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 Ayurveda
, the science of life, prevention and longevity is the oldest and
most holistic medical system available on the planet today. It was
placed in written form over 5,000 years ago in India, it was said
to be a world medicine dealing with both body and the spirit. Before
the advent of writing, the ancient wisdom of this healing system
was a part of the spiritual tradition of the Sanatana Dharma (Universal
Religion), or Vedic Religion. VedaVyasa, the famous sage, shaktavesha
avatar of Vishnu, put into writing the complete knowledge of Ayurveda,
along with the more directly spiritual insights of self realization
into a body of scriptural literature called the Vedas and the Vedic
literatures.
There were originally four main books of spirituality, which included
among other topics, health, astrology, spiritual business, government,
army, poetry and spiritual living and behavior. These books are
known as the four Vedas; Rik, Sama, Yajur and Atharva. The Rikeda,
a compilation of verse on the nature of existence, is the oldest
surviving book of any Indo-European language (3000 B.C.). The Rik
Veda (also known as Rig Veda) refers to the cosmology known as Sankhya
which lies at the base of both Ayurveda and Yoga, contains verses
on the nature of health and disease, pathogenesis and principles
of treatment. Among the Rik Veda are found discussions of the three
dosas, Vayu. Pitta and Kapha, and the use of herbs to heal the diseases
of the mind and body and to foster longevity. The Atharva Veda lists
the eight divisions of Ayurveda: Internal Medicine, Surgery of Head
and Neck, Opthamology and Otorinolaryngology, Surgery, Toxicology,
Psychiatry, Pediatrics, V Gerontology or Science of Rejuvenation,
and the Science of Fertility. The Vedic Sages took the passages
from the Vedic Scriptures relating to Ayurveda and compiled separate
books dealing only with Ayurveda. One of these books, called the
Atreya Samhita is the oldest medical book in the world! The Vedic
Brahmanas were not only priests performing religious rites and ceremonies,
they also became Vaidyas (physicians of Ayurveda). The sage-physician-surgeons
of the time were the same sages or seers, deeply devoted holy people,
who saw health as an integral part of spiritual life. It is said
that they received their training of Ayurveda through direct cognition
during meditation. In other words, the knowledge of the use of various
methods of healing, prevention, longevity and surgery came through
Divine revelation; there was no guessing or testing and harming
animals. These revelations were transcribed from the oral tradition
into book form, interspersed with the other aspects of life and
spirituality. What is fascinating is Ayurveda's use of herbs, foods,
aromas, gems, colors, yoga, mantras, lifestyle and surgery. Consequently
Ayurveda grew into a respected and widely used system of healing
in India. Around 1500 B.C., Ayurveda was delineated into eight specific
branches of medicine. There were two main schools of Ayurveda at
that time. Atreya- the school of physicians, and Dhanvantari - the
school of surgeons. These two schools made Ayurveda a more scientifically
verifiable and classifiable medical system.
 People
from numerous countries came to Indian Ayurvedic schools to learn
about this world medicine and the religious scriptures it sprang
from. Learned men from China, Tibet, the Greeks, Romans, Egyptians,
Afghanistanis, Persians, and more traveled to learn the complete
wisdom and bring it back to their own countries. Ayurvedic texts
were translated in Arabic and under physicians such as Avicenna
and Razi Sempion, both of whom quoted Indian Ayurvedic texts, established
Islamic medicine. This style became popular in Europe, and helped
to form the foundation of the European tradition in medicine.
In 16th Century Europe, Paracelsus, who is known as the father of
modem Western medicine, practiced and propagated a system of medicine
which borrowed heavily from Ayurveda.
There are two main re-organizers of Ayurveda whose works are still
existing in tact today - Charak and Sushrut. The third major treatise
is called the Ashtanga Hridaya, which is a concise version of the
works of Charak and Sushrut. Thus the three main Ayurvedic texts
that are still used today are the Charak Samhita (compilation of
the oldest book Atreya Samhita), Sushrut Samhita and the Ashtangha
Hridaya Samhita. These books are believed to be over 1,200 years
old. It is because these texts still contain the original and complete
knowledge of this Ayurvedic world medicine, that Ayurveda is known
today as the only complete medical system still in existence. Other
forms of medicine from various cultures, although parallel are missing
parts of the original information.
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