Introduction
Ayurveda the science of life is eternal, permanent, and it has no beginning. The origin of Ayurveda was dated back when Lord Brahma recollected the science of Ayurveda and revealed the knowledge to Prajapati Daksha and from him it was transferred to Aswins then to Indra and finally to Sage Bharadwaja. The period up to Indra was called Vedic period.[1] From sage Bharadwaja the knowledge of Ayurveda was transferred to Agnivesa, Bhela and other disciples. This period was the golden era of Ayurveda, called the Samhitha period which extended from the time of Sage Bharadwaja to the time of Acharya Vagbhata. Samhitha period witnessed the development and spread of Ayurveda in both India and abroad. Many outstanding treatises were developed in Ayurveda during this golden period. Sages like Agnivesa, Bhela, Parasara, Charaka, Susrutha, Haritha, Vagbhata; all attained much popularity during this period. Through their eminent works Acharya Charaka, Susrutha and Vagbhata were entitled as the Brihatrayaas of Samhitha period.
Vagbhata shines as a bright luminary in the field of Ayurveda. Descendent of a family of reputed physicians he strived hard to preserve and propagate the knowledge of medicine. We would have lost much of the knowledge of many branches unless he had collected the essence of all the 8 branches of Ayurveda by churning a large number of ancient texts. Thus, a great compiler, the first one known so far, he set the trend for preparing such books and was followed by many authors later. He was an embodiment of medical knowledge of ancient India, standing at the threshold of medieval India and passing on the ancient knowledge to the next generation. Vagbhata has introduced a distinct method and clearly perceivable system in his work. Though Vagbhata has adopted the teachings and doctrines of both Charaka and Susrutha as his basis, he has given such a clear outline to his subject that the student comprehends it readily and is always able to rely upon the knowledge thus acquired without suspicion and fear. It may safely be said that Vagbhata has cleared the way where formerly there were mazes and pitfalls which only a close study could remove. Thus, Acharya Vagbhata is rightly counted as one among the Brihatrayaas –the great three masters of Ayurveda along with Charaka and Susrutha.
Ashtanga Sangraha of Acharya Vagbhata is an ancient authoritative text on Ayurveda, studied since many centuries by students, scholars and practitioners of Indian medicine. Because of its archaic style of composition and terse language, certain amount of difficulty is being experienced. This work is intended to provide an insight on Ashtanga Sangraha written by Acharya Vagbhata.
Aim and Objective
The aim of this study is to provide an insight on Ashtanga Sangraha written by Acharya Vagbhata.
Materials and Methods
All sorts of references related to Ashtanga Sangraha was collected and compiled from various Ayurvedic texts.
Discussion
Authorship
The text Ashtanga Sangraha itself provides the foremost knowledge about the author. In one of the concluding verses of the text the author furnishes his own whereabouts as follows –“there was a great physician by name Vagbhata, who was my grandfather and I bear his name, from him was born Simhagupta and I am from him born in the land of Sindhu. Having acquired sound knowledge from Avalokita, the preceptor and even more from my father, and after studying a large number of texts of medical science, this treatise named Ashtanga Sangraha has been written”.
Period of Ashtanga Sangraha
A wide range of opinions persists regarding time period of Ashtanga Sangraha. Some of views are: 1) first or second century BC 2) second or third century AD. 3) Posterior to Charaka and Susrutha Samhitha and anterior to Yajnavalkya. 4) Between 2nd and 6th centuries 5) 5th or 6th century about 550AD 6) between Kamasootra (400AD) and Varahamihira (505-587 AD) 7) late in 6th or early in 7th century about 625AD 8) between 7th or 8th century AD 9) between 1010 and 1055AD (during reign of King Bhoja of Dhara).[2] Based on various internal and external evidences modern Ayurvedic Scholars fixed period of Ashtanga Sangraha as 6th or 7th century AD. This has to be proved with further clarifications in future.[3]
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