Ayurveda

Dhanvantari

Introduction

Illness sets in due to imbalance of dosas even as balance of dosas makes for health. In other words illness signifies misery and health signifies happiness.

Tripod of life

The mind body and self are the primary pillars of the tripod which supports life.

There are three secondary pillars, diet, sleep and control of senses.

When they are in order and are used rationally, the body grows and remains healthy, strong and good looking till the allotted life span is over.

Strength

Strength is of three king : inborn, bestowed by time and acquired.

Inborn strength applies to the body and mind and is one's natural endowment. 

Time increases of decreases strength through the effect of seasons or ageing.

Acquired strength is what one gains through appropriate food, physical activity and rasayana.

Causation of disease

There are three causes underlying diseases, overuse, non use and misuse of the objects of senses. action and time. For example :

For the sense of vision, these would be fixing the eyes on a radiant object, nor seeing anything at all, seeing things that are too close or too far or very fearful strange, loathsome or maimed.

 

The corresponding examples for the auditory sense would be hearing the deafening sounds of thunder and drums or loud screams, not hearing any thing at all, hearing caustic or threatening words or those which convey the news of the death of dear ones or ruin or of insult.

The olfactory sense would be over used by smelling pungent, acute or offensive smells, not used by smelling nothing at all, misused by smelling putrefied, vicious, rotten or poisoned air.

Similarly gustatory sense would be overused by consuming too much of various taste, or not used by tasting nothing at all, or tasting unwholesome food for the given season and constitution.

Expose to extreme cold or heat, frequent and repeated baths, massages and oil application would be an example of the overuse of the tactile sense. Not to experience any contact on the skin would be non-use, and inappropriate exposure to hot and cold or injury or contact with rough or filthy things would be example of misuse. The tactile sense id unique because it pervades all sense organs.

And the mind in turn is inherent in the tactile sense. The mind is therefore pervasive. When generalized effect of all senses produced by the tactile sense is injurious, it is  is recognized as a result of  the discordant connection of sense organs with their objects. When the connection is made appropriate harmony is restored.

Action

Action could be of the body , of speech and of the mind. Here again, excessive use , non use and misuse are observed. Misuse of the body occurs in many ways such as the suppression or forcing of natural urges, practice of abnormal positions and breathing, and torturing the body.

The misuse of speech manifests in lying, harshness, irrelevance, using words of deception, talking at wrong time, holding forth in a hostile manner and verbal strife, fear, anguish, anger, greed, delusion, pride, jealously and wrong perception characterize the misuse of mind

The three fold misuse of body, speech and mind represent collectively imprudent conduct.

Time

Time is reckoned in terms of winter, summer and rains in a year; Each season is charecterized by cold, heat and moisture. When these characteristic overwhelm a given season they produce overuse; when they fail or are deficient there is non use, and when the opposite characteristic appear in a given season misuse of time occurs. Time also directs the process of direct change. In fact, the wisdom of the proper use of sense objects, avoiding the extremes of non-use and overuse as well as misuse, and the appropriateness of the time factor apply to the existence of all living beings as they do to the humans. Only death can result from the erroneous use of sense objects and time. 

To conclude the discordant connection between sense objects and organs, imprudent conduct and the  operation of gradual change are the causes of disorders; restoration of well being is brought about by their harmonious connection and good conduct.

Diseases

Diseases are three types : Inborn, exogenous and psychological.

Inborn diseases are cause by the derangement of body doshas. Exogenous are produces by external agents like spirits and organisms, poisonous air, fore and trauma. Psychologic causes of disease are desires remaining unfulfilled or taking an undesirable shape.

Disorders of psychological origin need to be treated differently from those of other types. Therefore the wise should closely examine what is appropriate and aggregable in contrast to the inappropriate and disagreeable, and pursue the former in seeking virtue, wealth and pleasure. Without these three values theirs can be no happiness or unhappiness in the world. and their right pursuit is neccessary to counteract the forces behind phycological disorders

One should also commune with savants and introspect, as far as possible, on one's safe place, family, time, strength and state of knowledge. 

To summarize, the treatment of mental illness consist of the right approach towards virtue, wealth and pleasure, association with the learned and reflection in the nature of the self and allied entities.

Disease Channels

The body has 3 channels for the movement of disease. :

• They exist on the surface
• Along the vital parts and joints inside
• And in the great channel extending at the core from the mouth to the stomach intestine and the anal orifice.  Mahastrora
• The surface channel runs on the skin and incorporates fluid moving there in including blood,
• The middle channel is home to  many vital organ,  heart, urinary bladder, head, bone and joints where ligaments and tendon join.
• The great channel at the core extends from the mouth down wards and includes the stomach intestine. 

Diseases manifest differently in the three channels.

On the surface, such maladies appears as glandular swellings, boils, carbuncle, wart, ulcers, moles, leprosy, cellulitis, swelling- gaseous and piles and abscesses.

Diseases traversing the middle channel come to light as paralysis of one side, convulsions, wasting, tuberculosis, bone and joint disorders, 

When the core channel comes the pathway diarrhea, vomiting, flatulence, fever, cough, shortness of breath, hiccup, constipation and enlargement of belly and spleen would appear. The internal consequence of cellulitis. swelling, gaseous swelling of the belly, piles and abscesses may also be seen.

Treatment

Treatment may be conducted in three ways : 3 ways, through sacred means, rational means, and psychological methods.

The sacred way prescribes the chanting of mantras, wearing of special herbs, and precious stones.. Performing religious act such as fasting, atonement, pilgrimage, surrender to god and offering oblations and gifts. 

The rational approach on the other hand, consist of proper administration of diet and medication.

The psychological method calls for the control of the mind and its withdrawal from the improper objects. However when a disease id caused by a disturbance of doshas, the treatment is confined to the body and to the three procedures (

• Internal cleansing
• External cleansing
• And Surgical operation
• Internal cleansing is achieved by  medication and diet, which enters the interior of the body and settle disturbances of doshas that are primarily caused by a diet.
• External cleansing consist of oil massage, bath, steam bath, application of plasters and showers of various kinds
• The list of surgical procedures includes excision, incision, puncture, rupture, scrapping, extraction, scarification, probing, sewing,  and the application of alkali and leeches.

When ill, sensible people seek relief promptly by internal or external cleaning or surgical procedure. Owing to confusion or error the immature fail to recognize the onset of disorder even as a careless person misses the approach of enemy. Mild to begin with  the disease advances, strikes deep and saps the strength and life of a careless individual who fails to take note of his  illness and seek remedial measures until he is a victim of a  grate suffering. He would than beg his keen wife and relatives to bring a physician- even at the cost of all he owns who could save him  when he is weakened and his senses are enfeeble. When he is racked by illness reduced to emanciation and is dying. With no one to protect him , death claim him by force much like an alligator that is caught and dragged away by the tail by a strong man.

Therefore those who desire happiness should seek appropriate treatment to counteract disease even before it appears or at any rate or when it makes its first appearance.

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