For a person desiring medhā and long life, the passage first describes sun-drying the fruits of white avalgujā, making them into a fine powder, mixing the powder with jaggery, and keeping it in a greased jar buried in a heap of grain for seven nights. It is then given before sunrise, in an amount suited to the strength of a person whose doṣas have been eliminated, followed by warm water. Residence in the prescribed chamber follows the method stated for bhallātaka. After digestion, the person bathes with cool water in the afternoon and eats śāli or ṣaṣṭika rice with milk sweetened with sugar. Six months of this regimen are traditionally said to remove pāpmā, promote strength and complexion, confer retention and recitation of learning and memory, preserve health, and yield a hundred-year lifespan. For a person described as having kuṣṭha, pāṇḍu, or udara, the text next prescribes a half-pala bolus of the black variety mixed with cow urine before the sun has lost its redness, followed in the afternoon by rice with ghee and unsalted āmalaka soup. A month of use is traditionally associated with memory, health, and a hundred-year lifespan. The same method is assigned to citraka root and rajanī, except that two palas is the maximum amount for citraka root. The next regimen is for a person who has undergone elimination and gradual dietary restoration and entered the prescribed chamber. Maṇḍūkaparṇī juice, consecrated with a thousand oblations, is mixed with milk according to strength and drunk, with milk also given as the accompanying drink. After digestion, barley food with milk is taken. Alternatively, the plant is eaten with sesame for three months with milk as the accompanying drink, and after digestion the diet is milk, ghee, and rice. The text traditionally attributes spiritual lustre, retention and recitation of learning, and a hundred-year lifespan to this use. It also describes eating it for three nights after a three-night fast, followed thereafter by milk and ghee, or drinking a bilva-sized bolus mixed with milk for twelve nights; the latter is said to confer medhā and a hundred-year lifespan.
The commentary identifies avalgujā as bākucī and specifies that the white variety is intended first. It understands kṛṣṇā as black bākucī, so the bolus of black avalgujā fruit is mixed with cow urine. It preserves a disagreement: Jejjaṭa reads kṛṣṇā as pippalī, but Gayī rejects that reading. Because the text gives two palas as the maximum for citraka but states no amount for rajanī, the commentator infers that rajanī is given as a one-pala bolus according to the earlier rule. The citraka intended here is said to be the black-flowered kind. Maṇḍūkaparṇī, including its root and flower, is to be eaten with sesame, and milk is taken as the accompanying drink at the time of eating. Brahmavarcasin is explained as radiant or spiritually lustrous. The word enām is interpreted as brāhmī, and the bilva-sized bolus is understood as its paste bolus, drunk with milk.
Key terms
avalgujA (avalgujā)
Identified by the commentary as bākucī; the first preparation uses its white variety.
hRutadoSha (hṛtadoṣa)
A person whose doṣas have been eliminated before undertaking the regimen.
bhallAtakavidhAna (bhallātaka-vidhāna)
The previously described procedural rules for bhallātaka, applied here to chamber residence.
kRuShNA (kṛṣṇā)
Read by this commentary as black bākucī; Jejjaṭa reads pippalī, a reading rejected by Gayī.
maNDUkaparNI (maṇḍūkaparṇī)
The plant whose juice or whole plant with root and flower is used in the second rasāyana regimen.
brahmavarcasI (brahmavarcasī)
Explained by the commentary as possessing spiritual lustre or radiance.
bilvamAtra (bilvamātra)
An amount the size of a bilva fruit, here applied to a paste bolus.
After elimination of the doṣas, entry into the prescribed chamber, and gradual restoration of food, the passage directs the person to take brāhmī juice consecrated with a thousand oblations, in an amount suited to strength. After digestion, unsalted yavāgū is drunk in the afternoon; a person accustomed to milk may instead eat with milk. Seven nights of use are traditionally said to confer spiritual lustre and medhā. A second seven-night period is said to enable the person to reproduce a desired text and recover what was forgotten; after a third period, to retain even a hundred items heard twice. After twenty-one nights, misfortune is said to depart, the goddess of speech to enter the person in embodied form, and all bodies of learning to become available; the person is described as retaining what is heard and living five hundred years. The passage then describes cooking together two prasthas of brāhmī juice, one prastha of ghee, one kuḍava of viḍaṅga seeds, two palas each of vacā and amṛtā, and twelve each of harītakī, āmalaka, and bibhītaka, finely ground, and storing the finished preparation securely. A dose suited to strength is taken under the earlier rules; after digestion, the diet consists of milk, ghee, and rice, with the earlier restrictions observed. The text says that worms leave upward, downward, and across the body, misfortune departs, and the person gains a lotus-like complexion, stable youth, retention and recitation of learning, and a lifespan of three hundred years. It also records that this preparation is prescribed as a cleansing measure for kuṣṭha, recurrent fever, apasmāra, unmāda, poisoning, bhūtagraha, and other serious disorders.
The phrase 'according to the earlier procedure' extends all the previously stated constituents of a rasāyana regimen, beginning with prior elimination of the doṣas, to this preparation. The instruction to observe the earlier restrictions refers to the restrictions stated for rasāyana generally because this brāhmī regimen does not separately list what is to be avoided. Puṣkaravarṇa is explained through puṣkara as the lotus or lotus-like hue. Śrutanigādin means a person possessing the power to grasp and retain what is heard.
Key terms
brAhmIsvarasa (brāhmī-svarasa)
Fresh brāhmī juice used as the base of the described rasāyana preparations.
pratisaMsRuShTabhakta (pratisaṃsṛṣṭabhakta)
Having undergone the gradual restoration of diet following elimination.
yavAgU (yavāgū)
A thin cereal preparation, prescribed here without salt after the medicine is digested.
viDa~ggataNDula (viḍaṅga-taṇḍula)
The seed-like kernels of viḍaṅga included in the compound preparation.
pUrvavidhAna (pūrvavidhāna)
The earlier regimen, understood by the commentary to include prior doṣa elimination and other general rasāyana requirements.
puShkaravarNa (puṣkaravarṇa)
Having a lotus-like colour or complexion according to the commentary.
shrutanigAdI (śrutanigādī)
One capable of grasping, retaining, and reciting what has been heard.
saMshodhana (saṃśodhana)
A cleansing or eliminative measure, the function assigned to the compound in the listed disorders.
After elimination of the doṣas and entry into the prescribed chamber, the passage describes mixing an āmalaka-sized, consecrated bolus of Himalayan vacā with milk and drinking it. After digestion, the diet is milk, ghee, and rice. It is used for twelve nights. The text traditionally says that hearing then opens; with two courses memory arises, with three the person retains what is heard, and after four twelve-night courses the person crosses beyond all fault, gains the sight of Tārkṣya, and lives one hundred years. It next describes decocting two palas of another variety of vacā in milk and drinking it, with the same diet and the same benefits as the preceding regimen. Alternatively, it says that consuming one droṇa of ghee processed one hundred times with vacā yields a five-hundred-year lifespan and removes galagaṇḍa, apacī, ślīpada, and impairment of voice.
The commentary identifies Himalayan vacā here as white vacā. It supplies the implied verb 'having performed' with abhihutam and thus understands the bolus as having been consecrated by an offering. Gayī preserves an alternative reading: instead of 'mix with milk and drink,' he reads 'mix with ghee and drink,' explaining that the ghee is the previously described ghee prepared with brāhmī juice. The 'other vacā' is explained as the reddish variety. Decocting it with milk means preparing it according to the method for a milk decoction.
Key terms
haimavatI vacA (haimavatī vacā)
Himalayan vacā, identified by the commentary as white vacā.
abhihuta
Understood by the commentary as consecrated after performing an offering.
AmalakamAtra (āmalakamātra)
An amount approximately the size of an āmalaka fruit.
tArkShyadarshana (tārkṣya-darśana)
Sight compared in the verse to that of Tārkṣya.
aruNA vacA (aruṇā vacā)
The reddish variety understood as the 'other vacā' in the commentary.
kShIrapAkavidhi (kṣīrapāka-vidhi)
The prescribed method for preparing a substance as a milk decoction.
vacAshatapAka sarpis (vacā-śatapāka sarpis)
Ghee described as processed one hundred times with vacā.
The text now introduces an āyuṣkāma rasāyana, a regimen for one who desires longevity, combining mantra and medicinal substances and said to give results lasting a year. It describes bilva powder ritually consecrated a thousand times under the Puṣya constellation with the Śrīsūkta, then taken each morning with gold, ghee, and honey; this is traditionally said to remove alakṣmī. It next prescribes daily use of a decoction of peeled bilva root with milk after bathing, ritual offering, and mental concentration. This preparation is called Yuktaratha, is said to promote longevity, and is associated with ten thousand oblations. A second Yuktaratha rasāyana consists of a decoction of bisa combined with honey and parched grain and consecrated by one hundred thousand oblations; the text calls it unfailing.
The commentary identifies the Śrīsūkta as the hymn taught in the Atharvaveda that begins with the words hiraṇyavarṇāṃ hariṇīṃ suvarṇarajatasrajām. It explains kalye as 'in the morning.' Daśasāhasra denotes a rite in which ten thousand oblations are made, and āyuṣya means that which increases lifespan. It says the first rasāyana is known as Yuktaratha. The bisa decoction combined with honey and the other stated substance is identified as a second Yuktaratha rasāyana.
Key terms
AyuShkAmarasAyanam (āyuṣkāma-rasāyanam)
A rasāyana described for a person who desires longevity.
shrIsUkta (Śrīsūkta)
The Atharvavedic hymn specified by the commentary for the ritual consecration.
bilva
The plant whose powder and peeled root are used in the first described regimen.
alakShmI (alakṣmī)
Misfortune or inauspiciousness, traditionally said here to be removed.
yuktaratha
The name given to each of the two rasāyana preparations described in these verses.
bisa
The plant material used as a decoction in the second Yuktaratha formulation.
Verse 14 describes gold, lotus seeds, honey, parched grain, and priyaṅgu taken with cow's milk, traditionally said to ward off alakṣmī. Verse 15 describes a decoction of blue-lotus petals cooked with cow's milk and combined with gold and sesame; it too is said to remove alakṣmī. Verse 16 describes cow's milk, gold, beeswax, and bee honey, consecrated by one hundred thousand oblations and drunk as a preparation known as Yuktaratha.
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മധൂച്ഛിഷ്ടം ച മാക്ഷികമിതി മാക്ഷികം മധു ഭ്രാമരമ്| വചാദിത്രയചൂര്ണം ഘൃതേന സഹാവലിഹ്യാത്||൧൪-൧൬||
Meaning of the commentary
The commentary explains that in the phrase madhūcchiṣṭaṃ ca mākṣikam, mākṣika means bhrāmara honey, or honey produced by bees. It then says that a powder of three substances beginning with vacā should be licked together with ghee. This latter instruction is not explicit in the supplied verses and its textual connection is uncertain, so it requires review rather than being merged into the verse meaning.
Key terms
padmabIjAni (padma-bījāni)
Lotus seeds included in the first formulation.
priya~ggavaH (priyaṅgavaḥ)
Priyaṅgu material included with gold, lotus seeds, honey, and parched grain.
nIlotpaladala (nīlotpala-dala)
Blue-lotus petals used for the decoction in verse 15.
madhUcchiShTa (madhūcchiṣṭa)
Beeswax, listed in the Yuktaratha preparation of verse 16.
mAkShika (mākṣika)
Interpreted by the commentary here as bhrāmara honey.
yuktaratha
The name assigned to the ritually consecrated preparation in verse 16.
A combination of vacā, ghee, gold, and bilva powder is traditionally described as promoting medhā, longevity, health, nourishment, and good fortune. The text next describes oil prepared in a decoction made from a tulā of vāsā root; after a thousand oblations, it is to be consumed and is said to promote medhā and longevity. Finally, it directs that barley be pounded, made into yāvaka foods, combined with pippalī and honey, and eaten; the resulting ease of learning is compared to the natural acquisition of walking.
The commentary defines one tulā as one hundred palas. It explains the difficult wording about yāvakas as foods made by pounding barley, to be eaten with pippalī and honey. For the phrase 'learning becomes like walking,' it derives cara from a verbal root meaning movement. Its intended sense is that study of scripture, which ordinarily depends on another person's instruction, becomes easy: just as walking arises after infancy without formal teaching, this preparation is said to increase medhā so that scriptural study likewise becomes effortless.
Key terms
medhya
Traditionally described here as promoting medhā, the capacity for understanding and retention.
tulA (tulā)
A historical measure defined by the commentary as one hundred palas.
vAsAmUla (vāsā-mūla)
Vāsā root used to make the decoction in which oil is prepared.
yAvaka (yāvaka)
A food that the commentary says is made from pounded barley.
pippalI (pippalī)
The substance combined with honey and the barley preparation.
shikShA caraNavat (śikṣā caraṇavat)
The comparison that learning becomes as easy or natural as walking.
The text describes taking a combination of honey, powdered āmalaka, and gold, and traditionally claims that even a person affected by ariṣṭa, signs associated with approaching death, is freed from danger to life. It next prescribes daily use of śatāvarī-ghṛta with honey and gold, with the traditional claim that it brings even a king under the user's influence. For one desiring good fortune, it gives a combination of gocandanā, mohanikā, madhuka, mākṣika, honey, and gold. It then describes cow's ghee prepared in a decoction of padma and nīlotpala with yaṣṭīmadhuka and taken regularly with gold, followed by milk prepared from those same substances. The preparation is traditionally said to dispel misfortune, promote longevity, sovereignty, and attractiveness. Wherever no mantra has been specified for preparing these formulations, the three-footed Gāyatrī is to be recited. The concluding statement traditionally attributes to these medicines the removal of wrongdoing, the bestowal of prosperity, the strength of an elephant, and a condition comparable to that of an immortal.
The commentary defines ariṣṭa here as a sign of death. It explains the statement about bringing a king under control to mean that a king becomes subject to the person who uses this ghee. Gocandanā is identified as priyaṅgu. Mohanikā is identified as putrañjīvī, while other authorities identify it as avākpuṣpī; both readings are preserved. Āsādita is glossed as 'prepared.' The phrase concerning their own production is explained as referring to a decoction of padma and nīlotpala themselves. The commentator says that the verses beginning with the destruction of pāpman state the promised results of all the formulations described here.
Key terms
ariShTa (ariṣṭa)
A sign associated by the commentary with approaching death.
shatAvarIghRuta (śatāvarī-ghṛta)
A ghee preparation containing śatāvarī.
gocandanA (gocandanā)
An ingredient identified by the commentary as priyaṅgu.
mohanikA (mohanikā)
An ingredient identified as putrañjīvī, with avākpuṣpī preserved as an alternative identification.
tripadA gAyatrI (tripadā Gāyatrī)
The three-footed Gāyatrī mantra directed for formulations where no other mantra is stated.
phalashruti (phalaśruti)
The concluding declaration of the results traditionally attributed to the formulations.
सतताध्ययनं वादः परतन्त्रावलोकनम् |
तद्विद्याचार्यसेवा च बुद्धिमेधाकरो गु(ग)णः ||२७||
आयुष्यं भोजनं जीर्णे वेगानां चाविधारणम् |
ब्रह्मचर्यमहिंसा च साहसानां च वर्जनम् ||२८||
Meaning of the śloka
Continual study, reasoned debate, examination of other systems of knowledge, and service to a teacher learned in the relevant subject are qualities that promote understanding and medhā. Conduct said to support longevity consists of eating after the previous meal has been digested, not suppressing natural urges, observing brahmacarya, practising non-injury, and avoiding rash undertakings.
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ന കേവലം രസായനയോഗാദേവ മേധായുഷീ ഭവതഃ, കിം തര്ഹി സതതാധ്യയനാദപി ബുദ്ധിമേധാകരോ ഗു(ഗ)ണോ ഭവതി| സ്വപക്ഷസാധനം പരപക്ഷബാധനം വാദഃ| പരതന്ത്രാണി ന്യായവൈശേഷികഹസ്തിശിക്ഷാവ്യാകരണാദീനി, തഥൈവേതരാണ്യായുഷ്യാണി| ബ്രഹ്മചര്യമ് ഇന്ദ്രിയസംയമോ വേദാധ്യയനം വാ| സാഹസമ് അയഥാബലമാരമ്ഭഃ||൨൭-൨൮||
Meaning of the commentary
The commentary explains that medhā and longevity do not arise only from rasāyana formulations: continual study also develops understanding and medhā. Vāda is defined as establishing one's own position and refuting the opposing position. Paratantras are other fields of learning, exemplified by Nyāya, Vaiśeṣika, elephant training, and grammar. The commentator indicates that the remaining practices in the next verse likewise support longevity. Brahmacarya may mean restraint of the senses or study of the Veda. Sāhasa is explained as beginning an undertaking that exceeds one's strength or capacity.
Key terms
medhA (medhā)
The intellectual capacity promoted here through sustained learning and disciplined practice.
vAda (vāda)
Reasoned debate, explained as establishing one's own position and challenging an opposing position.
paratantrAvalokana (paratantrāvalokana)
Study or examination of other systems and disciplines of knowledge.
brahmacarya
Explained alternatively as restraint of the senses or study of the Veda.
sAhasa (sāhasa)
A rash undertaking begun without regard to one's strength or capacity.
Thus ends the twenty-eighth chapter of the Cikitsāsthāna in the Nibandhasaṅgraha commentary on Suśruta composed by Śrī Dalhaṇa. The supplied text preserves the spelling-order variant Dalha(hla)ṇa in the commentator's name.
Key terms
medhAyuShkAmIya (medhāyuṣkāmīya)
The chapter title, concerning rasāyana for one who desires medhā and longevity.
rasAyana (rasāyana)
The traditional subject of the chapter.
cikitsAsthAna (Cikitsāsthāna)
The treatment section of the Suśruta Saṃhitā.
nibandhasa~ggraha (Nibandhasaṅgraha)
The title of Dalhaṇa's commentary on the Suśruta Saṃhitā.