Waking up on a Monday morning, she felt a tinge of pain in her head. A banging pain shook her and she sank back into her bed. But that was an important day for her. Up she was, popped up an aspirin and left for work.
This happens every other day to people across the globe. Taking up tablets and walking up to the hospital for what not reasons has become not unusual. Every year 50,000 Indian medical graduates take up the noble profession to serve the society. But have you ever wondered, how our country progressed up to this stage? The medical knowledge that we have today is an evolution of practices and trial and errors through various communities and regions. With pride, one has to look back at the highly advanced medical technology that had prevailed in our ancient culture. Let us take a journey through history and look back what we were and what we have lost today.
The Indus valley civilization, dating back to 3300 BC have been the first proper settlement in our country. Right from there, we have evidence of existence of medical practices from the Harappa and Mohenjendaro archaeological remains. The Indus people have used drugs derived from plants, animal products and minerals.
Around 800 BC, the Shaastrakarma, the art of surgery rose to development. Sushruta, made his compendium – The “Sushruta Samhitha”. He studied Human Anatomy so long back and his principles were defined and documented. He says that the body that is studied should not be too old or die of poison or any severe disease. The intestine is cleaned and the body is wrapped in grass or bast, which is the inner bark of trees and is placed in a cage to protect it from animals. This cage is placed in a river with a gentle current allowing it to soften for seven days. Then the body is removed and is brushed off with bamboo and grassroots. He claims that now every part of the body, inner or outer will be visible to the eye. Starting from anatomy, he has given 300 surgical procedures and 120 surgical instruments. He is titled as the “Father of Surgery” and is regarded to have given the best and outstanding commentary on the medical science of surgery. The numerous techniques which he had understood gives us a comparison on where we stand in the modern day technology.
Incision methods to removal of glands were also demonstrated by the great man. The days when Ultrasound scan was not available, he was able to characterize the sequential development of the foetus. He used wine to dull the pain in place of the anesthesia that we use today. Around 1120 diseases were documented and their diagnosis methods were stated by him. He was an expertise in the cataract surgery and he used a special tool known as the “Jabamukhi salaka”, a curved needle that was used to remove the phlegm obstructing the vision. Those days he was also able to perform the Rhinoplasty- art of plastic surgery. His picture of the plastic surgery was really meticulous, detailed and comprehensive and was found to be successful. The descriptions of his surgery procedures are astoundingly similar to modern day advanced surgery techniques. Around 2600 years before the world knew about surgical methodologies, this Indian was practicing his high precision skill in day to day basis.
The other realm of medicine was the Ayurveda. Around the same time, scholars Agnivesa and Atreya have contributed their Treatise in Ayurveda. The works of Agnivesa and Atreya were compiled by Charaka in the “Charaka Samhita” and he came to be known as the Father of medicine. He believed on the fact that diseases came about by the lifestyle and environmental factors. Charaka was very persistent on prevention rather than the cure for a disease. He focused more on the digestive system, metabolisms and the immune system. He rightly pointed out that our heart was the controlling center. His principle was that the body functions on basically three doshas- bile, phlegm and wind and that the body becomes sick when the balance is disturbed. He gave drugs to restore the balance. Long before Mendel, Charaka wrote about genetics like the factors that are responsible for the sex of the child. Just like we study the color blindness as a Mendelian trait, Charaka has theorized blindness as a factor arising from both the ovum and sperm.
After this age, trade developed and our medicinal systems grew with cultural contacts with other parts of the world. During the Indo- Greek rule around 10BC, our system influenced the Greek system of medicine too! Then civilizations changed. Modern technology came into rule pushing our reputation.
Today, lots of research have been taken to understand the Indian system of traditional medicine and try to implement that in our modern day technologies and find solutions to deadly diseases. Efforts are taken to make the principles recognized and to bring it to the hands of the scientific community. For an example, the search for drug molecules have let us take a journey back to our ancient culture. Ethnobotany, a study on plants used by primitive and aboriginal people has paved way for chemists to look at a different route for search of drug molecules.
Bringing back our medical history to life by our current advancements in biotechnology, there is a possibility of leading to development of safe drugs and efficient practices.
References:
- https://www.ncbs.res.in/HistoryScienceSociety/content/overview-indian-healing-traditions
- A G Fakim, 2006, ‘Medicinal Plants: Traditions of yesterday and drugs of tomorrow’, Molecular Aspects of Medicine’, vol.27,pp.1-93.
- Kutumbiah P, 1962, ‘Ancient Indian Medicine’, Chennai: Orient Longman.