Atharvaveda and Charaka Samhita
by Laxmi Maji | 2021 | 143,541 words
This page relates ‘Treatment of Kshetriya disease� found in the study on diseases and remedies found in the Atharvaveda and Charaka-samhita. These texts deal with Ayurveda—the ancient Indian Science of life—which lays down the principles for keeping a sound health involving the use of herbs, roots and leaves. The Atharvaveda refers to one of the four Vedas (ancient Sanskrit texts encompassing all kinds of knowledge and science) containing many details on Ayurveda, which is here taken up for study.
Go directly to: Footnotes.
Treatment of Kṣetriya disease
In Atharvaveda the disease Kṣetriya is treated in the hymn II.8, 10 and III.7. Since there is a great uncertainty regarding the nature of Kṣetriya disease, some hymns are addressed to a plant called Kṣetriya–Nāśanīvīrut along with a prayer addressed to the stars to liberate the ties of the disease and it is believed that the above-mentioned plant successfully destroys the disease. The disease is also called Yakṣma[1]. This disease is also regarded as family disease or hereditary disease[2]. For the cure of Kṣetriya, the practices of the ś첹 ūٰ are both lengthy and arcane[3]. The priest washes the patient outside the house while reciting II.8.1-2 at dawn. Then while reciting II.8.3 he pulverizes the plant mentioned in the stanza, natural mud and mud from an anthill, sews this up into the skin of a freshly slain animal and fastens it as an amulet upon the patient.
The patient is then placed in the ditch and the priest gives him the water to drink and lets him wash with water. Again, in ś첹 ūٰ, a different method of treatment is recorded: While reciting III.7 the priest fastens an amulet made from the horn of an antelope on the patient, gives him water to drink and lets him wash himself water which has been warmed by quenching in it a kindled piece of an antelope’s skin pierced by pegs. The patient is then offered as much barley as can be taken up by a single grasp of his hand. Then food is given to him[4].The splinters of the holy Kāmpīla wood are also used against Kṣetriya[5].
Footnotes and references:
[1]:
[2]:
Dāḍila calls it -kaulovyādhi� | Keśava states�pitṛparyāyāgata� kṣetriyaroga� kuṣṭhakṣayaroga� ṇīdṣa� sarvaśarīrasphoṭakāra |
[3]:
ܻ岹峾ٲⲹ屹ⲹپ � || apeyamiti vyucchantyām || babhroriti mantroktamākṛtiloṣṭavalmīkauparilikhya jīvakoṣaṇyāmutsīvya badhnāti || namaste lāṅgalebhya iti sīrayogamadhiśiro'vasiñcati || Բ� sanisrasākṣebhya iti śūnyaśālāyāmapsu sampātānānayati || ܳٳٲ� jaratkhāte saśālātṛṇe || tasminnācamatyaplāvayati || (ś첹 ūٰ 26.41-43; 27.1-4); Atharvavedīya–ś� Gṛhyasūtra� (Dārilakeśavayosa�-kṣiptaṭīkaya sahita�), trans. Udayanarayana Sinha, Varanasi, Chowkhamba Sanskrit Series office, 2009, pp. 62-63.
[4]:
hariṇasyeti bandhanapāyanācamanaśa� kudhānajvālenāvanakṣatre'vasiñcati || amitamātrāyā� sakṛd gṛhītānyavānāvapati || ٲ� prayacchati || (ś첹 ūٰ 27.29-31); Atharvavedīya–ś� Gṛhyasūtra� (Dārilakeśavayosa�-kṣiptaṭīkaya sahita�), trans. Udayanarayana Sinha, Varanasi, Chowkhamba Sanskrit Series office, 2009, p. 64.
[5]:
kṣetriyāttveti catuṣpathe kāmpīlaśkalai� parvasu bad dhvā piñjulībhirāplāvayati || (ś첹 ūٰ 27.7); Atharvavedīya–ś� Gṛhyasūtra� (Dārilakeśavayosa�-kṣiptaṭīkaya sahita�), trans.Udayanarayana Sinha, Varanasi, Chowkhamba Sanskrit Series office, 2009, p. 63.