Classical Indian Research Articles

Potency Therapy in Classical Indian Medicine

This paper examines the traditional Indian ideas about impotency, virility, and potency therapy as found principally in the Sanskrit medical treatises of Caraka and Suśruta. Included is a detailed discussion of the potency formulas and what they contain. The analysis of this material leads to six important conclusions: l. Caraka relies on a brahminic explanation of and justification for potency therapy, which is wanting in Suśruta. 2. The use of symbolism to empower certain medicines seems to reflect a local tradition of folk medicine. 3. Certain animals are used as potency symbols. A similar use of potent animals occurs throughout Sanskrit literature. 4. The mention of meat in the potency of formulas of both treatises indicates that meat-eating was not forbidden at this time in certain contexts. 5. All but one of the potency formulas were to be consumed, and where believed to give general nourishment and bodily strength. Moreover, the consumption of animal semen as an ingredient in certain formulas was forbidden by the twelfth century CE. 6. The only non-consumed potency medicine was a foot balm, which may have been derived from an early tradition of Indian eroticism, known as Kāmaśāstra.

A Metaphysics for Phenomenal Freedom: An Analysis from Classical Indian and Western Philosophical Perspectives

The metaphysical possibility of agency at the phenomenal level, given the truth of a nomological and binding causal force, has long been a moot point in both Indian and western philosophical traditions. While an underlying implication of fatalistic resignation hangs over the possibility of phenomenal freedom within the ambit of the classical Indian interpretation of the Law of Karma, which forms the basis of the assumption that a fatalistic nexus of vāsanā (cravings for mundane achievements) and the ensuing karma (action-tendencies to reach a mundane goal) circumscribes an agent’s choices, the western thought on the question of the freedom of choice has rather been preoccupied with the putative threat posed by the deterministic law of various nuances, such as theological determinism and logical determinism. A close analysis of the western philosophical debate surrounding free will reveals that the kind of linear causation that determinism supposedly entails is the primary reason for its being conflated with fatalism. The source of all the misgiving about determinism’s free will subduing influence is the oversight that it renders the agent’s rational endeavour a futile exercise in the same way as fatalism does. In this paper, therefore, an attempt has been made to disentangle determinism from fatalism. A key proposal advanced in this paper is that the causative force of the karmic law, admitted by most of the classical schools of Indian philosophy, may prima facie have a circumscriptive effect on agentic rational pursuits and choices. However, an intimate study reveals that this law does not preclude phenomenal freedom, although of a higher echelon. The classical Indian schools of philosophy admitting the undeniable presence of this karmic law allow the possibility of this seemingly inexorable causative force of the law being overridden by a more reason-guided pursuit, adopted by the agent, after an overhaul of his egoistic cravings. The model of agency developed in this paper is based on the claim that it is by way of undergoing self-determination that phenomenal freedom reaches its pinnacle. Drawing on the theories of volition and self advanced by some prominent classical Indian philosophical schools and the classical western philosophical theories of free will in the light of the deterministic threat, an attempt has been made to bring into harmony the rhetoric of both worlds, exploring the possibility whether phenomenal freedom can be salvaged through agentic self-determination and self-development.

Unani methods of cure in the Indian subcontinent : an analytical study

The history of medicine is bound with the history of civilization, representing the complex interactions of human communities, geography and the environment over time. South Asia has always been a vibrant melting pot of interactions between different peoples. Unani (‘Greek’) medicine is based on ancient Hellenic thought (via its interactions with Babylonian, Egyptian, Indian and Persian knowledge). Tibb-i-Unani is Arabic for ‘Greek medicine’, which became Unani as practiced in the Indian Subcontinent, where it was developed and refined through systematic experimentation by renowned scholars. Islamic physicians tested Indian traditional medicines using clinical trials, as a result of which they incorporated a number of indigenous medicines in their own system, advancing and enriching its treasures. The basic Unani framework is timeless, based on human action and intrinsic causes. This paper highlights the subtler and perhaps more important aspects of classical Indian Unani medicine that contributed to the development of the entire body of scientific knowledge. Through an analysis of socio-cultural and historical context, the paper concludes that the contribution of Unani medicine in India lies in: (a) preserving the ancient Greek tradition of medicine; and (b) safeguarding and advancing utilitarian medical science and treatment into the early modern period.

Classical Indian Thought and the English Language: Perspectives and Problems ed. by Mohini Mullick and Madhuri Santanam Sondhi

Classical Indian Thought and the English Language: Perspectives and Problems ed. by Mohini Mullick and Madhuri Santanam Sondhi

Millets: The Indigenous Food Grains

The present study aims to explore nutritional as well as the therapeutic potential of millets in perspectives of Ayurveda substantiated by modern scientific studies. The methodology adopted for the study includes field survey, review of literature starting from ancient Indian classics of Ayurveda , modern scientific and research-based publications including journals and periodicals. Millets are still used as supplementary food grains in tribal and relatively lesser developed parts of the country. Millets have been widely used in therapeutics in Ayurveda classics. Nutritional potential of millets may be well understood by the following facts- Pearl millet ( Pennisetum typhoides Burm.f.Stapf. & Habbard) is significantly rich in resistant starch, soluble and insoluble dietary fibers, minerals and antioxidants. It contains 2.8% crude fiber, 7.8% crude fat, 13.6% crude protein, and 63.2% starch. Foxtail millet ( Setaria italica Linn. Beauv.) is rich in lysine. Finger millet ( Eleusine coracana Linn.) has carbohydrate 81.5%, protein 9.8%, crude fiber 4.3% and minerals 2.7% which is higher than wheat and rice. Kodo millet ( Paspalum scrobiculatum Linn.) and little millet ( Panicum miliare Lam.) also have 37.38% dietary fiber which is highest among cereals. In Proso millet ( Panicum miliaceum Linn.) protein content found to be 11.6% of dry matter and is greater than wheat protein. Millets have a high nutritive value comparable to major cereal grains. Thus millet proteins are a good source of essential amino acids, micronutrients, phytochemicals, antioxidants, and minerals. The presence of all required nutrients in millets makes them potential dietary supplements.

POLLOCK, SHELDON, trans. and ed. A Rasa Reader: Classical Indian Aesthetics. Columbia University Press, 2016, xxiv + 442 pp., $80.00 cloth.

POLLOCK, SHELDON, trans. and ed. A Rasa Reader: Classical Indian Aesthetics. Columbia University Press, 2016, xxiv + 442 pp., $80.00 cloth.

Does Critical Thinking and Logic Education Have a Western Bias? The Case of the Nyāya School of Classical Indian Philosophy

In this paper I develop a cross-cultural critique of contemporary critical thinking education in the United States, the United Kingdom, and those educational systems that adopt critical thinking education from the standard model used in the US and UK. The cross-cultural critique rests on the idea that contemporary critical thinking textbooks completely ignore contributions from non-western sources, such as those found in the African, Arabic, Buddhist, Jain, Mohist and Nyāya philosophical traditions. The exclusion of these traditions leads to the conclusion that critical thinking educators, by using standard textbooks are implicitly sending the message to their students that there are no important contributions to the study of logic and argumentation that derive from non-western sources. As a case study I offer a sustained analysis of the so-called Hindu Syllogism that derives from the Nyāya School of classical Indian philosophy. I close with a discussion of why contributions from non-western sources, such as the Hindu Syllogism, belong in a Critical Thinking course as opposed to an area studies course, such as Asian Philosophy.

Louise Lightfoot and Ibetombi Devi: The Second Manipuri Dance Tour of Australia, 1957

Manipur, a small state in the North-Eastern India, is traditionally regarded in the Indian classics and epics such as Ramayana and Mahabharata as the home of gandharvas (the celestial dancers). Manipuri is one of the eleven dance styles of India that have incorporated various techniques mentioned in such ancient treatises as the Natya Shastra and Bharatarnava and has been placed by Sangeet Natak Akademi within ‘a common heritage’ of Indian classical dance forms (shastriya nritya): Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Kathakali, Kuchipudi, Manipuri, Mohiniyattam, Odissi, Sattriya, Chhau, Gaudiya Nritya, and Thang Ta. In the late-1950s Louise Lightfoot, the ‘Australian mother of Kathakali,’ visited Manipur to study and research different styles of Manipuri dance. There she met Ibetombi Devi, the daughter of a Manipuri Princess; she had started dancing at the age of four and by the age of twelve, she had become the only female dancer to perform the Meitei Pung Cholom on stage––a form of dance traditionally performed by Manipuri men accompanied by the beating of the pung (drum). In 1957, at the age of 20, Ibetombi became the first Manipuri female dancer to travel to Australia. This paper addresses Ibetombi Devi's cross-cultural dance collaboration in Australia with her impresario, Louise Lightfoot, and the impression she and her co-dancer, Ananda Shivaram, made upon audiences.

The construction of meanings in relation to language and religion: a study into the Mahabharata

The current article is an investigation into language in a narrative religious text, specifically how the semiotic resource of language is used to construct meanings in relation to language and religion. The religious text chosen for the study comes from two retold versions of the world's largest story, “the most cherished of all Indian classics, the Mahabharata” (Dharma 1998: 1). The article will attempt to answer the following research questions: (1) What are the elements of generic/schematic structure in the text? (2) How are the elements of generic/schematic structure related to language? (3) How is language used to bring out the various religious themes in the texts? The generic/schematic structure shows that the story chapters appear to have been organized the same way. The discourse phases are signaled by two incidents, two complications, two reactions and two resolutions in the story. Ideational meanings are embodied in both congruent and metaphoric ways. Catenative verbs are used to form a chain of events. Mood and comment adjuncts are used to provide interpersonal meanings of appraisal and judgment. Textual adjuncts are used to provide thematic prominence and contribute to the semantic continuity of the text whereas circumstantial adjuncts of time, place and manner serve to enhance the meanings expressed by choice of process types and participants. In the story certain actions acquire symbolic meanings. It is through these symbolic meanings that religious, cultural and spiritual ideologies come to be construed. Examples of symbolic meanings explicated from the texts are the depiction of Ganga's divinity, the curses and blessings of a sage and how religious merit is obtained. Detailed analysis of the role of language in expressing meanings related to sacrifice, renunciation and the fulfillment of vows in religious discourse may enhance cross-cultural understanding and may be of interest to language practitioners and spiritualists.

Ayurveda – a medicina clássica indiana

O objetivo do presente artigo é apresentar de forma sucinta as bases da Medicina Clássica Indiana, o Ayurveda. A palavra sânscrita Ayurveda significa literalmente o conhecimento (veda) da longevidade (ayus). Apresentamos um histórico das principais influências de outras medicinas ancestrais que conviveram com o Ayurveda, principalmente graças às várias invasões que o território indiano sofreu ao longo de toda sua história. Diferenciamos o Ayurveda de caráter experimental e de refinada observação de sintomas e sinais das doenças de outras formas de medicina mística praticadas no mesmo território indiano por sacerdotes brâmanes ritualistas. São delineados os princípios fundamentais do Ayurveda, desde a Filosofia Samkhya que oferece suas bases metafísicas, passando pela doutrina dos três humores (tridosha vidya) e dos cinco elementos básicos, pela fisiopatologia com a descrição das várias etapas evolutivas das doenças e seus prognósticos e pela funcionalidade dos sete tecidos corporais, tanto na sua forma saudável como patológica. Descrevemos também os canais de circulação (srotamsi) com suas respectivas funções de conduzir materiais densos como o sangue, a transpiração, as fezes e a urina, bem como os canais de energia sutil responsáveis pela condução dos pensamentos e das funções mentais. As técnicas de diagnóstico são também apresentadas em conjunto com as variadas formas de tratamento, baseadas em terapias mente-corpo como as práticas de ioga e meditação.

Rasayana Drugs From the Ayurvedic System of Medicine as Possible Radioprotective Agents in Cancer Treatment

The use of ionizing radiation, which is the cornerstone of cancer treatment, is compromised by the radiosensitivity of normal tissues. A chemical that can give selective benefit to the normal cells against the deleterious effects of ionizing radiation has been a long-sought goal. However, most of the compounds studied have shown inadequate clinical application owing to their inherent toxicity, undesirable side effects, and high cost. Studies carried out in the past 2 decades have shown that some of the classical Indian Ayurvedic drugs (Amritaprasham, Ashwagandha Rasayana, Brahma Rasayana, Chyavanprasha, Narasimha Rasayana, and Triphala Churna) possess radioprotective effects. In the current review, an attempt is made to summarize the radioprotective observations of these Ayurvedic drugs and the mechanisms responsible for the radioprotective effects.

Classical Indian Philosophy of Induction: The Nyāya Viewpoint (review)

Reviewed by: Classical Indian Philosophy of Induction: The Nyāya Viewpoint Paul J. Williams Classical Indian Philosophy of Induction: The Nyāya Viewpoint. By Kisor Kumar Chakrabarti. Lanham, MD: Lexington Books, 2010. Pp. xv + 311. Hardcover $85.00. The problem of induction has been among the most fiercely debated issues in philosophy for a remarkably long time. Though it is generally thought that David Hume was the first to articulate this concern, in Classical Indian Philosophy of Induction, [End Page 423] Kisor Chakrabarti explains that the question of whether inductive reasoning can result in knowledge (pramā) has been debated in South Asia for approximately two thousand years, accompanied by a vast corpus of Sanskrit philosophical literature. This problem was taken up by philosophers from several of the classical Indian traditions beginning with the skeptical position of the Cārvāka school. Chakrabarti's book explores a wide range of views from Indian and Western philosophers, while focusing on a defense of induction drawn primarily from the work of the great Navya-Naiyāyika Gaṅgeśa. The urgency of the problem for Nyāya epistemology is brought into view at the outset of the book with Cārvāka arguments against the very possibility that inductive reasoning can lead to knowledge. Chakrabarti cites a series of influential rejoinders from several of the classical Indian philosophical traditions, and briefly explores the positions of Western philosophers such as Carnap, Popper, Reichenbach, Russell, and Strawson on the problem of induction. Finally, Chakrabarti argues that Gaṅgeśa's approach to justifying knowledge born of induction can solve the problems of induction both old and new. One of the primary virtues of this book is its thoughtful organization. A distillation of Gaṅgeśa's view on induction and Chakrabarti's positive proposal are on the table by the end of the second chapter. The remainder of the text consists of translations from the works of Gaṅgeśa, Prabhacandra, Śrīharṣa, and Dharmakīrti, along with a running commentary by Chakrabarti. As a result, this volume is accessible to those unfamiliar with classical Indian epistemology (pramāṇa-śāstra) and will be a tremendous resource to specialists and nonspecialists alike. Be that as it may, the text is brimming with the specialized language of classical Indian epistemology. Fortunately, Chakrabarti explains the terminology well and keeps his translations consistent throughout. According to the mainstream Nyāya view, to draw an inference (anumāna) is to "grasp a pervasion" (vyāpti-graha) between class characteristics. For example, when one observes smokiness (the "mark" or hetu) on a hill (the "inferential subject" or pakṣa) and correctly infers that there is fieriness (the "probandum" or sādhya) on the hill, the agent does so by virtue of recognizing that smokiness is pervaded by fieriness. In other words, all loci of the former are loci of the latter. Terminology such as this facilitates valuable distinctions and helps to frame the philosophical terrain. Chakrabarti presents the following Cārvāka arguments against induction, and thus against inference (anumāna), as a source of knowledge (pramāṇa) as classically conceived. First, in the past when we have taken there to be a pervasion between two class characteristics, in some cases the probandum has later been found to deviate from the mark. A classic example is the inference that iron (the mark) is pervaded by the property of not being scratchable (the probandum), disproved by the discovery that iron can be scratched by a diamond. Thus, the Cārvāka conclude, we cannot possess knowledge that two phenomena will always occur together in the future simply because we have never observed them deviate in the past (p. 4). Second, because it is always possible that there is another factor — an "adjunct" (upādhi) — which occurs invariably with the probandum but deviates from the mark, knowledge produced [End Page 424] by inductive reasoning is unattainable. For example, fieriness (the mark) is not pervaded by smokiness (the probandum) because the adjunct of wet fuel is needed for the existence of smoke, but is unnecessary for the existence of fire. Fire may occur without smoke when there is absence of the...

The Definition of Universal Concomitance as the Absence of Undercutting Conditions

This essay discusses a prominent definition of universal concomitance in the Nyāya School of Classical Indian Philosophy. This definition holds that universal concomitance is equivalent to the absence of undercutting conditions. It will be shown that though this definition seems to be inadequate, there is an auxiliary condition that may be added which makes the equivalence between universal concomitance and the absence of undercutting conditions deductively correct. It will then be shown that this auxiliary condition fits well into the Nyaya foundations of logic and that furthermore this auxiliary condition does not unreasonably restrict the applicability of the definition of universal concomitance as the absence of undercutting conditions. Hence, the conclusion is that this interpretation is a good candidate for how the definition of universal concomitance as the absence of undercutting conditions should be understood.

Coconut ( Cocos nucifera L.: Arecaceae): In health promotion and disease prevention

Coconut, Cocos nucifera L., is a tree that is cultivated for its multiple utilities, mainly for its nutritional and medicinal values. The various products of coconut include tender coconut water, copra, coconut oil, raw kernel, coconut cake, coconut toddy, coconut shell and wood based products, coconut leaves, coir pith etc. Its all parts are used in someway or another in the daily life of the people in the traditional coconut growing areas. It is the unique source of various natural products for the development of medicines against various diseases and also for the development of industrial products. The parts of its fruit like coconut kernel and tender coconut water have numerous medicinal properties such as antibacterial, antifungal, antiviral, antiparasitic, antidermatophytic, antioxidant, hypoglycemic, hepatoprotective, immunostimulant. Coconut water and coconut kernel contain microminerals and nutrients, which are essential to human health, and hence coconut is used as food by the peoples in the globe, mainly in the tropical countries. The coconut palm is, therefore, eulogised as ‘Kalpavriksha’ (the all giving tree) in Indian classics, and thus the current review describes the facts and phenomena related to its use in health and disease prevention.

′Swapna′ in the Indian classics: Mythology or science?

There are many concepts in Ayurveda as well as the ancient sciences that are untouched or unexplored. One such concept is that of the Swapna (dreams). Being an abstract phenomenon it makes it difficult to be explained and understood; probably because of this the descriptions related to Swapna in the Indian classics are supported by mythology, to make them acceptable. Variations in these explanations are seen according to the objective of the school of thought; that is, in the ancient texts where dreams are used to delve into the knowledge of the Atman and are related to spirituality, its description in the Ayurvedic texts evolves around the Sharira and Manas. Although all these explanations seem to be shrouded in uncertainty and mythology; there definitely seems to be a logical and rational science behind these quotations. They only need research, investigation, and explanation on the basis of logic, and a laboratory.

Imagining the fetus: the unborn in myth, religion, and culture

ABOUT THE CONTRIBUTORS 1. Introduction: Restoring Nuance to the Imagination of the Fetus 2. The Story of Sa+kar+a+as and K++as Births: A Drama Involving Embryos 3. The Great Men of Jainism in Utero 4. A Womb With a View: The Buddhas Final Fetal Experiences 5. Life in the Womb: Conception and Gestation in Buddhist Scripture& Classical Indian Medical Literature 6. Philosophical Embryology: Buddhist Texts and the Ritual Construction of a Fetus 7. Tibetan Buddhist Narratives of the Forces of Creation 8. Feticide in the Punjab and Fetus Imagery in Sikhism 9. Embryology in the Ancient Near East 10. Famous Fetuses in Rabbinic Literature 11. The Leaping Child: Imagining the Unborn in Early Christian Literature 12. A Prophet Emerging: Fetal Narratives in Islamic Literature 13. The Colossal Fetuses of La Venta and Mesoamericas Earliest Creation Story 14. Out of Place: Fetal References in Japanese Mythology and Cultural Memory 15. Seeing Like a Family: Fetal Ultrasound Images and Imaginings of Kin

Narrativity and Empiricism in Classical Indian Accounts of Birth and Death: The Mahābhārata and the Saṃhitās of Caraka and Suśruta

This paper will address the relationship between the Mahābhārata's representation of the physical processes of birth and death and similar material found in the classical ayurvedic texts of Caraka and Suśruta, which are roughly contemporaneous with the Sanskrit epic (second century BCE–second century CE). My primary source in the Mahābhārata (MBh) is the Anugītā, the second, and lesser known, dialogue between kṛṣṇa and Arjuna. This 'subsidiary Gītā is situated in the fourteenth book (parvan) of the epic, the Āśvamedhika parvan, which ostensibly deals with the horse sacrifice (aśvamedha) performed by the victorious king Yudhiṣṭhira after the conclusion of the great war. The relevant chapters of the Anugītā (MBh 14.17–18) contain fascinating and practically unknown material on the physical processes of birth and death, on embryology, and on physical dissolution. I will explicate this material, and then compare it with selected passages from the Caraka-Saṃhitā and the Suśruta-Saṃhitā. I shall then ask why, given considerable evidence for intertextuality between the MBh and the āyurvedic compendia, the classical medical texts did not include this interesting material and why the Mahābhārata did. In exploring this question, I must inquire into the scientific, or at least empirical, principles utilised in the medical texts that would force their authors to exclude the MBh material they probably knew well, in order to frame a particular kind of discourse.

GETTIER AND FACTIVITY IN INDO-TIBETAN�EPISTEMOLOGY

The similarities between contemporary externalist theories of knowledge and classical Indian and Tibetan theories of knowledge are striking. Drawing on comparisons with Timothy Williamson's recent work, I address related topics in Indo-Tibetan epistemology and show that correct analysis of these issues requires externalist theories of mind and knowledge. The topics addressed range from a discussion of possible Gettier cases in the Tibetan philosophical tradition to an assessment of arguments for and against the existence of factive mental states/events that fail to be knowledge states/events. I conclude by explaining how these matters in Indian and Tibetan epistemology can inform us about the viability of externalist epistemologies of the sort articulated by Williamson.

Potency Therapy in Classical Indian Medicine

This paper examines the traditional Indian ideas about impotency, virility, and potency therapy as found principally in the Sanskrit medical treatises of Caraka and Suśruta. Included is a detailed discussion of the potency formulas and what they contain. The analysis of this material leads to six important conclusions: l. Caraka relies on a brahminic explanation of and justification for potency therapy, which is wanting in Suśruta. 2. The use of symbolism to empower certain medicines seems to reflect a local tradition of folk medicine. 3. Certain animals are used as potency symbols. A similar use of potent animals occurs throughout Sanskrit literature. 4. The mention of meat in the potency of formulas of both treatises indicates that meat-eating was not forbidden at this time in certain contexts. 5. All but one of the potency formulas were to be consumed, and where believed to give general nourishment and bodily strength. Moreover, the consumption of animal semen as an ingredient in certain formulas was forbidden by the twelfth century CE. 6. The only non-consumed potency medicine was a foot balm, which may have been derived from an early tradition of Indian eroticism, known as Kāmaśāstra.

A Look at the Indo-European Arch Rhythmics (a comparative analysis of the musical rhythmics of Hindus, Arabs, Greeks, and Balts)

This article analyzes and compares the rhythmics of Indian, Arabian, ancient Greek, ethnic Lithuanian, Latvian, and Estonian music. The stress is laid on the similarity common to classical Indian, ancient Greek, and ethnic Lithuanian music. The author poses the question: can the durational rhythmics, which is common among the mentioned cultures, be called “Indo-European Arch rhythmics”; or is it a phenomenon of a wider scale, typical in the music of other cultures, too. The research is based on typological and comparative methods. The phenomenon of musical rhythmics is analyzed following the quantitative (duration, quantity) view. The foundation of quantitative (durational) rhythmics is sought for in languages as well- in the fluctuation of long and short syllables.