Review Article International Ayurvedic Medical Journal ISSN:2320 5091 A CRITICAL REVIEW OF FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES OF AYURVEDA Dinesh Kumar Meena1, Devanand Upadhyay2, Rani Singh3, B. K. Dwibedy4 1Junior residentIII, 2Senior resident, 3Assistant Professor, 4Professor & HOD Department of Siddhant Darshan, Faculty of Ayurveda, IMS, BHU, Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India ABSTRACT The fundamental principle holds a strong ground in Ayurveda. Every medical stream has its own science in which its matter is developed, evolved and explained. From creation of living to issues of health, disease and its treatment these fundamental principles are the root. These can be enumerated as Tridosha, Panchamahabhuta, Prakriti, Ojas, Dhatu, Mala, Agni, Manas, Atma etc. They are most unique and original approach to the material creation and it has all scope to incorporate the modern development in the elemental physics. The aim of Ayurveda is to maintain the proper equilibrium of dosa, dhatus, and mala constituent in order to preserve health in a healthy person and cure a disease in a diseased person.The presence of cognition as well as the absence of cognition is an indication of the mind. In the presence of senses with senses object and soul the man does not perceive a thing in the absence of mind that is to say that senses are unable to grasp the object in the absence of Manas. The term Ojas has been used in Ayurveda for the factor which prevents decay and degeneration of the body and provides strength and support against a disease. Concept of Agni which incorpo- rates all activities and factors responsible for digestion and metabolism in the living organism as known today, knowledge to these fundamental principles is a key to health and diseases. Maintenances of health depend on good and sound knowledge of these. Detail will be given in full paper. Keywords: Ayurveda, health, dosa, Agni, mind INTRODUCTION Ayurveda is the science of living and gives guidelines on what is beneficial being that imparts all the knowledge of and harmful to life. The basic principle of life. Ayurveda helps to maintain the health Ayurveda is a holistic system of health in a person by using the inherent principles care. It is an alternative branch of medicine of nature to bring the individual back into and treatment. The human body is more equilibrium with their true self. Ayurveda complex than any other form of life as on has been existing since the beginning of date. Purusha- the human body is aggre- time. Health is essential for enjoyment of gate of 25 elements, together with Atma- all the worldly pleasures in a righteous the spirit or soul. In order to explain the manner. Promotion of positive mental functional complexity of human body to health is essential for acquiring a state of be formed by three Dosha (humours), sev- eternal and supreme happiness, i.e. mok- en Dhatu (tissue) and Mala (metabolic end sha. It defines a useful and harmful, happy products) which are in equilibrium.1 and unhappy life and gives guidelines on DIFFERENT IMPORTANT FUNDA- what is beneficial, happy and unhappy life MENTAL PRINCIPLES AS PER Dinesh Kumar Meena et al: A Critical Review Of Fundamental Princples Of Ayurveda AYURVEDA ARE AS UNDER- (space), air, fire, water and earth. Just as in PANCHAMAHABHUTA THEORY- The nature, we too have these five elements in theory of Panchamahabhuta, have been us. When any of these elements are imbal- considered in basic principles of Ayurveda. anced in the environment, they will in turn All living beings are created by the combi- have an influence on us. The foods we eat nation of five basic elements and the soul. and the weather are just two examples of Acharya Charaka conceives each individ- the influence of these elements, certain ual i.e. the Purusaas well as the creation elements are seen to have an ability to i.e. the loka2to be Saddhatwatmaka consti- combine to create various physiological tution i.e. consisting of the Panchamaha- functions.6 bhutas plus avyakta Brahma. The Akasa These five Mahabhutas which are respon- (space), Vayu (air), Agni(fire), jala (water) sible for creation of the entire material and Prithvi (earth) are the five basic eter- world are not identical with space, air, fire, nal substances called Panchamahabhutas3 water and earth in the common sense. It is are the ultimate essential physical constit- often argued that these Panchamahabhutas uents from which the physical world is de- should not be considered as elements in rived. The various types of substances ex- the sense of modern physics because they isting in the universe are created by inter- are already the mixture of many other ele- mixing of the five Panchamahabhutas ments.7 Each gross bhuta is composed with each other in a special and specific ofparamanuschronological development manner called Panchapanchaka.4The ho- of each bhuta has been explained via utta- mology of the five elements in food and rottaranupravesh(i.e. each next bhuta has medication on the one hand and in the earlier bhuta ) while the functional pan- body constituents on the other, has pro- chamahabhautikadravya is an- found implications in the practice of medi- yonyaanupravesh ( i.e.eachdravya is com- cine. Disorders of the body are the mani- posed by mixture of these bhuta units) and festations of perturbations in the equilibri- thus a gross bhuta is already a Panchama- um of body constituents including dosas. habhauticstructure. Susruta clearly de- Perturbations involves the increase or de- scribed that these bhutas are intermixed crease of dhatus, which are restored to the with one another with predominance of normal range by administering substances one of them manifesting into the specific with qualities opposed to those of the rele- characteristic of the vant dhatus and dosas. This would be same.8Panchamahabhuta have been con- hardly possible in the absence of the ho- sidered to be five because the Indriyas are mology between the body and the adminis- only also five. tered substances in terms of their composi- TABLE1: THE PROPERTIES AND tion.5A person is seen in Ayurveda as a FUNCTIONS OF THE BASIC ELE- unique individual made up of five primary MENTS9 elements. These elements are ether Prithvi (Earth) Jala (Wa- Agni (Energy) Vayu Akash ter) (Air) (Space) 1.Pr Heavy, rough, Heavy, Light, rough, sharp, clear Light, Light, op- hard, slow, In- fluid, soft, minute, atomic, hot, dry lu- rough, smooth, ertie active, steady, inactive, minous, active spread high clear, soft, Inac- 2076 www.iamj.in IAMJ: Volume 3; Issue 7; July- 2015 Dinesh Kumar Meena et al: A Critical Review Of Fundamental Princples Of Ayurveda s firm, clear, slimy, speed minute, tive, clear dense, large, cold, atomic, minute, bulky, neither dense, neither neither hot hot nor cold Large hot nor nor cold, molecules cold, ac- separation, viscid wet, tive differentia- moving in move- tion the direc- ment tion of gravity 2.M Downward Downward Upward Centrifu- Absent ove gal men t 3.Ta Sweet, slightly Sweet, Pungent, slightly Astringent Astrin- Taste not ste Astringent slightly gent, manifest Astringent slightly salty and bitter, sour Sour and Salty 4.Sp Smell Taste Vision Touch Sound ecial senc e 5.Sp Nose Tongue Eye Skin Ear ecial or- gan 6.Bo All organs in All fluids All over the body in mani- All body All body dy the body, in the fest or unmanifest form activi- activities steady and body ties, pul- large body sation and all gases 7. Nails, bones, Body flu- Pitta, heat, lustre Inspired All body Part tendons, teeth ids blood, air, Ex- passage of muscles skin, fatty tissue pired air, and cavities the stool, hair, spi- kapha pit- all move- bod nal cord ta, urine, move- y stool, ments in sweat, se- the body men. 8.Di Rice, Wheat, Milk, Spices e.g. pepper(piper Various Popcorn, et mineral salt, fruits longum),Ginger(gingiberoffi gases(air, Guduchi 2077 www.iamj.in IAMJ: Volume 3; Issue 7; July- 2015 Dinesh Kumar Meena et al: A Critical Review Of Fundamental Princples Of Ayurveda carrot, beet cinalis), hingu(Asafoetida), oxy- (Tinospora Shatavari Chitraka( Plumbago zeylan- gen),smo cordifolia) icum),Bhallatak(Semicarpus ke of anacardium),Garlic(allium various cepa) sub- stance TRIDOSA THEORY- The theory of of living body constituent viz- Vata, Pitta Tridosa is further biological application of and Kapha.10 Thus Vata, Pitta and Kapha the concept of Panchamahabhuta. De- are Panchamahabhautic structures with pending upon the rate of the predominance predominance structures with predomi- of Vayu, Teja, and Jala, the Panchamaha- nance of one are the other of the five the bhuta and Panchamahabhautic structures bhutas.11 have been categorised in three categories Table No2: Dosa Vata Pitta Kapha Predominance of Vayu, Akasa Agni Jala, Prthvi Mahabhuta These three Panchamahabhautic dosas reactions of hormones and enzymes repre- constitute the living being, they are con- sent the pitta system. All kinds of move- sidered dosas because they have a tenden- ments and activities in the living organism cy to get vitiated and to vitiate each other. are attributed to the Vata system. A bal- They are also considered as dhatus be- anced functioning of these three compart- cause they uphold the body. Thus the liv- ments of a living being presents with ing body is a Panchamahabhautic struc- health. A disequilibrium and disharmony ture derived by the transformation of these of these three constituents is the cause of Panchamahabhutas into biologically ef- illness.13Susruta includes Rakta also as one fective matters like tridosa and dhatus. So of the dosas and considers the integrity of long as the Panchamahabhautic composi- Vata, pitta, Kapha and Rakta as the basis tion of these dosas and dhatus remain in of life.14 equilibrium a man remains healthy.