Charaka-Samhita — trans. Kaviraj Avinash Chandra Kaviratna

‘Sukhanubandha’ is ‘having happiness or recovery as the result.’ By ‘heturvyadhi-viparitanam’ are implied medicine, diet, and practices which are contrary to the cause or causes of the disease that is treated, or to the disease itself that is treated, or to both the cause or causes and the disease.

By ‘Viparitarthakarinam’ are implied such medicines, diet, and practices as are, without being actually contrary to cause and disease, produce effects that are contrary to them, that is, lead to recovery or cure. What s meant by ‘viparita’ (contrary) and ‘viparita.rthaka.ri’ (productive of contrary effects without being actually contrary), will be clearly understood from the examples adduced by the Commentators.

Among medicines contrary to the cause is dry ginger, which has heating virtues, pres¬ cribed in fevers brought about or characterised by cold and phlegm. Rice mixed with soup of meat is food that is contrary to fevers brought about by toil or exhaustion and vitiated wind. Among practices contrary to cause is night-keeping in vitiated phlegm brought about by sleep at daytime.

Of medicines contrary to disease is Stephania hernandifolia (Patha or Aknadi), which has constipating virtues, in diarrhoea; Of food contrary to disease is Vicia lens (Masura) in diarrhoea. Of practices contrary to disease is strainiug in looseness of bowels.

Of medicines which, without being contrary to the disease, produce effects that are contrary,' are the fruits of Randia dumetorum in nausea and vomiting. The fact is, these fruits have emetic properties. If administered in little doses, they check nausea and vomiting. Hence, without being contrary to the disease, they produce contrary effects, that is, lead to recovery or cure. Of medicines which without being contrary to cause produce contrary effects, is a warm plaster engendering bile, applied in cases of gangrenous sores brought about by vitiat ed bile. Of food which, without being contrary to disease, produces contrary effects is milk in diarrhoea. Milk is calculated to increase diarrhoea, but administered in regulated measure to patients suffering from diarrhoea of certain kinds, it does great good and cures the disease.

The object of ‘upacaya’ is the ascertainment of disease, with a view to its cure, by experi¬ mental prescriptions in respect of drugs and diet and practices. It is one of the five methods of diagnosis or ascertainment of disease, and should not be mistaken for treatment. — T.

+ •Jati’ is otherwise called ‘janma’ or birth.

‘Agati’ is coming in, as ‘gati’ means ‘going out,’

What ‘samprapti’ means is explained below.— T.

CHARAKA-SAMHITA.

93*

The comparative relates to two, the superlative to three. 8

Kind (or Order) is as follows : —

Diseases are of two kinds, as natural and accidental.

They are of three kinds, according to the particular fault that has been excited among the three that exist (viz., wind, bile, and phlegm).

They are of four kinds, considering curability, incurability, mild¬ ness, and violence. 9

Solution of doubt (Vikalpa), in this connection, means the ascer¬ tainment of the measure in which the faults, existing in a state of union, have been excited.

The distinctions of Strength and Time (in respect of disease) are dependant on the season (in which the disease has happened), day, night, the hours of eating, &c. to

Hence the physician, with unafflicted mind and intelligence, should duly examine diseases by the considerations of Cause and the rest.

The topics in brief have thus been referred to of the Division called Nidana.

We shall expound them again in detail agreeably to truth.* n

Here we shall at first expound the eight initial diseases which are born of cupidity and malice and wrath, agreeably to the order of the considerations having Nidana for their first.

Some aphorisms in brief, relating to treatment, are all that will be set forth here.j- 12

In the Division called Chikitsa, which will come hereafter, we shall expound the subject of diseases (and their treatment) with desir¬ able details. *3

Among diseases, we shall here, at the outset, expound Fever, in consequence of fever being the foremost of all diseases.! u t Some texts read ‘Atidroha’ for ‘Abhidroha.’ The sense is the same, viz., malice or enmity. After ‘Abhidroha’ some texts omit ‘Kopa’, meaning wrath. — T.

* “Consideration of Cause and the rest” imply ‘Nidana” ‘Purvarupa’, ‘Linga’, ‘Upajaya’, and ‘Samprapti’, as explained in the foregoing aphorisms. — T.