Allopathic, Indian System Of Medicine, Naturopathy And Yoga (AYUSH)

Allopathic, Indian System of Medicine, Naturopathy and Yoga (AYUSH)

An AYUSH system of medicine includes Indian systems of medicine and Homeopathy. AYUSH is an acronym for Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha & Sowa Rigpa, and Homoeopathy.
Ayurveda is the oldest system with documented history of its practice since more than 5000 years whereas Homeopathy is in practice in India for around 100 years.
These systems are being practised in the country with diverse preferences of people and infrastructural facilities.
Ayurveda is more prevalent in the States of Kerala, Maharashtra, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Haryana, Punjab, Uttarakhand, Goa and Orissa.
The practice of Unani System is largely prevalent in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Jammu &Kashmir, Bihar, Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi and Rajasthan.
Homoeopathy is widely practiced in Uttar Pradesh, Kerala, West Bengal, Orissa, Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Punjab, Tamil Nadu, Bihar, Gujarat and the North Eastern States and the Siddha system is practiced in Tamil Nadu, Pondicherry and Kerala.
Recently recognized Sowa Rigpa system of medicine is prevalent in Himalayan regions including Jammu &Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarkhand, Arunachal Pradesh and Sikkim. Besides there are few educational institutes of Sowa Rigpa in UP and Karnataka.
AYUSH services in the country as a whole are provided by public, private and voluntary sector organizations and the range of their distribution varies from State to State.

AYURVEDA SYSTEM

‘Ayurveda’ literally means “Science of Life”. Ayurveda is evolved from the various Vedic hymns rooted in the fundamental philosophies about life, disease and health.
The Charak Samhita and Sushruta Samhita developed around 2500 BC are the main treaties of Ayurveda fully available today.
According to Ayurveda, health is considered as a pre-requisite for achieving the goals of life i.e.,Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha.
Ayurveda takes an integrated view of the physical, mental, spiritual and social aspects of human beings and about the inter-relationships between these aspects.
The philosophy of Ayurveda is based on the theory of Panchmahabhutas (five primordial elements), which postulates that all objects and living bodies are composed of five elements Aakasha, Vayu, Agni, Jala and Prithvi.
The combinations of these five elements are represented in the form of Tridoshas viz. Vata (Ether+ Air), Pitta (Fire) and Kapha(Water+ Earth). These three `Doshas’ are physiological entities in living beings, whereas Satva, Rajas and Tamas are the mental attributes.
The structural entities of the human body are the matrix of Rasa, Rakta, Mamsa Meda, Asthi, Majja and Shukra.
Ayurveda aims to keep these structural and functional entities in a state of equilibrium which signifies good health (Swasthya).
Any imbalance due to internal or external factors causes disease and the treatment consists of restoring the equilibrium through various interventions including therapeutic procedures, regimens, medicines and lifestyle management.
Ayurveda considers the human being as a microcosm (Yatha pinde tatha brahmande ) which is a replica of the macrocosm (universe).
The treatment in Ayurveda is holistic and individualized.
The preventive aspect of Ayurveda is called Svastha-Vritta and it includes personal hygiene, regular daily routine, appropriate social behavior and use of Rasayana.
The curative aspect consists of three major categories

Aushadhi (drugs)
Various therapeutic procedures including Panchakarma and Surgery
Satvavajaya (Methods for Mind control)

Practice of Ayurveda as a system of medicine has been recognized under IMCC Act 1970.
The education of Ayurveda is regulated by a statutory body Central Council of Indian Medicine (CCIM). Drugs& Cosmetics Act 1940 regulates manufacturing and sales Ayurvedic drugs.
During the Samhita period (1000 BC), Ayurveda developed with eight branches or specialties, due to which it is called as Ashtanga Ayurveda.
Following are the specialties of clinical medicine in Ayurveda: –

Kayachikitsa (Internal Medicine)
Kaumar Bhritya (Pediatrics)
Graha Chikitsa (Psychiatry)
Shalakya (Eye, ENT and Dentistry)
Shalya Tantra (Surgery)
Agada-Tantra (Toxicology)
Rasayana (Immuno-modulation and Gerentology)
Vajikarna (Science of fertilityandhealthyprogeny)

SIDDHA SYSTEM

The Siddha System of medicine is one of the ancient systems of medicine in India having its close with Dravidian culture. The term Siddha means achievements and Siddhars are those who have achieved perfection in medicine.
Eighteen Siddhars are said to have contributed towards the systematic development of this system and recorded their experiences in Tamil language.
The Siddha system of Medicine emphasizes on the patient, environment, age, sex, race, habits, mental frame work, habitat, diet, appetite, physical condition, physiological constitution of the diseases for its treatment which is individualistic in nature.
Diagnosis of diseases are done through examination of pulse, urine, eyes, study of voice, colour of body, tongue and status of the digestion of individual patients.
System has unique treasure for the conversion of metals and minerals as drugs and many infective diseases are treated with the medicines containing specially processed mercury, silver, arsenic, lead and sulphur without any side effects.
The strength of the Siddha system lies in providing very effective therapy in the case of Psoriasis, Rheumatic disorders, Chronic liver disorders, Benign prostate hypertrophy, bleeding piles, peptic ulcer including various kinds of Dermatological disorders of non psoriatic nature.
There are nine Siddha Medical College and one National Institute are available in our country. In these three post Gradates course are available.
During the last six decades, there has been continuous development in Siddha medical education and this has led to the establishment of the National Institute of Siddha at Chennai as apex Institute having six specialties in post-graduate teaching leading to the award of M.D(S) Degree.
For development of focused research in Siddha System of medicine Govt. has constituted Central Council for Research in Siddha (CCRS), an autonomous body by bifurcating Central Council for Research in Ayurveda and Siddha (CCRAS). In CCRS is under going the Research Work of Madhu Megam (Diabetes), Lecoderma and Hyper Tension etc

UNANI MEDICINE

The Unani System of Medicine originated in Greece and passed through many countries before establishing itself in India during the medieval period.
It is based on well-established knowledge and practices relating to the promotion of positive health and prevention of disease.
The fusion of traditional knowledge of ancient civilizations like Egypt, Arabia, Iran, China, Syria and India.
It emphasizes the use of naturally occurring mostly herbal medicines and also uses some medicines of animals, marine and mineral origin.
This system of medicine was documented in Al- Qanoon, a medical classics, by Sheikh Bu-Ali Sina (Avicena) (980-1037) AD), in Al-Havi by Razi (850-923 AD) and in many others books written by the Unani physicians.
The Unani System is based on the humoral theory i.e. the presence of blood, phlegm, yellow bile and black bile in every person.
The temperament of a person can accordingly be Sanguine, Phlegmatic, Choleric and Melancholic depending on the presence and combination of the Humors.
According to Unani theory, the humors and the drugs themselves are assigned temperaments.
Any change in quantity and quality of the humors bring about a change in the status of the health of the human body. A proper balance of humors required of the maintenance of health.
The treatment consists offour components, namely,Preventive,Promotive,Curative andRehabilitative.
Unani system of medicine has been found to be efficacious in many conditions, particularly Chronic and Degenerative disorders e.g. Rhumatoid Arhritis, Hepatitis, Filariasis, Eczema, Sinusitis and Bronchial Asthma etc.
For the prevention of disease and promotion of health, the Unani system emphasizes on six essential pre-requisites of life (Asbab-e-Sitta Zarooria) –

Pure air
Food and Beverages
Physical movement and Rest
Psychic movement and Rest
Sleep and Wakefulness
Retention of useful materials and Evacuation of waste materials from the body.

There are four forms of treatment in Unani medicine-

Regimenal therapy [Ilaj bit Tadbir],
Dietotherapy [Ilaj bil Ghiza],
Pharmacotherapy [Ilaj bid Dawa]
Surgery [Ilaj bil Yad].

Regimen therapy (Ilaj-bit-Tadbir) is a speciality under which various methods of treatment are used for treating specific and complicated disease.
Education and Practice of Unani as a system of medicine has been recognized under IMCC act 1970.
The education of Unani is regulated by a statutory body Central Council Of Indian Medicine [CCIM].The manufacturing and sale of Unani drugs is regulated by Drug & cosmetic Act 1940.

HOMOEOPATHY

The Physicians from the time of Hippocrates (around 400 B.C.) have observed that certain substances could produce symptoms of a disease in healthy people similar to those of people suffering from the disease.
Dr. Christian Friedrich Samuel Hahnemann, a German physician scientifically examined this phenomenon and codified the fundamental principles of Homoeopathy.
Homoeopathy was brought into India around 1810 A.D. by European missionaries and received official recognition by a Resolution passed by the Constituent Assembly in 1948 and then by the Parliament.
The first principle of Homoeopathy ‘Similia Similibus Curentur’, says that a medicine which could induce a set of symptoms in healthy human beings would be capable of curing a similar set of symptoms in human beings actually suffering from the disease.
The second principle of ‘Single Medicine’ says that one medicine should be administered at a time to a particular patient during the treatment.
The third principle of ‘Minimum Dose’ states that the bare minimum dose of a drug which would induce a curative action without any adverse effect should be administered.
Homoeopathy is based on the assumption that the causation of a disease mainly depends upon the susceptibility or proneness of an individual to the incidence of the particular disease in addition to the action of external agents like bacteria, viruses, etc.
Homoeopathy is a method of treating diseases by administering drugs, which have been experimentally proved to possess the power to produce similar symptoms on healthy human beings.
Treatment in Homoeopathy, which is holistic in nature, focuses on an individual’s response to a specific environment.
Homoeopathic medicines are prepared mainly from natural substances, such as plant products, minerals and from animal sources, nosodes & sarcodes etc.
Homoeopathic medicines do not have any toxic, poisonous or side effects. Homoeopathic treatment is economical as well and has a very broad public acceptance.
Homoeopathy has its own areas of strength in therapeutics and it is particularly useful in treatment for allergies, autoimmune disorders and viral infections.
Many surgical, gynaecological and obstetrical and paediatric conditions and ailments affecting the eyes, nose, ear, teeth, skin, sexual organs, etc. are amenable to homoeopathic treatment.
Behavioral disorder, neurological problems and metabolic diseases can also be successfully treated by Homoeopathy.
Apart from the curative aspects, Homoeopathic medicines are also used in preventive and promotive health care. In recent times, there is an emergence of interest in the use of Homoeopathic medicines in veterinary care, agriculture, dentistry, etc.
Homoeopathic medical education has developed in seven specialties in post-graduate teaching, which are Materia Medica, Organon of Medicine, Repertory, Practice of Medicine, Paediatrics, Pharmacy and Psychiatry.

YOGA

Yoga is essentially spiritual and it is an art and science of healthy living which focuses on bringing harmony between body and mind.
The word ‘Yoga’ has two meanings; the first comes from the root ‘Yujir’ or ‘Union’, the second is derived from a different root ‘yuja’ which means ‘Samadhi’ – the highest state of mind and the absolute knowledge. These two are the most important meanings of the word Yoga according to ‘Panini’, the most well-known Sanskrit grammarian.
Yoga is being practiced as part of healthy lifestyle and has become part of our spiritual heritage.
In the present era, Yoga is popular world-wide because of its spiritual values, therapeutic credentials, its role in the prevention of diseases, promotion of health and management of lifestyle related disorders.
Several clinical studies have lucidly demonstrated the therapeutic potentials of Yoga in the treatment of many lifestyle related or psychosomatic disorders. The specialty of this system is that it can get along with any other systems of health care.
The aim of Yoga is complete cessation of all kinds of suffering (sorrow) and its root cause ignorance and is known as Moksha or liberation.
The main objectives of Yoga are health, happiness, harmony, spiritual quest, personality development, etc.
Yoga is as old as civilization. The first archaeological evidence of existence of Yoga is found in Stone Seals of excavated from Indus Valley. Yoga was special feature of Indus Valley Civilization (3000 BC).
Yogic literature has been found in Vedas, Upanishadas, Darshanas, Epics, Puranas, Aagmas, Tantras, etc. Rich sources of Yoga have also been available in medieval, modern and contemporary literature.
The Yoga referred in the Vedic and Upanishadic literature has been depicted in three important texts called Prasthanatrayi:

Principle Upanishads (Upadeshaprasthana)
Vedanta Sutra of Badarayana (Nyaya Prasthana)
Bhagavad Geeta (Sadhana Prasthana)

These texts further lead to different schools of Yoga like Jnana Yoga; Karma Yoga; Bhakti Yoga; Dhyana Yoga;
However, the classical Yoga which is one of the Shad Darshanas, has been advocated by the great sage Patanjali, who lived around approximately 200 BC.
Patanjali wrote a book known as Yoga Sutras, which contains 195 sutras. Patanjali advocates Ashtanga Yoga, which is widely practiced from the ancient times till today, they are:

Yama (Self-restraints)
Niyama (Observance)
Asana (Psycho-physical postures)
Pranayama (Control of vital energy – breath)
Pratyahara (Withdrawal of senses)
Dharana (Concentration)
Dhyana (Meditation)
Samadhi (Absorption or State of liberation)

The following Yogic practices are being practiced for prevention and management of diseases:

Shatkarma: These are six cleansing techniques in Yoga used to clean the internal organs and systems of the body. These are called as the process of detoxification. Shatkarmas are Neti, Dhouti, Basti, Kapalabhati, Nauli, Trataka.
Yogasana: These are special patterns of body that stabilise the mind through static stretching. Yogasanas are psycho-physical in nature. They play a significant role in toning up the neuro-musculo and glandular systems of the body. There are more than 84 asanas mentioned in the classical texts.
Pranayama: Pranayama is a practice which helps to regulate vital energies through regulation of breathing.
Mudra: These are special gestures/techniques formed with the combination of Asana and Pranayama and are used in channelization of Prana the vital force.
Dhyana: Sustain concentration on the object is Dhyana. Dhyana is an integral part of Yoga practice and is beneficial for psychological and spiritual growth and also helps in health promotion.

NATUROPATHY

Naturopathy is a science of health and healing and a drugless therapy based on well-founded philosophy. It has its own concept of health and disease and principles of treatment.
Naturopathy is a system of medicine that advocates harmonious living with constructive principles of Nature on physical, mental moral and spiritual planes. It has great health promotive and restorative, and disease preventive as well as curative potential.
According to Naturopathy the primary cause of disease, barring accidental or surgical injury, is violation of Nature’s laws and the effects of violation of Nature’s laws are-

Lowered vitality
Abnormal composition of blood and lymph
Accumulation of morbid matter in the body

The science of Naturopathy teaches us that the disease is Nature’s effort to eliminate the morbid matter from the body to restore the health. Hence, we must not suppress the out ward symptoms of disease like fever, cough, loose motions etc. but cooperate with Nature in the process of eliminating morbid matter from the body.
Some of the basic concepts of Naturopathy are outlined as under:

Naturopathy believes in the concept of unity of disease and unity of cure. According to it root cause of all diseases are one that is accumulation of morbid matter in the body and the remedy also is one i.e. elimination of those toxins from the body.
Naturopathy considers bacteria and virus to be secondary cause of disease. The primary cause of disease is accumulation of morbid matter in the body. The microbes survive in the body only when a favourable atmosphere for their growth is established by the accumulation of morbid matter. Hence, the basic cause of disease is morbid matter and microbes are only the secondary cause.
Acute diseases are self-healing efforts of the body. Hence, they are taken as our friends, not enemies. Chronic diseases are outcome of wrong treatment and suppression of the acute diseases.
Human body has remarkable recuperative powers when left alone. Nature is the greatest healer. The human body is a self-healing machine. It is endowed with inherent healing power to prevent itself from disease and regain health when fallen ill.
In Naturopathy the patient is at the center of intervention and treatment, cure of disease is effected automatically with the increase in vitality and detoxification of body.
Naturopathy believes in holistic treatment. It not only treats the body as a whole, instead of specific organs but also take into account intervention at mental, moral and spiritual planes.
Naturopathy does not use medicines. According to it, “Food is Medicine”.
Naturopathy accepts prayers also as a modality of treatment. According to Gandhiji “Rama Nama is the best Natural Treatment” meaning there by that prayer according to one’s own faith is an important part of treatment

Some of the important therapies/therapeutic modalities of Naturopathy which are employed not only for curative purposes but also for prevention of diseases and promotion of health are as under-

Upvas Chikitsa (Fasting Therapy) (
Aahar Chikitsa (Diet Therapy)
Mitti Chikitsa (Mud Therapy)
Jala Chikitsa (Hydrotherapy)
Malish Chikitsa (Massage Therapy)
Surya Kiran Chikitsa (Heliotherapy)
Vayu Chikitsa (Air Therapy)
Yoga Chikitsa (Yoga Therapy)

SOWA-RIGPA

Sowa-Rigpa is among the oldest surviving health traditions of the world with a living history of more than 2500 years.
It has been in vogue and practised in Himalayan regions throughout, particularly in Leh and Laddakh (J&K), Himachal Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim, Darjeeling etc. Sowa-Rigpa is effective in managing chronic diseaseslikeAsthma, Bronchitis,Arthritis, etc.
The basic theory of Sowa-Rigpa is explained in terms of

The body and the mind as the locus of treatment;
Antidote, i.e. the treatment;
The method of treatment through antidote;
Medicines that cure the disease and lastly
Pharmacology.

Sowa- Rigpa emphasizes the importance of the five cosmological physical elements in the formation of the human body, the nature of disorders and the remedial measures.