Acharya Sushrut is known as the father of surgery and author of Sushrut Samhita. Circa 5 – 4th century BCE. He is credited with performing the world’s first rhinoplasty, using anesthesia and plastic surgery. He used surgical instruments – many of them look similar to instruments used today; and discussed more than 300 types of surgical operations. In his treatise Sushrut Samhita, he has described over 300 surgical procedures and 125 surgical instruments, including scalpels, lancets, needles, catheters and rectal speculums; mostly designed from the jaws of animals and birds. He has also described a number of stitching methods; the use of horse’s hair as thread and fibers of bark. His research was pioneering not only in the field of plastic surgery but he also made some groundbreaking contributions to the field of anesthesia. Interestingly, even before Hippocrates, he had prescribed an ethical code for medical practitioners. A statue dedicated to Sushruta at Haridwar. One of the Ayurvedic surgical practices being used today in India involves dipping sutures into antibiotic herbs so when sewed into the person, the scar heals quicker and prevent infection. The modern surgical world owes a great debt to this great surgical sage.
Acharya Charaka has been crowned as the Father of Medicine. His renowned work, the “Charak Samhita”, is considered as an encyclopedia of Ayurveda. He has described the medicinal qualities and functions of 100,000 herbal plants. His research on human anatomy, embryology, pharmacology, blood circulation and diseases like diabetes, tuberculosis is simply mindblowing. He was a strong proponent of the influence that diet has on the mind and body.
About 2,600 years ago, Acharya Kanad, an Indian philosopher and a great thinker far ahead of his time, developed what we today call the atomic theory. He was one of the first persons in the world who talked about objects and elements that create them. He gave the concepts of atoms and how they bond together to form larger particles. He studied atomic theory and found the way atoms move and react with each other.
The life history of Patanjali is full of legends and contradictions. He gave the World the art of Yoga and showed how Yoga can improve not only one’s physical health but also mental health of a person.
Medicine (Ayurveda), Aviation; Around 800 BCE Sage Bharadwaj, was both the father of modern medicine, teaching Ayurveda, and also the developer of aviation technology. He wrote the Yantra Sarvasva, which covers astonishing discoveries in aviation and space sciences, and flying machines – well before Leonardo DaVinchi’s time. Some of his flying machines were reported to fly around the earth, from the earth to other planets, and between universes. His designs and descriptions have left a huge impression on modern-day aviation engineers. He also discussed how to make these flying machines invisible by using sun and wind force. There are much more fascinating insights discovered by sage Bharadwaj.
Medicine, Surgery, paediatrics, gynaecology. anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, embryology, blood circulation. Around this era and through 400 BCE many great developments occurred. In the field of medicine (Ayurveda), sage Divodasa Dhanwantari developed the school of surgery; Rishi Kashyap developed the specialized fields of paediatrics and gynaecology. Lord Atreya, author of the one of the main Ayurvedic texts, the Charak Samhita, classified the principles of anatomy, physiology, pharmacology, embryology, blood circulation and more. He discussed how to heal thousands of diseases, many of which modern science still has no answer. Along with herbs, diet and lifestyle, Atreya showed a correlation between mind, body, spirit and ethics. He outlined a charter of ethics centuries before the Hippocratic oath.
Rhinoplasty, amputation, caesarean and cranial surgeries, anesthesia, antibiotic herbs; While Lord Atreya is recognized for his contribution to medicine, sage Sushrut is known as the “Father of surgery”. Even modern science recognizes India as the first country to develop and use rhinoplasty (developed by Sushrut). He also practiced amputation, caesarean and cranial surgeries, and developed 125 surgical instruments including scalpels, lancets, and needles.
Lord Atreya – author of Charak Samhita. Circa 8th – 6th century BCE. Perhaps the most referred to Rishi/physician today The Charak Samhita was the first compilation of all aspects of ayurvedic medicine including diagnoses, cures, anatomy, embryology, pharmacology, and blood circulation (excluding surgery). He wrote about causes and cures for diabetes, TB, and heart diseases. At that time, European medicine had no idea of these ideas. In fact, even today many of these disease causes and cures are still unknown to modern allopathic medicine.
Other unique quality of Ayurveda is that it uncovers and cures the root cause of illness, it is safe, gentle and inexpensive, it sees 6 stages of disease development (where modern medicine only sees the last two stages), it treats people in a personalized manner according to their dosha or constitution and not in any generic manner. Further, Ayurveda being the science of ‘life’, Atrea was quick to emphasize, proper nutrition according to dosha, and perhaps above all else, that there was a mind/body/soul relationship and that the root cause of all diseases and the best medicine for all conditions is spiritual and ethical life.
Authored by Dr Anadi Sahoo
