Sushruta

By Dr Raghuram Y.S. MD (Ay) & Dr Manasa, B.A.M.S Sapta Upakramas are the treatments used in ancient days for surgical interventions and procedures especially for treatment of acute /chronic wounds, their complications and to prevent their relapse. Their utility can be extended in skillful ways to treat other systemic diseases also with changes in treatment designing. Sapta Upakramas are 7 kinds of treatments which are explained in Sushruta Samhita, ‘Amapakvaishaniyam Adhyayam’ Sutra sthana 17 th chapter, Verses 54. Sapta = seven, Upakrama = treatments. Master Sushruta has just mentioned the names of these 7 kinds of treatment without explaining them in detail. The verse which highlights the names of these 7 specialized treatments is the last verse of this chapter. So we get a question, what might be the clinical or surgical utility of the procedures which are not detailed in the texts? Read – Magnification of 7 Upakramas– Master Sushruta has just given a synopsis of these treatments in Sutra Sthana, a section of treatises wherein things need to be said in nutshell. He also had a magnified version of these 7 treatments and called it as ‘Shashti Upakrama’ i.e. ’60 kinds of treatments’. So precisely, Sushruta has hidden ‘60 precious treatment procedures’ within the core of 7 treatments only to present them in a magnified way in the later context. Sushruta has explained these 60 kinds of specialized treatments in the first chapter of Chikitsa Sthana section which mainly deals ...

• v • t • e The Sushruta Samhita ( सुश्रुतसंहिता, Suśrutasaṃhitā, Compendium of the The Suśrutasaṃhitā is of great historical importance because it includes historically unique chapters describing surgical training, instruments and procedures which is still followed by modern science of surgery. Sushruta Samhita History [ ] That person alone is fit to nurse or to attend the bedside of a patient, who is cool-headed and pleasant in his demeanor, does not speak ill of any body, is strong and attentive to the requirements of the sick, and strictly and indefatigably follows the instructions of the physician. — Sushruta Samhita Book 1, Chapter XXXIV Translator: Bhishagratna Date [ ] Over a century ago, the scholar Suśrutasaṃhitā continues to be widely and uncritically cited in spite of much intervening scholarship. Scores of scholars have subsequently published opinions on the date of the work, and these many views have been summarized by Meulenbeld in his History of Indian Medical Literature. Central to the problem of chronology is the fact that the Suśrutasaṃhitā is the work of several hands. The internal tradition recorded in manuscript colophons and by medieval commentators makes clear that an old version of the Suśrutasaṃhitā consisted of sections 1-5, with the sixth part having been added by a later author. However, the oldest manuscripts we have of the work already include the sixth section. The most detailed and extensive consideration of the date of the Suśrutasaṃhitā i...

Choose Script Here v PROLOGUE Suśrutasaṁhitā is one of the 'Great trio' (Br̥hattrayī) and considered as popular voluminous ancient text of Āyurvēda. It is expounded by Kāśīrāja Divōdāsa Dhanvantari and compiled by Suśruta, who was the son of Sage Viśvāmitra, and disciple of Divōdāsa Dhanvantari, the King of Kāśī. As per the Dalhaṇa Ācārya, commentator of Suśrutasaṁhitā, Sage Nāgārjuna was the 'Pratisaṁskartā' or redactor of this Suśrutasaṁhitā. Emendation or Pāṭhaśuddhi, of Suśrutasaṁhitā was done by Candraṭa, the son of Tīsaṭa. Divōdāsa and his disciple Suśruta are historical sage physicians probably belong to 1500 B.C and 1000 B.C., Suśruta renowned as the " Father of Surgery". The compendium of Suśrutasaṁhitā is the comprehensive treatise on the entire medical discipline. Entire saṁhitā can be divided in two parts, the original tantra is pūrvārdha having five sections and the later half uttaratantra is added afterwards. Those two parts together encompass with a detailed note on specialties like Śalyatantra (Surgery), Śālākya (ENT & Ophtholmology), Kāyacikitsā (General medicine), Kaumārabhr̥tya (Pediatrics), Rasāyanatantra (Rejuvinators), Agadatantra (Toxicology), Vājīkaraṇa (Aphrodisiacs). It also dealt in a great detail about the fundamnetal concepts of medicine such as Anatomy, Physiology ( Śārīrasthāna), Pathology ( Rōganidāna) to attain proficiency of medicine. In this compendium, contrary to the popular belief that, '.........śārīrē suśrutō śrēṣṭhaḥ', all of the ma...

While almost everyone practising surgery in India and indeed around the world recognises the pioneering contributions of Sushruta towards establishing surgery as an invaluable modality of treatment and often refer to him as the ‘Father of surgery’, his earliest contributions in the field of anatomy have not attracted similar attention. The fact that in his ‘Sushruta Samhita’, there is an exclusive section dedicated to the study of human anatomy by the name of ‘Sarira Stahna’ is not so well known. In the days, 600 years before the birth of Christ, when the human body after death was considered sacred by the prevailing religious texts or ‘Shastras’, not to be desecrated by knife but respectfully cremated on a pyre, how Sushruta performed the dissections and documented the anatomy of not only the adult human but also the foetus in various stages of development is an amazing example of the earliest scientific research ever conducted in the field of anatomy. This paper attempts to briefly trace the history of anatomy and Sushruta’s contribution to this field. It also dwells in the lesser-known arena of an indigenous simulation laboratory devised for surgical training by Sushruta way back in 600 B.C. Ancient civilisations of India, Greece, Mesopotamia, Egypt, and China have shaped the study of medicine and human anatomy, but the Indian sages, with their Vedic philosophies and Ayurvedic tradition, offered the world the oldest known systems of medicine, preceding the rest of the w...

Sushruta (c. 7th or 6th century BCE) was a physician in ancient Sushruta Samhita (Sushruta's Compendium) is considered the oldest text in the world on plastic surgery and is highly regarded as one of the Great Trilogy of Ayurvedic Medicine; the other two being the Charaka Samhita, which preceded it, and the Astanga Hridaya, which followed it. Ayurvedic Medicine is among the oldest medical systems in the world, dating back to the Vedic Period of India (c. 5000 BCE). The term Ayurveda translates as “life knowledge” or “life The Great Trilogy of Ayurvedic Medicine describes surgical procedures, diagnostic techniques, and treatments for various illnesses and injuries and even provides instructions for physicians on determining how long a patient will live (in the Charaka Samhita). The work of Sushruta standardized and established earlier knowledge through careful descriptions of how a physician should practice the art as well as specific procedures including performing plastic surgery reconstructions and the removal of cataracts. YouTube Follow us on YouTube! The Astanga Hridaya combines the works of Charaka (c. 7th or 6th century BCE) and Sushruta, presenting a comprehensive text on both surgical and medical approaches to treatment, while also offering its own unique perspective. Sushruta's work, however, offers the greatest insight into the medical arts of the three owing to the commentary he provides in-between or included in discussions of various ailments and treatment. S...

• v • t • e The Sushruta Samhita ( सुश्रुतसंहिता, Suśrutasaṃhitā, Compendium of the The Suśrutasaṃhitā is of great historical importance because it includes historically unique chapters describing surgical training, instruments and procedures which is still followed by modern science of surgery. Sushruta Samhita History [ ] That person alone is fit to nurse or to attend the bedside of a patient, who is cool-headed and pleasant in his demeanor, does not speak ill of any body, is strong and attentive to the requirements of the sick, and strictly and indefatigably follows the instructions of the physician. — Sushruta Samhita Book 1, Chapter XXXIV Translator: Bhishagratna Date [ ] Over a century ago, the scholar Suśrutasaṃhitā continues to be widely and uncritically cited in spite of much intervening scholarship. Scores of scholars have subsequently published opinions on the date of the work, and these many views have been summarized by Meulenbeld in his History of Indian Medical Literature. Central to the problem of chronology is the fact that the Suśrutasaṃhitā is the work of several hands. The internal tradition recorded in manuscript colophons and by medieval commentators makes clear that an old version of the Suśrutasaṃhitā consisted of sections 1-5, with the sixth part having been added by a later author. However, the oldest manuscripts we have of the work already include the sixth section. The most detailed and extensive consideration of the date of the Suśrutasaṃhitā i...

Choose Script Here v PROLOGUE Suśrutasaṁhitā is one of the 'Great trio' (Br̥hattrayī) and considered as popular voluminous ancient text of Āyurvēda. It is expounded by Kāśīrāja Divōdāsa Dhanvantari and compiled by Suśruta, who was the son of Sage Viśvāmitra, and disciple of Divōdāsa Dhanvantari, the King of Kāśī. As per the Dalhaṇa Ācārya, commentator of Suśrutasaṁhitā, Sage Nāgārjuna was the 'Pratisaṁskartā' or redactor of this Suśrutasaṁhitā. Emendation or Pāṭhaśuddhi, of Suśrutasaṁhitā was done by Candraṭa, the son of Tīsaṭa. Divōdāsa and his disciple Suśruta are historical sage physicians probably belong to 1500 B.C and 1000 B.C., Suśruta renowned as the " Father of Surgery". The compendium of Suśrutasaṁhitā is the comprehensive treatise on the entire medical discipline. Entire saṁhitā can be divided in two parts, the original tantra is pūrvārdha having five sections and the later half uttaratantra is added afterwards. Those two parts together encompass with a detailed note on specialties like Śalyatantra (Surgery), Śālākya (ENT & Ophtholmology), Kāyacikitsā (General medicine), Kaumārabhr̥tya (Pediatrics), Rasāyanatantra (Rejuvinators), Agadatantra (Toxicology), Vājīkaraṇa (Aphrodisiacs). It also dealt in a great detail about the fundamnetal concepts of medicine such as Anatomy, Physiology ( Śārīrasthāna), Pathology ( Rōganidāna) to attain proficiency of medicine. In this compendium, contrary to the popular belief that, '.........śārīrē suśrutō śrēṣṭhaḥ', all of the ma...

By Dr Raghuram Y.S. MD (Ay) & Dr Manasa, B.A.M.S Sapta Upakramas are the treatments used in ancient days for surgical interventions and procedures especially for treatment of acute /chronic wounds, their complications and to prevent their relapse. Their utility can be extended in skillful ways to treat other systemic diseases also with changes in treatment designing. Sapta Upakramas are 7 kinds of treatments which are explained in Sushruta Samhita, ‘Amapakvaishaniyam Adhyayam’ Sutra sthana 17 th chapter, Verses 54. Sapta = seven, Upakrama = treatments. Master Sushruta has just mentioned the names of these 7 kinds of treatment without explaining them in detail. The verse which highlights the names of these 7 specialized treatments is the last verse of this chapter. So we get a question, what might be the clinical or surgical utility of the procedures which are not detailed in the texts? Read – Magnification of 7 Upakramas– Master Sushruta has just given a synopsis of these treatments in Sutra Sthana, a section of treatises wherein things need to be said in nutshell. He also had a magnified version of these 7 treatments and called it as ‘Shashti Upakrama’ i.e. ’60 kinds of treatments’. So precisely, Sushruta has hidden ‘60 precious treatment procedures’ within the core of 7 treatments only to present them in a magnified way in the later context. Sushruta has explained these 60 kinds of specialized treatments in the first chapter of Chikitsa Sthana section which mainly deals ...

While almost everyone practising surgery in India and indeed around the world recognises the pioneering contributions of Sushruta towards establishing surgery as an invaluable modality of treatment and often refer to him as the ‘Father of surgery’, his earliest contributions in the field of anatomy have not attracted similar attention. The fact that in his ‘Sushruta Samhita’, there is an exclusive section dedicated to the study of human anatomy by the name of ‘Sarira Stahna’ is not so well known. In the days, 600 years before the birth of Christ, when the human body after death was considered sacred by the prevailing religious texts or ‘Shastras’, not to be desecrated by knife but respectfully cremated on a pyre, how Sushruta performed the dissections and documented the anatomy of not only the adult human but also the foetus in various stages of development is an amazing example of the earliest scientific research ever conducted in the field of anatomy. This paper attempts to briefly trace the history of anatomy and Sushruta’s contribution to this field. It also dwells in the lesser-known arena of an indigenous simulation laboratory devised for surgical training by Sushruta way back in 600 B.C. Ancient civilisations of India, Greece, Mesopotamia, Egypt, and China have shaped the study of medicine and human anatomy, but the Indian sages, with their Vedic philosophies and Ayurvedic tradition, offered the world the oldest known systems of medicine, preceding the rest of the w...

Sushruta (c. 7th or 6th century BCE) was a physician in ancient Sushruta Samhita (Sushruta's Compendium) is considered the oldest text in the world on plastic surgery and is highly regarded as one of the Great Trilogy of Ayurvedic Medicine; the other two being the Charaka Samhita, which preceded it, and the Astanga Hridaya, which followed it. Ayurvedic Medicine is among the oldest medical systems in the world, dating back to the Vedic Period of India (c. 5000 BCE). The term Ayurveda translates as “life knowledge” or “life The Great Trilogy of Ayurvedic Medicine describes surgical procedures, diagnostic techniques, and treatments for various illnesses and injuries and even provides instructions for physicians on determining how long a patient will live (in the Charaka Samhita). The work of Sushruta standardized and established earlier knowledge through careful descriptions of how a physician should practice the art as well as specific procedures including performing plastic surgery reconstructions and the removal of cataracts. YouTube Follow us on YouTube! The Astanga Hridaya combines the works of Charaka (c. 7th or 6th century BCE) and Sushruta, presenting a comprehensive text on both surgical and medical approaches to treatment, while also offering its own unique perspective. Sushruta's work, however, offers the greatest insight into the medical arts of the three owing to the commentary he provides in-between or included in discussions of various ailments and treatment. S...