Charaka-Samhita — trans. Kaviraj Avinash Chandra Kaviratna

Of these, the four that are born of the faults quickly afflict men that are of the following descriptions.

They are, —

Those who are timid or subject to fear ;

Those, in whom the attribute of ‘Sattwa’ is afflicted by ‘Rajas’ and ‘Tamas ;’

Those in whom the faults have been attenuated to proportions below what are regarded as normal ;

Those who eat food that is mixed with impurities, or with such articles as have become vitiated, or food that is not assimilable.

* Gangadhara reads ‘atikshinavalamansagonitam.’ The repetition of ‘vala’ here afte ‘durvalam’ as the opening word preceding this compound, is evidently an error. — T.

In other words, he deserves to be a royal physician, — T.

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p. 989

as also those who eat food prepared without regard to harmony of combination and without attending to the considerations of ‘prakriti,’ ‘karma,’ ‘samyoga,’ &c. ;

Those who practise, in ways other than normal, the ordinances laid down in the Tantras ;*

Those who undertake other practices that are abnormal,! or.

Those who have exceedingly emaciated bodies, or.

Those who have been exceedingly agitated by the strength or intensity of disease, J or,

Those whose minds have been affected by lust, wrath, cupidity, joy, fear, grief, cares, and anxieties, or,

Those who have been afflicted with wounds,

The wind being afflicted, and the understanding being disturbed, the faults become aggravated and provoked ; then reaching the heart, and obstructing the ducts through which the mind operates, they beget Insanity.

Insanity, it should be known, is the derangement of the mind, understanding, knowledge, memory, devotion, behaviour, acts, and practices. 3

The following are the incubatory symptoms of the disease :

A sensation of the head being empty ;

Turbidness of the eyes ;

Diverse sounds in the years ;

Thickness and shortness of the breath ;

Discharge of watery secretions from the mouth ;

Loss of appetite, and disgust for food ;

Indigestion ;

* The Tantras contain instructions about ‘Hatha-yoga’ and other practices which lead to the acquisition of extraordinary or superhuman powers. By observing those practices in ways other than normal, insanity and other diseases are frequently generated. Neophytes, by practising ‘Pranayama’ or the regulation of the breath without attending to the consider¬ ation of time, catch diseases of diverse hinds. Breath may be held too long, to the imme¬ diate detriment of the neophyte. — T.

+ ‘Anyam vishamam cheshtam,’ literally, ‘other practices that are abnormal’— imply such acts as reciting particular mantras or shastric texts at midnight in a crematorium, or remain¬ ing with head downwards'for several hours, reciting mantras the while, &c.— T.

t Certain diseases agitate the mind greatly ; certain constitutions, again, are greatly agitated by even simple diseases. In such cases, Insanity appears.— T,

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CHAR AKA - SAM HIT A.

Pressure on the chest (as if some heavy object is placed on it) ; Thoughtfulness with regard to matters that do not deserve to be thought of ;

Toiling for objects that no way deserve toil ;

Wondering at things that should not excite wonder ;

Anxiety about objects that are of no interest ;

Frequent horripilation ;

Continued fever or excitement of pulse ;

Constant excitement of the mind ;

Facial contortions ;

Appearance of eruptions on the body like urticaria evanida ; Frequently beholding in dreams objects that are whirling round or running, or moving, or those that are disgusting ;

Mounting, in dreams, on oil-machines that are circling round ; Experiencing, in dreams, the sensation of being whirled round by eddies of strong winds ;

Feeling, in dreams, that he is sinking in strong eddies of dirty water ; and

Restlessness of the eyes so that the gaze is now directed towards one object and now towards another.

Even these are the incubatory symptoms of those varieties of In¬ sanity which are due to excited faults. 4

After the appearance of these incubatory indications, the disease, viz., Insanity, manifests itself.

The following are the distinctive symptoms of the disease ;

They are, —

Moving of the eyes and the eyebrows ;

■ Stretching of the lips, the shoulders, the cheeks, the arms, and the legs, without any cause ;*

Frequent utterance of irrelevant words ;f

* It is difficult to ascertain the correct reading here. Gangadhara reads ‘parisharanamajagram akshibhrubaushthamsa &c. vikshepagchakasmat. ’ Gangadhara explains ‘parisharanam’ as standing by itself and meaning ‘roving he then connects ‘vikshepah’ with all the words beginning With ‘akshi.’ This can hardly be correct. The reading I prefer is that given in

some printed texts of Bengal. It is ‘parisharnamakshibhrubam ; oshthamsa &c .

vikshepanamakasmat. ’ — T.

t Here also the texts differ. The reading I adopt is ‘satatamaniyalanancha giramutsargah.’ — T.

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p. 991

The emission of froth from the mouth ;

Indulgence in smile, laughter, dancing, singing, and playing on instruments, on unsuitable occasions ;*