The commentary explains nirūha-krama as the sequential arrangement of nirūha and cikitsita as the means of counteracting disease. It preserves another reading, nirūhopakrama-cikitsita, understood as treatment concerning the commencement of nirūha.
Key terms
nirUhakrama (nirūha-krama)
The ordered sequence for nirūha described in this chapter.
The passage gives a detailed historical sequence for administering āsthāpana after anuvāsana. It describes preparing and positioning the person, assembling and filling the basti apparatus without trapped air, introducing its nozzle, compressing the container once at a controlled pace, withdrawing it, waiting for a stated interval, and seating the person in a specified posture for return of the basti. Return is expected within a muhūrta. According to need, a second, third, or fourth nirūha may be described.
The commentary says prior anuvāsana makes the channels unctuous so that doṣas may be removed more easily. It explains the preparation, couch and body-position terms, and the qualities sought in filling the apparatus, including absence of bubbles and air. It cites different definitions of the time unit mātrā and reconciles counts of thirty and one hundred by differences in koṣṭha or by including the time taken to rise and sit. A muhūrta is glossed as two ghaṭikās. For failure to return, it records the historical use of further sharp cleansing nirūhas containing alkaline, sour, and salty substances. A fourth application is tied to failure to obtain the stated signs of adequate nirūha; an alternative reading, yathārhataḥ, makes it dependent on suitability or need.
Key terms
AsthApana (āsthāpana)
The cleansing form of basti whose historical administration is described.
netra
The nozzle or tube of the basti apparatus.
mAtrA (mātrā)
A short unit of time, defined differently by the cited authorities.
muhUrta (muhūrta)
The expected return period, glossed here as two ghaṭikās.
The commentary makes the stopping rule explicit. It also preserves disagreement: some authorities describe a fourth, pacifying basti, even one involving blood, while others describe a fourth basti with sweet and cooling substances to calm burning afterward.
Key terms
samyagnirUDhali~gga (samyag-nirūḍha-liṅga)
Signs taken in the text to show that nirūha has been adequate.
shamanIya (śamanīya)
Pacifying, the purpose assigned by some to a disputed fourth basti.
A reduced sequence is said to be especially suitable for delicate persons. The passage advises accepting an insufficient sequence rather than exceeding the proper sequence.
The commentary explains that complications from excessive application are regarded as more dangerous than those from insufficient application; fear of excessive application motivates the warning.
यस्य स्याद्बस्तिरल्पोऽल्पवेगो हीनमलानिलः ||८||
दुर्निरूढः स विज्ञेयो मूत्रार्त्यरुचिजाड्यवान् |९|
Meaning of the śloka
When a basti is small, produces little movement, and removes too little waste and vāta, the person is described as inadequately treated, with urinary discomfort, loss of appetite, and dullness.
The commentary glosses alpa as deficient in qualities or amount and alpavega as having little expulsive movement. Mūtrārti is urinary pain or difficulty. Dullness is attributed to obstruction of waste that has been disturbed by an insufficient basti.
Key terms
durnirUDha (dur-nirūḍha)
A person considered inadequately treated by nirūha.
mUtrArti (mūtrārti)
Urinary pain or distress.
jADya (jāḍya)
Dullness or impaired responsiveness attributed here to obstructed waste.
सुनिरूढं ततो जन्तुं स्नातवन्तं तु भोजयेत् ||११||
पित्तश्लेष्मानिलाविष्टं क्षीरयूषरसैः क्रमात् |
सर्वं वा जाङ्गलरसैर्भोजयेदविकारिभिः ||१२||
त्रिभागहीनमर्धं वा हीनमात्रमथापि वा |
यथाग्निदोषं मात्रेयं भोजनस्य विधीयते ||१३||
अनन्तरं ततो युञ्ज्याद्यथास्वं स्नेहबस्तिना |१४|
Meaning of the śloka
After nirūha is considered proper, the person is described as bathing and eating. Depending on predominance of pitta, kapha, or vāta, the food is associated respectively with milk, yūṣa, or meat broth; alternatively, an uncomplicated broth from animals of dry-land habitat is stated for all. The meal amount is reduced according to digestive strength and doṣa. Thereafter, a suitable sneha-basti is described.
The commentary records an additional customary sequence after return of the basti: water prepared with nāgara, cleansing, and a warm-water bath. It interprets the reduced meal as one third less, one half, or only slightly reduced according to digestion. Sneha-basti is limited here to a person judged properly treated; inadequate nirūha calls, in the historical scheme, for another doṣa-directed nirūha, while excessive nirūha is compared with excessive purgation and treated with cooling measures and piccha-basti rather than sneha-basti. Gayadāsa rejects the standard six-pala independent sneha-basti here and favors a three-pala anuvāsana; the six-pala measure is reserved for independent use.
Key terms
yUSha (yūṣa)
Pulse soup associated here with kapha.
jA~ggalarasa (jāṅgala-rasa)
Meat broth from animals associated with dry-land habitat.
yathAgnidoSha (yathāgni-doṣa)
Adjusted according to digestive capacity and doṣa.
picchAbasti (picchā-basti)
A mucilaginous basti mentioned historically for excessive evacuation.
Clarity or distinctness, contentment of mind, unctuousness, and control of disease are given as signs of proper administration of āsthāpana together with sneha-basti.
The commentary offers two interpretations of viviktatā: the mind and senses can distinguish their objects properly, or the channels carrying rasa and the other dhātus are unobstructed.
Key terms
viviktatA (viviktatā)
Distinctness or clarity, interpreted mentally or as unobstructed dhātu-carrying channels.
The commentary reasons that evacuation of stool and vāta after nirūha produces depletion and may strongly aggravate vāta. It therefore describes a measured meal of rice with meat broth and same-day anuvāsana, with the amount related to one quarter of the nirūha measure. Gayadāsa instead accepts only a three-pala anuvāsana and interprets the wording as also including mātrā-basti, while rejecting a six-pala sneha-basti in this context.
Key terms
pavana
Vāta, whose aggravation is feared after evacuation.
rasaudana (rasa-odana)
Rice with broth, identified by the commentary as meat broth.
mAtrAbasti (mātrā-basti)
A measured unctuous basti included by Gayadāsa's interpretation.
The commentary places this after nirūha accompanied by anuvāsana and describes assessing digestive strength in relation to age and capacity, together with signs attributed to vāta such as movement, sounds, and pulsation. It records a six-pala upper measure for sneha-basti after food and cites another text allowing anuvāsana two, three, four, or five days after nirūha.
Key terms
agnibala (agni-bala)
Strength of digestion considered in relation to age and capacity.
pavanasya ceShTita (pavanasya ceṣṭita)
Activities attributed to vāta, such as movement, sound, or pulsation.
If nirūha has not returned within a muhūrta, the passage describes removing it through sharp cleansing nirūhas combined with alkaline substance, urine, and sour liquid.
The commentary construes the instruction as removal by further sharp cleansing nirūhas. It identifies the alkaline substance as yavakṣāra, the urine as cow urine, and the sour liquid as kāñjika.
Key terms
shodhana nirUha (śodhana-nirūha)
A cleansing basti historically proposed for retained nirūha.
yavakShAra (yavakṣāra)
An alkaline preparation identified by the commentary.
gomUtra (gomūtra)
Cow urine identified as the urine ingredient.
kA~jjika (kāñjika)
A sour fermented liquid identified by the commentary.
विगुणानिलविष्टब्धं चिरं तिष्ठन्निरूहणम् ||१८||
शूलारतिज्वरानाहान्मरणं वा प्रवर्तयेत् |१९|
Meaning of the śloka
Nirūha that remains for a long time because it is obstructed by disordered vāta is said to produce pain, mental or bodily distress, fever, abdominal distension, or even death.
न तु भुक्तवतो देयमास्थापनमिति स्थितिः ||१९||
विसूचिकां वा जनयेच्छर्दिं वाऽपि सुदारुणाम् |
कोपयेत् सर्वदोषान् वा तस्माद्दद्यादभोजिने ||२०||
Meaning of the śloka
The established rule states that āsthāpana should not be given to a person who has eaten. The passage says it may otherwise produce visūcikā, severe vomiting, or aggravation of all doṣas, and therefore describes administration to one who has not eaten.
The commentary says the listed risks reinforce the prior prohibition against āsthāpana after food and support the instruction concerning a person who has not eaten.
Key terms
AsthApana (āsthāpana)
The cleansing basti discussed in relation to food intake.
visUcikA (visūcikā)
A severe acute disorder named as a possible consequence in the source.
When prior food has been digested, the doṣas in their site are said to become distinct and unobstructed by food, so that they come out fully and easily. The passage adds that digestive fire follows food displaced by a newly administered āsthāpana; therefore it describes āsthāpana for a person without food.
The commentary presents this as a positive explanation, alongside the earlier warning, for giving āsthāpana after food has been digested. It glosses pravyakti as distinctness or freedom from covering and obstruction.
Key terms
jIrNAnna (jīrṇānna)
A state in which the preceding food is considered digested.
pravyakti
Distinct manifestation, explained as absence of covering or obstruction.
nirAhAra (nirāhāra)
Without food, the condition stated for historical āsthāpana use.
Nirūha is also to be considered according to the person's immediate condition. Once waste has been removed, the doṣas are said no longer to remain strong.
The commentary introduces an exception based on condition: in severe pain, distension, or a similar state that has not improved through measures from above, it records nirūha even after food, preceded by placement of a phalavarti. This is presented as an avasthika, condition-dependent sequence.
Key terms
Avasthika krama (āvasthika-krama)
A sequence adjusted to the immediate condition.
phalavarti (phala-varti)
A suppository-like preparation mentioned as preceding nirūha in the commentary.
The verses list categories of substances historically used in nirūha according to availability: milks, sour liquids, urines, fats, decoctions, broths, salts, fruit preparations, honey, and many named plant materials, including śatāhvā, mustard, vacā, elā, the three pungents, rāsnā, sarala, devadāru, rajanī, madhuka, hiṅgu, kuṣṭha, cleansing drugs, kaṭukā, sugar, musta, uśīra, candana, śaṭī, mañjiṣṭhā, madana, caṇḍā, trāyamāṇā, rasāñjana, bilva pith, yavānī, phalinī, indrayava, barley, and members of the jīvanīya group.
The commentary identifies phala here as triphalā, sarala as a particular tree, cleansing substances as trivṛt and similar drugs, madana as madana fruit, śakrajā yavāḥ as indrayava, and madhūlikā as a grass popularly called markaṭikā.
Key terms
saMshodhana (saṃśodhana)
Cleansing substances, exemplified by the commentary with trivṛt and others.
The passage assigns different relative portions of decoction and sneha in nirūha according to whether the person is balanced or vāta, pitta, or kapha is aggravated. It states a common proportion for pastes and says salt, honey, urine, fruit, milk, sour liquid, and meat broth should be determined through reasoned judgment.
The commentary converts the stated fractions into historical prasṛta and pala measures for a twelve-prasṛta or twenty-four-pala nirūha. It reads the paste as one eighth across the doṣa conditions; Gayī extends this to both healthy and unhealthy states. Because fixed quantities are not stated for salt and the other additions, their qualities and relation to doṣa and medicine are to guide a total mixture without excess or deficiency. It cites a different earlier-authority formula with distinct amounts for vāta, pitta, and kapha and accepts both systems as authoritative rather than resolving them into one.
Key terms
kvAtha (kvātha)
The decoction component of the historical mixture.
kalka
Medicinal paste forming a stated fraction of the mixture.
yukti
Reasoned adjustment of ingredients for which no fixed amount is stated.
prasRuta (prasṛta)
A historical unit used by the commentary in its calculations.
This is described as the general plan for combining paste, fat, and decoction. When these components are blended without separation, learned physicians call the basti well prepared; its administration is said to accomplish the intended purpose.
The commentary explains aviveka as the components no longer remaining distinct. It contrasts a properly combined preparation with faulty signs such as running along the hand, remaining stuck or coating it, or forming a dividing line. It attributes many possible purposes to the resulting historical formulation, including effects directed toward vāta, pitta, kapha, blood, cleansing, retention, scraping, nourishment, virilification, or rejuvenation.
Key terms
aviveka
Lack of separation among paste, fat, and decoction after blending.
sukalpanA (su-kalpanā)
A preparation considered well combined in the historical account.
yathArthakRut (yathārtha-kṛt)
Producing the intended purpose within the source's framework.
The verses give a historical order for compounding nirūha: saindhava and honey are blended, sneha is added gradually, then fruit paste and other finely ground pastes in their assigned shares. The mixture is blended in a deep vessel until uniform and neither too thick nor too thin. Broth, milk, sour liquid, urine, and strained decoction are then adjusted with regard to the doṣa-state.
The commentary defines akṣa as one karṣa and two prasṛtas of honey as four palas, and says sneha is of the same amount as honey. The fruit paste is identified as madana fruit. The other pastes are selected according to the relevant doṣa and together with madana are assigned a combined historical quantity. Khaja is explained either as the five-fingered hand or a churning implement, so mixing by hand is also inferred. The amount of broth and other liquids is supplied according to the doṣa-state. A cited text gives the order as honey, salt, sneha, paste, and decoction, mixing between additions.
Key terms
saindhava
Rock salt placed at the beginning of the historical mixing sequence.
madana phala kalka (madana-phala-kalka)
Madana-fruit paste identified as the fruit paste.
khaja
Interpreted as either the hand with five fingers or a churning implement.
supUta kaShAya (supūta-kaṣāya)
A well-strained decoction added according to the stated scheme.
The text describes the largest nirūha-basti measure as twelve prasṛtis: rock salt, honey, sneha, paste, decoction, and a final liquid additive are combined in stated proportions. Smaller quantities are to be obtained by reducing the prasṛti measure according to age.
The commentary explains sammūrcchita as thoroughly combined and āvāpa as a liquid such as milk or kāñjika added at the end. It equates two prasṛtis with four palas and says the small amount of rock salt is included within the total of twenty-four palas. For a smaller preparation, one prasṛti, understood as two palas, is omitted at each reduction. These calculations preserve the historical explanation and are not preparation or dosing instructions.
Key terms
dvAdashaprasRuta (dvādaśa-prasṛta)
A total measure of twelve prasṛtis described for the largest preparation.
AvApa (āvāpa)
A liquid ingredient added at the end, such as milk or kāñjika.
apahrAsa (apahrāsa)
Reduction of the stated quantity for a smaller measure.
The commentary explains vibhāgaśaḥ as presentation by divisions or categories. It also says that doṣa in this statement can refer both to vāta and the other doṣas and to diseases more generally. The therapeutic assertion is historical and is not evidence of present clinical efficacy.
Key terms
vibhAgashaH (vibhāgaśaḥ)
According to distinct categories or divisions.
doSha (doṣa)
Interpreted here as vāta and the other doṣas, or more broadly as disorders.
basti
The historical therapeutic preparations classified in the following passages.
A warm āsthāpana-basti is described using decoctions of named plants and madana fruit, a paste of further ingredients with rock salt, and honey and other liquids. The text attributes to it benefits in pain of the back, thighs, and sacral region, retention of stone, stool, urine, or flatus, grahaṇī disorder, vāta conditions, and arśas, and says it promotes blood, flesh, and strength.
The commentator introduces this as a basti for aggravated vāta and as an example of the order in which basti ingredients are added. Several plant identities are glossed, including śampāka as kiramālaka, niśācchada as śaṭī, the smaller pañcamūla, and ambhoda as mustā. The commentary then gives extensive historical calculations for decoction, honey, salt, oil, paste, meat broth, milk, kāñjika, and gomūtra, arriving at twenty-four palas and allowing repeated bags. These details are descriptive only and must not be operationalized.
Key terms
AsthApana (āsthāpana)
A decoction-based basti preparation in this context.
shampAka (śampāka)
Identified by the commentary as kiramālaka.
grahaNI (grahaṇī)
A disorder category included in the verse's historical indications.
The passage describes an āsthāpana-basti made from a decoction of named plants and meat, a paste of additional substances, jaggery and madana, mixed with honey, oil, ghee, milk, fermented liquids, whey, and urine. It historically claims enhancement of complexion, strength, enthusiasm, potency, digestive fire, vitality, and longevity, and relief of vāta disorders.
The commentary identifies pala here as meat and calculates the decoction and remaining ingredients to a total of twenty-four palas, referring the order of addition to the previous passage. It explains tejas as the skin-associated bhrājaka fire or pitta, varṇa as complexion, bala as development of flesh, utsāha as a mental quality, vīrya as capacity, and prāṇas as agni, soma, and related principles. It classifies the preparation for vāta and vāta disorders. The claimed effects and formula remain historical.
Key terms
tejas
Explained here as the skin-associated bhrājaka fire or pitta.
utsAha (utsāha)
A mental quality of initiative or vigor.
vIrya (vīrya)
Strength or capacity in the commentator's explanation.
vayaHsthApana (vayaḥsthāpana)
A historical claim of maintaining age or longevity.
A cool, non-sour āsthāpana-basti is described from decoctions and pastes of many named plants together with honey, milk, and ghee. The text attributes benefit in burning, abnormal bleeding, pitta and blood disorders, pitta-type gulma, and fever.
The commentary introduces the preparation for aggravated pitta, identifies several plants, and provides historical calculations for the decoction, paste, honey, ghee, milk, meat broth, and sugarcane juice to total twenty-four palas. It says the order of adding ingredients follows the earlier rule. A textual variant reads viṣa where the main text has misi; viṣa is then interpreted either as ativiṣā or as vālaka because it is also a name connected with water. The variant remains unresolved.
Key terms
amlahIna (amla-hīna)
Without sour liquid in this formulation.
asRugdara (asṛgdara)
Abnormal or excessive bleeding named among the historical indications.
misi
A source reading for which some read viṣa; its exact identity requires review.
The text describes another cool basti using decoctions and pastes of numerous plants, sugar, ghee, honey, milk, and other liquids while excluding sharp and sour liquids. It attributes benefit in gulma, abnormal bleeding, cardiac and pāṇḍu disorders, irregular fever, bleeding associated with pitta, diarrhea, and other pitta-produced disorders.
The commentator identifies anantā as utpala-sārivā, sthirādi as the smaller pañcamūla, tṛṇamūla as the kuśa group of five roots, and abhīru as śatāvarī. It then calculates the historical decoction, paste, honey, ghee, milk, meat broth, and sugarcane juice to twenty-four palas, with the previous order of addition. The preparation is classified for pitta and pitta disorders. These details do not establish safety or efficacy.
Key terms
sushItala (suśītala)
Described as distinctly cooling.
tIkShNAmlavarjya (tīkṣṇāmla-varjya)
Excluding sharp and sour liquids.
viShamajvara (viṣama-jvara)
An irregular fever category named among the historical indications.
asRukpittAtisAra (asṛk-pittātisāra)
Bleeding and pitta-associated diarrhea in the verse's disease list.
For conditions associated with aggravated kapha, the passage describes an āsthāpana-basti made from named decoction and paste ingredients with pungent oil, honey, alkali, urine, oil, and sour liquid. It lists kāmalā, pāṇḍu, meha, excess adiposity, weak digestive fire, kapha disorders, aversion to food, neck swelling, toxic debility, ślīpada, and abdominal disease among its historical indications.
The commentary identifies bhadrā as kaṭphala and calculates the decoction, paste, two oils, honey, yavakṣāra, urine, and kāñjika to twenty-four palas. It states that the sequence of adding substances follows the previous account and classifies the preparation for kapha and kapha disorders. The ingredient calculations and therapeutic claims are historical descriptions only.
Key terms
kaTutaila (kaṭu-taila)
A pungent oil component in the historical formulation.
kShAra (kṣāra)
An alkaline substance included in the preparation.
kAmalA (kāmalā)
A disease category named among the historical indications.
The passage describes another āsthāpana-basti from a decoction of daśamūla and other plants, with a paste including mustā, rock salt, and further substances, combined with oil, alkali, honey, urine, sour liquid, and fruit. It attributes benefit in kapha and pāṇḍu disorders, lethargy, retention of urine and flatus, āma with distension, apacī, kapha-type gulma, worms, and related disorders.
The commentary identifies indrāhva as kuṭaja and gives historical quantities for the decoction, paste, oil, honey, alkali, urine, kāñjika, and madana fruit, totaling twenty-four palas. It refers the order of adding ingredients to the previous method and classifies this preparation for kapha and kapha disorders.
Key terms
indrAhva (indrāhva)
Identified by the commentary as kuṭaja.
AmATopa (āmāṭopa)
Distension associated with āma in this context.
apacI (apacī)
A swelling disorder included among the historical indications.
A prompt āsthāpana-basti is described for disorders involving combined doṣas, using a large group of decoction and paste ingredients with honey, sugarcane juice, milk, cow urine, ghee, oil, and meat broth. It is historically claimed to address sciatica, urinary gravel, aṣṭhīlā, tūnī, gulma, and related disease.
The commentary identifies niśācchada as śaṭī and ṣaḍgranthā as vacā, then gives historical quantities for the decoction, paste, honey, sugarcane juice, milk, gomūtra, ghee, oil, and meat broth. It interprets saṃsṛṣṭa-bahu-rogiṇām as conditions involving either two doṣas together or all three doṣas. Where two doṣas are unequal, ingredients are adjusted toward the stronger one; where their strength is equal, the honey and other components are balanced by judgment. The same reasoning is extended to three-doṣa combinations. This preserves the commentator's individualized rationale without providing a usable formula.
Key terms
saMsarga (saṃsarga)
Combination of two doṣas according to the commentary.
sannipAta (sannipāta)
Combination of all three doṣas.
sharkarA (śarkarā)
Urinary gravel or calculus in this disease list.
aShThIlA (aṣṭhīlā)
A hard, stone-like swelling or obstruction category named in the verse.
The text describes a comfortably warm basti from named decoction and paste ingredients with meat broth, rasāñjana, honey, grapes, and sauvīra. It claims support for flesh, reproductive substance, strength, ojas, lifespan, and digestive fire, followed by a broad list of disorders said to be relieved, including bleeding, fever, urinary difficulty, wasting, arśas, grahaṇī disorder, vāta conditions, pain, abdominal disease, mental disturbance, prameha, distension, and cardiac constriction.
The commentary explains sabalaiḥ as including balā and rasa as meat broth. It says sneha, though unstated, is required as a component of nirūha and cites Hārīta for a general list of nirūha ingredients. It calculates the named substances to twenty-four palas and characterizes this basti as applicable both to healthy and ill persons and as addressing all diseases. These sweeping claims are historical and must not be treated as evidence or preventive guidance.
Key terms
ojas
A classical vitality principle the verse claims to support.
kShatakShaya (kṣata-kṣaya)
Injury-associated depletion or wasting named among the indications.
vAtakuNDalI (vāta-kuṇḍalī)
A vāta disorder category in the source's list.
hRudgraha (hṛd-graha)
Constriction or distress involving the heart region.
For aggravated vāta, the text describes comfortably warm, sour bastis based on decoctions of vāta-reducing substances, combined with rock salt and traivṛta sneha.
The commentator says that, after discussing basti for ill persons, the text now summarizes formulations for vāta and the other doṣas in relation to healthy persons. The plural allows for three or four administrations. It supplies detailed historical quantities for decoction, salt, traivṛta sneha, paste, honey, meat broth, milk, and kāñjika and says the same plural logic applies to the following formulations. These details are not a regimen.
Key terms
vAtaghna (vātaghna)
Classified as countering vāta in the source.
traivRuta sneha (traivṛta sneha)
A particular compounded unctuous ingredient named for the vāta formulation.
The commentary supplies historical quantities for the nyagrodhādi decoction, kākolyādi paste, ghee, sugar, rock salt, honey, sugarcane juice, and milk, totaling twenty-four palas. It adds that pitta-reducing substances from the previously mentioned liquid groups are to be included. This is a textual reconstruction of an incompletely stated formula, not compounding guidance.
For aggravated kapha, the passage describes bastis based on a decoction of the āragvadhādi group, combined with the pippalyādi group, honey, and urine.
The commentary calculates a historical twenty-four-pala formulation comprising āragvadhādi decoction, pippalyādi paste, honey, unstated rock salt, pungent oil, and urine. The additional salt and oil are supplied by the commentator rather than directly named in the verse.
For disorders of blood, the text describes very cooling bastis containing sugar, sugarcane juice, milk, and ghee, with a substantial decoction of milk-sapped trees.
The commentator explains āḍhya as abundant or principal, then supplies quantities for the milk-tree decoction, unstated rock salt, paste of substances described elsewhere as reducing blood disorders, unstated honey, ghee, sugar, sugarcane juice, and milk. The total is twenty-four palas. The rationale is that pitta and blood are treated as closely related, so the pitta measure is applied here. This preserves the classical reasoning without endorsing the formulation.
Key terms
kShIravRukSha (kṣīra-vṛkṣa)
Milk-sapped trees whose decoction is central to the formulation.
shoNita (śoṇita)
Blood, or disorders attributed to blood, in this context.
Bastis made from a decoction and paste of cleansing substances, combined with sneha and rock salt and churned with a mixing rod, are classified as śodhana or cleansing bastis.
The commentary takes the cleansing substances from those listed for emesis and purgation and supplies historical amounts for their decoction and paste, rock salt, sneha, unstated honey, milk, urine, and kāñjika, totaling twenty-four palas. Because the verse gives a general definition, the common basti measure is applied; later formulations are to be constructed similarly, with special measures according to vāta and other doṣas. This is classificatory reasoning, not procedural direction.
Key terms
shodhana (śodhana)
Cleansing or evacuative classification of the basti.
niShkvAtha (niṣkvātha)
A prepared decoction in this context.
khaja
A churning or mixing implement named in the verse.
sneha
An unctuous component included in the formulation.
Bastis containing triphalā decoction, cow urine, honey, alkali, and an additive from the ūṣaka group are classified as lekhana, or reducing and scraping.
The commentary supplies historical amounts for triphalā decoction, cow urine, unstated rock salt, honey, yavakṣāra, pungent oil inferred as the lekhana sneha, and ūṣaka-group substances, totaling twenty-four palas. Some ingredients therefore come from the commentator's application of general basti rules rather than from the verse alone.
Key terms
lekhana
A classical reducing or scraping therapeutic classification.
The commentary gives vidārīgandhādi as an example of the nourishing decoction and kākolyādi for the paste. It then supplies honey, ghee, rock salt, and meat broth in historical proportions to total twenty-four palas. The explanation preserves the classical classification and inferred formula but does not establish nutritional or therapeutic benefit.
Key terms
bRuMhaNa (bṛṃhaṇa)
A nourishing or building therapeutic classification.
For men, a basti prepared from sparrow eggs and uccaṭā, with milk, ghee, sugar, and ātmaguptā fruit, is classified as vājīkara, or promoting sexual and reproductive vigor.
The commentary identifies caṭaka as the village sparrow and describes uccaṭā as a small shrub known by regional names and locations. It supplies historical amounts for the decoction, milk, honey, ghee, sugar, and kapikacchū fruit. Rock salt is to be very little or omitted, based on a rule excluding oil, jaggery, and salt in preparations directed toward reproductive substance. A differing interpretation attributed to Gayī treats only uccaṭā as decocted and takes sparrow-egg liquid directly. Both interpretations are preserved without choosing between them.
Key terms
caTakANDa (caṭakāṇḍa)
Sparrow eggs used in the historical formulation.
uccaTA (uccaṭā)
A small plant described by the commentator; exact identification needs expert review.
AtmaguptA (ātmaguptā)
Kapikacchū, whose fruit is included as an additive.
vAjIkara (vājīkara)
Classified as promoting male sexual or reproductive vigor.
The text classifies as picchila bastis preparations of young shoots from badarī, airāvatī, śelu, śālmalī, and dhanvana cooked with milk, combined with honey and fresh blood. It lists blood from boar, buffalo, ram, cat, deer or antelope, fowl, or goat.
The commentary identifies airāvatī as nāgabalā, śelu as śleṣmātaka, dhanvana as the bow-tree locally called dhāmana, and aṅkura as tender shoots. It calculates a milk preparation with honey and blood and cites another statement about picchā-basti measures. In explaining the animal sources, it identifies urabhra as ram. Jejjaṭa understands aiṇeya as from the black antelope, whereas Brahmadeva takes it as from a female deer rather than the male; this disagreement must remain explicit. Sadyaska is explained as freshly obtained from a living animal at that time. These details are historical and must never be operationalized.
Key terms
picchila
A slimy or mucilaginous basti classification.
a~gkura (aṅkura)
Tender shoots or new growth.
aiNeya (aiṇeya)
Animal-source term disputed between black antelope and female deer.
sadyaska asRuk (sadyaska asṛk)
Freshly obtained blood in the commentator's explanation.
Bastis prepared from a decoction of the Priyaṅgvādi group, combined with the Ambaṣṭhādi group, honey, and ghee are described as grāhin, or restraining.
The commentary gives a historical calculation for this formulation: the Priyaṅgvādi substances are decocted, and a portion of that decoction is combined with Ambaṣṭhādi substances as a paste. It cites Vṛddha Vāgbhaṭa in support of the Priyaṅgu and Ambaṣṭhādi combination, then assigns separate quantities to the paste, honey, medicated ghee, and buttermilk. Although buttermilk is not stated in the verse, the commentator supplies it because of its grāhin character. These quantities record the commentator's calculation and are not preparation or administration instructions.
Key terms
priya~ggvAdigaNa (priyaṅgvādi-gaṇa)
The named group of substances used for the decoction.
ambaShThAdi (ambaṣṭhādi)
The named group used as a paste in the commentator's explanation.
grAhin (grāhin)
Described here as restraining or checking excessive discharge.
takra
Buttermilk, supplied by the commentary although unstated in the verse.
In answer to which substances should be used to prepare the sneha for the previously described nirūha formulations, the commentary identifies the relevant groups as those already stated. Sneha includes ghee and similar unctuous substances, and selection may alternatively depend on the disorder under consideration.
Key terms
sneha
An unctuous substance, including ghee, used in the historical basti formulation.
nirUhayoga (nirūha-yoga)
A previously described formulation for nirūha-basti.
वन्ध्यानां शतपाकेन शोधितानां यथाक्रमम् |
बलातैलेन देयाः स्युर्बस्तयस्त्रैवृतेन च ||८९||
Meaning of the śloka
For women described as infertile who have undergone the prescribed cleansing sequence, the text states that bastis may be given with hundred-times-processed oil, Balā oil, or Traivṛta sneha.
The commentary expands the preceding cleansing sequence as oleation, sudation, emesis, purgation, āsthāpana, and nasal cleansing. It identifies the three unctuous preparations by reference to other treatment chapters. Traivṛta is explained as a combination of three snehas—ghee, oil, and animal fat—whereas Jejjaṭa and others describe a Mahāsneha made with oil, animal fat, and marrow. The competing accounts are preserved here without choosing between them. This is a historical account, not fertility treatment advice.
Key terms
vandhyA (vandhyā)
A woman described in the source as infertile.
shatapAka (śatapāka)
An oil characterized as having undergone one hundred processing cycles.
balAtaila (balā-taila)
A named medicated oil referenced from another chapter.
traivRuta (traivṛta)
A combined unctuous preparation whose ingredients are disputed in the commentary.
The text assigns a strong basti to a person of high sattva, a moderate one to a person of moderate sattva, and a mild one to the opposite, namely a person of low sattva.
The commentary says the verse establishes three kinds of basti according to differences in sattva and explicitly glosses the opposite of high or moderate sattva as low sattva.
Key terms
sattva
The patient's psychological or constitutional capacity as classified in this passage.
tIkShNa (tīkṣṇa)
Strong or sharply acting in the text's threefold classification.
एवं कालं बलं दोषं विकारं च विकारवित् |
बस्तिद्रव्यबलं चैव वीक्ष्य बस्तीन् प्रयोजयेत् ||९१||
Meaning of the śloka
A practitioner knowledgeable about disorders should consider the season, the patient's strength, the doṣa and disorder, and the strength of the basti substances before employing a basti.
The commentary maps intensity to several historical factors: strong in cold conditions, mild in heat, ordinary in spring and autumn, and intermediate between cold and heat; similarly strong, moderate, or mild according to the patient's strength. It associates stronger preparations with kapha-vāta, milder ones with pitta-rakta, and moderate ones with kapha-pitta, and extends the reasoning to the disorder and to hard, intermediate, or soft koṣṭha. These are the commentator's classifications, not present clinical selection rules.
Key terms
kAla (kāla)
Seasonal or temporal conditions considered in the historical selection.
bala
The patient's strength or capacity.
doSha (doṣa)
The doṣic condition considered by the text.
koShTha (koṣṭha)
Bowel constitution, classified by the commentary as hard, intermediate, or soft.
The commentary divides basti into three functions and explains their sequence. When doṣas are not yet stirred, utkleshana comes first, removal follows, and pacification addresses what remains. If doṣas are already stirred, it omits the first stage. It also says that if one administration does not produce the expected removal, a second or third may be given, and applies comparable reasoning to the other stages. The state of the doṣas is said to be recognized from signs such as aggravation. This records historical sequencing only.
Key terms
utkleshana (utkleśana)
The first function, described as stirring or mobilizing doṣas.
Three formulations are listed: one with castor seed, madhuka, pippalī, rock salt, vacā, and hapuṣā fruit paste for utkleshana; one with śatāhvā, madhuka, kuṭaja seed and fruit, fermented sour liquid, and cow urine for removing doṣas; and one with priyaṅgu, madhuka, mustā, rasāñjana, and milk for pacification.
The commentary says followers of an older Suśruta recension read these substances here as paste additives for the three purposes. Jejjaṭa advises adapting the additions to the doṣa and quantity, omitting unsuitable items and retaining suitable ones so that the basti is neither excessive nor incorrectly measured. Gayī instead treats the preceding sequence as concerning yāpana-basti, with two aims: promoting vitality and rejuvenation in a healthy person, and removing doṣas situated in the tissues; the three formulations are then understood as mobilizing, removing, and pacifying those doṣas. Another view says mild bastis should be used when sattva, strength, season, substances, disorder, or bowel constitution are weak or mild. These distinct interpretations remain unresolved.
Key terms
utkleshana (utkleśana)
Mobilizing or stirring doṣas in this threefold scheme.
kalkAvApa (kalkāvāpa)
A paste added to a formulation.
yApanabasti (yāpana-basti)
A sustaining type of basti to which Gayī applies the discussion.
gomUtra (gomūtra)
Cow urine, listed in the second historical formulation.
The text introduces a mild mādhutailika procedure for kings and people of similar status, eminent persons, delicate women, children, and older adults. It claims removal of doṣas and improvement of strength and complexion, says that restrictions concerning travel, sexual activity, food, and drink do not apply, and describes broad benefit with little likelihood of complications and use at the time desired.
The commentary explains those comparable to kings as merchants, businesspeople, and moneylenders, and identifies śiśu and sthavira as children and older adults. It interprets doṣa removal as including seasonal accumulation even in a healthy person and says increase of strength and complexion applies after doṣas have been removed. Niyama is glossed as prohibition, and the statement about timing is read as allowing use in any season when the patient wishes, under a knowledgeable physician. These are historical claims and should not be taken as evidence of safety or unrestricted use.
Key terms
mAdhutailika (mādhutailika)
A mild basti category named for the prominence of honey and oil.
shishu (śiśu)
A child, included among the groups named in the passage.
sthavira
An older adult, included among the groups named in the passage.
niyama
A restriction or prohibition said here not to apply.
The mādhutailika basti is described as containing equal honey and oil, a decoction of castor root, specified smaller amounts of śatapuṣpā and rock salt, and one fruit, mixed with a churner and administered warm.
The commentary calculates the formulation as a reduced-volume mādhutailika totaling nine prasṛtas and assigns historical amounts to honey, oil, castor-root decoction, śatapuṣpā, rock salt, and one madana fruit. Jejjaṭa applies this calculation to all mādhutailika formulations. Gayī reads a variant, 'combined with one pala,' and supplies the remainder with a mild liquid such as meat broth or fermented sour liquid; he applies that completion method to the next four formulations. The variant and differing calculations are preserved without resolution.
Key terms
mAdhutailika (mādhutailika)
The named basti formulation characterized by honey and oil.
eraNDamUla (eraṇḍa-mūla)
Castor root, used for the decoction in the verse.
khaja
A churning or mixing implement mentioned in the source.
prasRuta (prasṛta)
A historical measure used in the commentary's calculation.
The commentary supplies historical quantities for vacā, rock salt, pippalī, madana fruit, honey, oil, and castor-root decoction, and identifies the resulting mādhutailika by the name Yuktaratha. The numerical details are descriptive and are not a preparation guide.
Key terms
yuktaratha
The specific name given to this mādhutailika formulation.
vacA (vacā)
A named plant substance included in the formulation.
mAgadhikA (māgadhikā)
Pippalī, as represented in the passage's formulation.
mAMsarasa (māṃsa-rasa)
Meat broth included in the verse's compound description.
The commentary gives a combined historical measure for suradāru, harītakī, rāsnā, śatapuṣpā, vacā, hiṅgu, and rock salt, with separate amounts of honey, oil, and castor-root decoction. It names this mādhutailika Doṣahara. Some readers substitute biḍa for hiṅgu, and that variant is left unresolved.
Key terms
doShahara (doṣahara)
The formulation's name and claimed function of removing doṣas.
hi~ggu (hiṅgu)
Asafoetida, read in the principal text.
biDa (biḍa)
The alternative ingredient read by some authorities.
eraNDamUlakvAtha (eraṇḍa-mūla-kvātha)
Castor-root decoction supplied in the commentary's formulation.
The commentary allocates historical quantities to the Pañcamūla decoction, honey, oil, pippalī, śatāhvā, and rock salt, and identifies the result as the Pañcamūlika type of mādhutailika. Its measurements are retained only as part of the textual explanation.
Key terms
pa~jcamUlI (pañcamūlī)
The group of five roots used for the decoction.
mAgadhikA (māgadhikā)
Pippalī in this formulation.
shatAhvA (śatāhvā)
A named plant substance included in the formulation.
pA~jcamUlika (pāñcamūlika)
The name assigned to this Pañcamūla-based mādhutailika.
The commentary says the decoction of barley, kola, and horse gram, as well as the honey and oil, follows the preceding pattern, while pippalī, rock salt, and yaṣṭyāhva share another stated measure. It identifies this as the Siddhabasti type of mādhutailika and concludes that five mādhutailika formulations have now been described.
Key terms
yava
Barley, one component of the decoction.
kola
Kola fruit, one component of the decoction.
kulattha
Horse gram, one component of the decoction.
siddhabasti (siddha-basti)
The specific name given to this mādhutailika formulation.
The verses describe a Mustādi yāpana-basti prepared from a long list of plant substances, madana fruits, water, milk, wild-animal meat broth, honey, ghee, pastes, and rock salt. The text attributes to it relief of numerous named disorders and claims that it supports strength, life, virility, sight, and relief from pain, calling it the foremost of yāpana-bastis.
The commentary first records a disagreement: Gayadāsa's recension does not place this Mustādi āsthāpana-basti after the Mādhutailika section, whereas Jejjaṭa reads and explains it, and the present commentator follows Jejjaṭa for that reason. It then presents Jejjaṭa's detailed calculations for the decoction, milk reduction, meat broth, honey, ghee, pastes, madana fruit, and three administrations, relating the measure to a statement attributed to Parāśara. A Guḍhapadabhaṅga annotator gives a different calculation, including different totals for meat broth, honey, ghee, paste, and the three portions. Both calculations are historical and remain distinct; neither is operational guidance. The therapeutic and vitality claims belong to the source and are not modern medical claims.
Key terms
mustAdiyApanabasti (mustādi-yāpana-basti)
The sustaining basti formulation centered on the Mustādi group.
AsthApanabasti (āsthāpana-basti)
The type of basti that Jejjaṭa includes here but Gayadāsa does not.
jA~ggalarasa (jāṅgala-rasa)
Broth from animals of arid terrain, included in the historical formulation.
madanaphala (madana-phala)
Madana fruit, a strongly active ingredient included in the formulation.
yApana (yāpana)
Sustaining or life-supporting in the source's classification.
A person knowledgeable in disorders and the treatise is told to examine the medicine and the disorder carefully and, using this basic pattern, devise even a hundred bastis.
The commentary explains that the medicine should be chosen in relation to conditions such as wounds and fever, and that disorders may involve combinations or concurrence of vāta, pitta, and kapha or may arise from blood. The conjunction also includes unstated considerations such as season and strength. 'This basic pattern' refers to principles stated in earlier basti formulations, such as those beginning with decoctions of vāta-reducing substances. This describes historical adaptation, not permission to improvise invasive treatments.
Key terms
bheShaja (bheṣaja)
The medicinal substances to be considered in relation to the disorder.
vikAra (vikāra)
The disorder being assessed.
bIja (bīja)
The basic formulation principle or pattern supplied by earlier examples.
sannipAta (sannipāta)
Concurrent involvement of the three doṣas in the commentary's classification.
अजीर्णे न प्रयुञ्जीत दिवास्वप्नं च वर्जयत् |
आहाराचारिकं शेषमन्यत् कामं समाचरेत् ||११३||
Meaning of the śloka
The procedure should not be used when food remains undigested, and daytime sleep should be avoided. The remaining matters of diet and conduct may otherwise be followed as desired.
The commentary simply explains that, apart from the stated exceptions, the other activities connected with food and conduct may be undertaken as desired. This reflects the historical regimen surrounding the procedure.
Key terms
ajIrNa (ajīrṇa)
A state of undigested food in which the text says not to use the procedure.
यस्मान्मधु च तैलं च प्राधान्येन प्रदीयते |
माधुतैलिक इत्येवं भिषग्भिर्बस्तिरुच्यते ||११४||
रथेष्वपि च युक्तेषु हस्त्यश्वे चापि कल्पिते |
यस्मान्न प्रतिषिद्धोऽयमतो युक्तरथः स्मृतः ||११५||
बलोपचयवर्णानां यस्माद् व्याधिशतस्य च |
भवत्येतेन सिद्धिस्तु सिद्धबस्तिरतो मतः ||११६||
सुखिनामल्पदोषाणां नित्यं स्निग्धाश्च ये नराः |
मृदुकोष्ठाश्च ये तेषां विधेया माधुतैलिकाः ||११७||
Meaning of the śloka
Because honey and oil are its principal substances, physicians call it Mādhutailika. Because it was not prohibited even when chariots were harnessed and elephants or horses made ready, it is called Yuktaratha. Because the text claims success regarding strength, bodily development, complexion, and many disorders, it is called Siddhabasti. Mādhutailika preparations are stated for comfortable people with few doṣas who are habitually unctuous and have a soft koṣṭha.
The commentary says these verses explain the special names of the Mādhutailika preparations. It provides no further interpretation of the asserted benefits or eligible groups.
Key terms
mAdhutailika (mādhutailika)
Named for the prominence of madhu, honey, and taila, oil.
yuktaratha
A name associated in the verse with readiness for travel.
siddhabasti (siddha-basti)
A name linked by the source to claimed success in strength, complexion, and disorders.
mRudukoShTha (mṛdu-koṣṭha)
A soft bowel constitution in the source's classification.
The text says Siddhabastis involve fewer restraints because they are mild, reduced by one quarter, do not require the complete preparatory regimen, and involve a single basti administration.
The commentary defines mild as prepared with mildly acting substances. It offers two interpretations of reduced quantity: short by one quarter, producing nine prasṛtas, or short by two quarters, producing six. It explains omission of the complete regimen as avoiding preparations such as emesis. 'A single basti' is read as one portion, but some read 'administration for one day.' The commentary then notes that a textual variant can allow two or three administrations when a time-related doṣa disturbance remains and the expected signs are assessed. Another reading, 'not limited to one day,' is taken to mean that, unlike cleansing nirūha, it may be given repeatedly for purposes such as vājīkaraṇa in persons with balanced dhātus. These variants and their different implications remain unresolved.
Key terms
ayantraNA (ayantraṇā)
Relative freedom from restraints as claimed for Siddhabasti.
pAdahIna (pāda-hīna)
Reduced by one quarter, or in another interpretation by two quarters.
akRutsnavidhi (akṛtsna-vidhi)
Not employing the complete preparatory regimen.
ekabastipradAna (eka-basti-pradāna)
A single portion or administration, subject to variant readings.
Thus ends the thirty-eighth chapter of the Cikitsāsthāna in the Suśruta Saṃhitā, entitled Nirūhakramacikitsita, the treatment chapter on the sequence of nirūha-basti.
The commentary closes the thirty-eighth chapter of the Cikitsāsthāna in Dalhaṇa's Nibandhasaṅgraha commentary on the Suśruta Saṃhitā. The source displays a minor orthographic uncertainty in Dalhaṇa's name as 'Dalha(hla)ṇa.'
Key terms
cikitsAsthAna (cikitsāsthāna)
The section concerned with treatment.
nirUhakramacikitsita (nirūha-krama-cikitsita)
The chapter title concerning the treatment sequence of nirūha-basti.