S'aldki (rod) should be made of copper.