Both systems believe that healing once begun often causes
the disease to retrace its path in the opposite direction to exit out of the body .5
D i a g n o s i s
A yurveda and Chinese Medicine utilize fairly similar diagnostic methods
based on  sensory observation and questioning by the practitioner . In both
systems this process is a synthetic one that allows the practitioner a great
deal of latitude in choosing from an assortment of investigatory procedures. Examination of the pulse is still  the preeminent diagnostic technique within
both traditions, and the method ology employed in the two sy stems dif fers
only slig htly . Moreover the interpretations given to pulse analysis in both
show a wide co ncordance. The  general characteristics of the three Doshas
and their analogous Chinese counterpart pulses are: V ata or Qi-floating,
empty a nd irregu lar; Pitta or Y ang-tight, rapid and wiry or full; and Kapha or
Y in- lar ge, slow and deep. Both sys tems postulate that the pulses reflect both the overall level of
vitality and the diseased condition of the individual. One major dif ference
between the two in pulse diagnosis, however , is that the Chinese utilize the
pulse to  determine the conditions of the individual or gans and their
associated Meridians as also to the pernicious influences and state of the
substances; whereas in A yurveda, the state of the Doshas by pulse diagnosis
is o f paramount concern, refle cting the lack of emphasis on or gans as
mentioned earlie r . The state of the body’ s Qi or Prana, too, is emulated in the
pulse, and therefore pulse examination is used to prognosticate the
immanence of death as well. Because A yurveda acquired the procedure of pulse examination later
in its developme nt, A yurvedic doctors originally relied on such observations
as facial  color , tongue, eyes, ga it, etc. ; questioning, and inference for their
diagnoses. Urin alysis, commonly used in India today , also seems to have
been acquired later from the T ibetans (see illustration 23). A great deal of similarity exists in the methodology for observation of
the tongue for diagnostic purposes. In each system the tongue is divided into
thirds—the tip, middle portion and root—which are linked, respectively , tothe ches t, upper and lower abd omen, and the or gans therein. Observations
pertaining to the tongue’ s color , shape, texture and coating are analyzed in
both traditions, primarily , for th e presence of heat or cold, and secondarily
for other pathogenic factors. In A yur veda a  practitioner learns the art of prognosis, which
incorporates a highly intuitive  and spiritual understanding of life. This
deep  stu dy refle cts on the doct ors’ skills and hence reputation as much as
does dia gnosis and resultant treatment. The prognosis is determined through
a variety of procedures: a thorough examination to determine the general
constitution of the patient, the nature and stage of the illness, and a
consideration of a myriad of omens including the patient’ s dreams.Chinese medicine is lar gely devoid of the systematic spiritual aspect of
this type  of prognosis as a res ult of the abandonment of spi ritual beliefs
within its philosophical rationa le. Thus one finds a greater belief in spirit
possession, ef fec ts of curses, and  other occult influences in A yurveda than in
modern Chinese medicine. Following diagnostic inquiry , the physician must or ganize and
dif ferentiate the information elicited by the procedures. While A yurveda tries
to u tilize the Do sha theory as e xclusively as possible in its pat hology , with
the addition of allied concepts such as Digestive T oxins; Chinese medicine
employs a wider variety of patterning frameworks. The most commonly used
theories referred to are the Eigh t Guiding Principles based on t he Y in-Y ang
doctrine, the Five Element model, and patterns based on the Or gan theory
and Climatic influences. Both  medical systems delineate the signs and
symptoms of common diseases that have specific identifiable patterns, such
as anxiety , jaundice, seizures, and indigestion. Permutations of patterns are however common to both. Just as in ,the
Dosha theory of A yurveda, dera ngements of two or even three Doshas can
simultaneously exist, Chinese medicine also recognizes the presence of
multiple patterns in most patients. And through an analysis of each
patterning mode l the complex clinical presentations of each patient are more
easily understood. Theoretically Chinese medicine with its inherent diversity
of mode ls is less constrained than A yurveda, wherein the Dosha model
predominates, fo r in Chinese m edicine if a practitioner is inef fective with a
treatment based on the strategy  of a particular disease model, the condition
may be reexami ned and treated utilizing an approach outlined b y a dif ferent
patterning model. In practice, however , A yurvedic physicians do usually
evince the ability to successfu lly manipulate the Dosha theory when a
revaluation of therapy is called for .6
T r e a t m e n t
T he purpo se of therapy in A yurve da and Chinese medicine is to a I achieve
balance within the body and mind. In A yurveda a person’ s lifestyle, diet,
psychological make-up and spiritual beliefs are actively addressed in
formulating an overall strateg y , while contemporary Chines e medicine
focuses more on addressing a  patient’ s specific problems or disease. A yurveda as a b ody of practice emphasizes treating a person’ s constitution
to a far greater extent than does Chinese Medicine. V iewed this way , these
two systems can be perceived a s complementary to each other: A yurveda
tends to have a more long-term perspective, while Chinese medicine
focuses primarily on immediate relief of symptoms and disease. In Chin ese medicine the broad treatment strategy for any sort of
disease pattern is to sedate E xcess patterns first and tonify Deficient
patterns thereafter . Similarly according to A yurveda, conditions of excess
involving derangement of the Doshas and/or accumulation of toxins should
first be redressed before rejuv enative techniques (rasayana) are to be
employed to tonify and build u p the system. Common forms of therapy
used by both these traditions are: massage and manipulation; bonesetting;
sur gery; various methods of cautery; dietary regimentation; for internal
usage medicines  prepared from plants, mineral and animal products; and
exercise. Chinese medicine’ s unique field of expertise has been acupuncture,
which fo r some obscure reason was never transmitted into Ind ia until this
century . Acupuncture has been openly embraced and popularized by many
nations during the last twenty years, and its powerful treatment potential
and utilization for pain contr ol was instrumental in generating much
scientific and public interest in not only acupuncture itself, but also in all of
Asian medicine. A yurveda’ s un ique modality is in its Purification therapy
(panchakarma), which is a complete system for detoxifying the body and
initiating balance unto the system.Both systems base most of their prescriptions on plant-derived
substances, thou gh due to the enduring influence of the ancient  alchemical
arts, A y urveda utilizes mineral preparations to a greater extent than does
Chinese medicine, but Chinese medicine’ s pharmacopeia is replete with
many m ore animal parts than d oes that of A yurveda. Both systems have
sophisticated methods of preparing their remedies, particularly those  which
include toxic plants and minera ls which need to be detoxified by elaborate
processes. The medicinal prepar ations appear in a wide variety of forms as
detailed earlier . Both A yurveda and Chines e medicine have, through their
understanding of the unique properties of plants, minerals and animal
substances, achieved a sophisticated knowledge of how substances interact. Each system thereby developed myriads of syner gistic compounds whose
total ef fect surpasses the sum of its individual ingredients, a nd in each
country this accumulated knowledge was recorded in texts which
specialized in materia medical and formulation. This continuity of
knowledge has allowed practitio ners of both healing arts access to centuries
of data collected  on the benefits , limitations, interactions and possible side-
ef fects of substances. Even toda y hundreds of the medicinal fo rmulas used
in C hina and Ind ia both, are base d upon ancient prescriptions, some of them
over 2,000 years old! Chinese medicine classifies the medicinal substances use d in
prescriptions by their taste, temperature, direction of action and ef fect upon
Meridians and Or gans; whereas A yurveda’ s categorization pertains to taste,
potency , post-digestive ef fect and special power . A yurveda distinguishes six
dif ferent tastes—sweet, sour , salty , pungent, bitter and astringent—of which
only astr ingent i s not found in Chinese medicine’ s five classes of tastes. In
Chinese medicin e rather , two separate tastes, astringent and aromatic, are
used to denote, respectively , a s ubstance’ s ability to prevent edema and to
awaken the digestive fire and  spirit. Even in A yurveda a stringent is
regarded by some authorities to be an action instead of a taste, since
astringent causes tissues to contract, which is why it makes the mouth
pucker . According to Chinese medicine each taste has a distinct  ef fect upon
the Qi, a concept useful in understanding the action of a substance in
totality .In both Chinese medicine and A yurveda the tastes are linked to each
system’ s version  of the Five Elements. While Chinese medicine associates
only one  element with a particu lar taste, A yurveda associates two elements
with each taste. The concepts o f taste in the two systems are however in
general agreement with regard to their ef fects on the physical body , though
there is a diver gence of opinion in the case of salty taste: salt is considered
by A yurveda to be heating, while Chinese medicine regards it to be cooling. In C hinese medicine, salt’ s cool ing nature is congruent with its  close
association to the water element. Salt has a Y in, softening quality that is in
harmony with the innate nature of water . Indeed, ocean water  and human
blood contain the same relative proportion of salt. Internally , salt regulates
body fluid levels, primarily thro ugh its ef fect upon the kidney s. It softens
and disp erses congealed Qi, loosens the muscles, and cools the blood. Goiter is an example of a condition that arises from internal  heat and Qi
stagnation, and may be influenc ed by salt. Chinese medicine utilizes salt or
salty her bs to cool and soften th e tissues, and in higher amounts salt pur ges
the intestines, thereby reducing internal body heat. A yurveda views salt as heating b ecause it creates a burning sensation
when pl aced in the mouth or upo n an open wound, stimulates di gestive fire,
promotes retent ion of body fluids, and inhibits perspiration, resulting in
increased internal heat. But A yurveda does recognize salt’ s softening ef fect. Perhaps these varied views on salt’ s cooling and heating ability reflect,
respectively , its initial or prolonged ef fects on the body . Classification of  substances by tendency to cause heating or cooling
is called a subst ance’ s temperat ure in Chinese medicine and its  potency in
A yurveda. A yurveda’ s concept of potency actually embraces other polarities
of a substance’ s  action including heavy and light, and wet and dry , thus
conforming to the Y in-Y ang theory and to the Chinese concept of direction
of a ction. Unique to Chinese f ormulation is the concept of a substance’ s
ef fect on  particular ener getic Meridians and Or gans, while the idea of a
substance’ s post-digestive and special ef fect is distinctly specific to
A yurveda. For comparative pur poses, a brief outline of twelve medicinal
substances utiliz ed by both Chinese and Indian medicine has be en provided
in Appendix I.As regar ds to the process of drug administration, A yurveda emp loys a
greater variety of preparations and methods of delivery . A yurvedic
formulations include expressed plant juices; powders and pas tes; hot and
cold decoctions;  pills; wines; medicated fats, oils and butters; and mineral
and gemstone preparations. In A yurveda, subject to the nature o f the illness,
medicines may be administered orally , through the nostrils, via the anus (in
the form  of an enema), droppe d into the ear , or applied over the skin. In
contrast, Chinese medicine relies, almost exclusively , on the oral
administration o f decoctions, wines and pills; only for external injuries are
liniments and plasters applied topically .7
P r i m a l  D i s t i n c t i o n s
G iven their many similarities, it  is instructive to examine some of the
reasons for the dif ferences wh ich exist between these two q uite similar
medical systems. V ariance of climate is certainly one reason for dif ferences
in theory . China is situated gen erally further to the north of India and has
mostly a  cooler ,  temperate climate, and therefore the medical pr eoccupation
has alwa ys been  to keep the body warm. This concern may perhaps also be
deduced from the impetus for c oncepts such as the T riple Burner . India’ s
climate, however , being more tropical, A yurveda has necessarily been more
concerned with keeping the bo dy cool yet maintaining a stron g digestive
fire. It is also  evident though, that there are profound dif ferences in Indian
and Chinese thought patterns. The civilization of India that  developed
A yurveda has a tendency to promote linear thinking, as reflected in the
linear sc ript it developed for its  languages. Chinese thought, on the other
hand, is markedly more circular  and pattern-oriented, as evinced by China’ s
refusal t o renoun ce its symbolic language based on pictographic characters. Since m ost human knowledge is couched in language, the stru cture of the
language in which a theory is expressed inevitably helps to determine its
orientation. Political dif ferences have also played a part in the development of
these m edical systems. China during its long history , has enjoyed several
periods of unification which promoted social homogeneity , and its
relatively more stable social setting may have encouraged medical
innovation, prov iding Chinese medicine with a range of theoretical models
and prac tices that are inherently more diverse than A yurveda’ s. India has
never been as homogenized as China, even though all the foreign
conquerors who arrived and set up house eventually became assimilated as
a new sub-grou p within India’ s diverse cultural mosaic, at lea st until the
coming of the Europeans. Perpetual political turmoil may well have playeda ro le in the codification and standardization of A yurveda during its long
history , for it flourished for  centuries despite frequent changes in
government. That the British attempted to “outlaw” A yurveda was
consistent with their adamant refusal to “go native,” a refusal which
probably facilitated their successful political unification of the subcontinent. The extreme complexity of both of these ancient civilizations makes
any sort  of facile conclusions hazardous. It seems, however , li kely that as
exposure of traditions to each other increases, the awareness of the ways in
which an d the extent to which c ultural traits have af fected medical concepts
will gradually become more apparent. Hopefully it will then become easier
to get rid of f many of the prevalent cultural biases from the systems,
facilitating their communion, if not integration.8
I n t e g r a t i n g  T r a d i t i o n s
S ince A yurveda in general, focuses more on understanding and treating
constitutional types, whereas C hinese medicine predominantly addresses specific
disease patterns , these two approaches towards healthy living are potentially
complementary . For example, from a Chinese medical perspective Kapha displays
the gen eral characteristics of hypo-activity . This manifests in the body as a
tendency towards heaviness an d coldness due to deficiency o f Y ang (i.e. heat). Body flu ids easily accumulate due to impaired circulation, and a diminution of
digestive and metabolic functio ning takes place. The diseases of dampness, cord
and phle gm fall within the domain of Kapha. The mental disposition eminently
distinct for Kapha is a dullness  of mind that causes possessiveness, melancholy ,
calmness, and a tendency to over -indulgence. In Chinese m edicine these are
primarily the syndromes associated with the Spleen and Stomach, and secondarily
with those involving the Lungs, Kidneys and Bladder , that appear to be most
closely related with Kapha. Both Chinese medicine and A yurveda agree that
Pungent taste, keeping warm, di spersing and drying conditions,  all Y ang in nature,
are ideal for countering excess of Kapha. Pitta dis plays the general characteristic of hyperactivity , a decidedly Y ang
attribute. In the body this manifests as lightness and heat due to deficiency in the
body’ s Y in. Thi s condition of excess heat injures the Blood,  and increases the
digestive and metabolic activit y . In Chinese medicine heat d isorders (fire and
summerheat), in cluding the pattern of heat in the Blood, are fo und to correspond
with Pitt a. The mental dispositio n of this Dosha involves sharpn ess of mind, acute
discrimination, aggressive disposition, anger and jealousness. In Chinese medicine
the patterns of th e Liver and Gallbladder , and secondarily those of the Heart, Small
Intestine and Kidneys, relate most closely with Pitta. Foods and medicines that
posses the bitter taste are best to sedate Pitta, followed by sweet and astringent. There is  consens us between A yurveda and Chinese medicine that Bitter , due to its
inherent cooling, clearing and drying properties, and its Y in natu re, best neutralizes
Pitta. V ata has the general characteristic of being mobile and unstable like the
wind and generates a sense of constant shifting in body and mind. In excess this
manifests as pains and sensations that are not fixed  in location or duration, and in atendency toward s dryness. V ata is closely associated with Pran a in A yurveda; and
the latter in C hinese medicin e can be likened to Qi disorders. Thus V ata’ s
manifestation w ill correspond to deficiency states of Qi and derangement of its
circulation. The mental state of V ata reveals a changeable mental disposition
marked by fear , moodiness, nervousness, anxiety and restles sness. In Chinese
medicine V ata imbalance primar ily correlates with the Or gan patterns related to the
Liver and Lung, and secondari ly with Heart Protector , T riple Burner , and Lar ge
Intestine syndromes. Salty food s and medicines are best suited to stabilize V ata,
but to a lesser degree sour and sweet foods and medicines are also ef fective. Though A yurved a and Chinese medicine disagree on the salty taste’ s ef fects, both
systems do agree that salt does possess a softening capability . Historically , the greatest cross -fertilization between Indian and Chinese
systems has occurred in the field of the therapeutic uses of plant, mineral and
animal p roducts; and hence there already exists a certain commonality of practice
in Internal Medicine which may turn out to have a potential for ef ficacy
enhancement. For example, A yurveda could profitably absorb Chinese medicine’ s
methods of formulation and its understanding of the T astes according to their ef fect
upon the Qi; whereas Chinese medicine could integrate the A yurvedic concepts of
Post-Digestive ef fect and the principle of the ten Pairs of Qualities to its advantage. Massage, bloodletting and moxibustion are common adjunctive practices of
Chinese medic ine. While bloodletting is indicated in heat disorders and
moxibustion in cold patterns, m assage while useful in many ty pes of illnesses is
most ef f ective in  disorders of Qi  circulation. These modalities are used similarly in
A yurveda. Below  is a breakdow n of these three adjunctive tech niques, as well as
other beneficial practices, according to the Dosha alleviated:
In th e authors’ experience, acupuncture is useful in most type s of patterns
and should benefit any Dosha  constitution. However , by modification of the
acupuncture tech nique in accordance with the patient’ s main Dosha imbalance, the
ef ficacy of acupuncture can be greatly enhanced: The following chart gives general
parameters of acupuncture treatment according to the three Dosha types:From an A yurvedic perspectiv e, the general role of acupu ncture is in
balancing Prana  and harmonizing the relationship between the physical and mental
body , sin ce the Prana operates between these two bodies. Certa inly acupuncture is
one mod ality tha t would be of great benefit to incorporate within  A yurveda, though
it may be dif ficult to harmonize the conceptual model of the Meridian Network
and Or gan Images with A yurvedic theory without adopting the Chinese Y in-Y ang
and Five Element perspective. The Purification  practices in A y urveda similarly can be of great  utility when
incorporated int o the treatment strategy of Chinese medicine. The purification of
the body accelerates the healing  of the patient as well as enhanc es the ef fectiveness
of a ny therapies that follow , su ch as acupuncture, exercise or Internal Medicine. Y et purification can only be ini tiated when the patient’ s symptoms become mild
and non-threate ning. Therefore , acupuncture can be used pr ior to Purification
therapy to curtail the symptoms. In any event, clinical experimentation is likely to be the key to any possible
eventual detente between these two titans, for theoretical integration of two
systems which follow separate modes of thought and diver gent doctrines is much
more problematical. Since these diver gent outlooks are complementary , however ,
some sort of correlation between them does seem worthy of serious study .C O N C L U S I O N
A yurveda and Chinese medicine are both living systems of medicine with
ancient roots, the oldest continuously practiced and recorded medical
traditions in the world. Both systems are based on a natural empiricism
coupled with intuition that was  practiced by the doctor -sages of old. The
study of their history shows many points of contact and many attempts
(some su ccessful, others not) to cross-fertilize ideas and practices, the early
Buddhists having been particularly instrumental in facilitating this contact
and exchange. Fundamental to both systems is the belief that an individual who lives
in ac cord with t he laws of Natu re remains healthy , and that dev iation from
Nature’ s path is the root cause of all ill health and suf ferin g. Chinese
medicine uses the concepts of the T ao, Y in and Y ang and the Five Elements
to e xplain the working of Na ture, while A yurveda bases itself on the
Sankhya philoso phy and uses th e theory of Doshas, Five Elements and the
Three A ttributes (equilibrium, a ctivity and inertia) to explain its vision of
the n atural order . Although Chi nese and Indian doctrines do s hare certain
common themes, they are essentially unique, and their concepts cannot be
interchanged in their entirety . One common feature of both medical paradigms is the belief in an
essential life force, called Prana by the Indians and Qi by the Chinese. Both
paradigms have remarkably similar ideas on the nature, transportation,
origin an d impo rtance of this su bstance, and they are in general agreement
in their views o f the other substances of life such as blood a nd essence. Mind and body are understood a s inseparable by both systems, though their
explanations about the structure of consciousness do diver ge. Etiological understanding is linked to each system’ s explanation of
the forces of Nature, and images  of these external forces are used to explain
how dev iation fr om the laws of Nature manifests as symptoms o f disease in
the body . Both systems use the natural sensory skills of the p hysician tointerpret the patient’ s symptoms, with striking similarities in diagnostic
techniques, particularly in palpation of the pulse, visual inspection, listening
and questioning. The current worldwide explosion of interest in botanical medicine
and acup uncture has increased the profile of and generated enthusiasm for
research into both of these Asian systems of medicine. W e believe that
botanical medic ine and the practice of acupuncture are probably the key
areas in  which the relationship between these two systems can be
immediately strengthened. Plant, minerals and even certain p rescriptions
are know n to have been incorpo rated into each others’ pharmacopeias; and
the sim ilarity and practicality of their use of a substance’ s taste and
temperature in its classification is a topic that is being widely studied today
in modern botanical medicine. Although integration on several levels seems directly possible, much
experimental work will be needed to make it more widely applicable. Perhaps one feasible way to init iate this process may start with introduction
of inter -discipli nary courses into the curricula of both A yurvedic and
Chinese Medical colleges. Syner gizing the overall characteristics of both
disciplines can ultimately lead to  the development of a truly holistic science
of ener getic medicine in the future.A P P E N D I X  I
C o m p a r i s o n  o f  S o m e  I m p o r t a n t  M e d i c i n a l  S u b s t a n c e s
China an d India  have traded and  exchanged much information on the use of
plants, minerals and animal products for food and medicinal p urposes over their
long history . The merchants, priests and scholars who over the past two millennia
sought n ew sources of medicines undoubtedly exchanged infor mation about each
culture’ s use of drugs. About a  quarter of the plants listed in t he Chinese classic
Compendium of Materia Medica {Ben Cao Gang Mu),  w hich was writ ten in 1590
A.D. by Li Shi Zhen and was co nsidered the most extensive materia medica in its
time, ar e common to both India and China. Many of the p lants listed in this
Chinese materia  medica were in  fact imported from India. T rad e and information
historically also went the other way , over the Himalayas to influence A yurveda’ s
formulations, and new medicin al substances are still being introduced into the
market p lace in both India and  China. Ginseng root, for exam ple, is now being
cultivated and sold in India. In this appendi x a representative group of twelve substances which are
common to both traditions, ten of plant origin and one each from the mineral and
animal kingdom s, is discussed from both perspectives. Abo ut half the drugs
mentioned below  are native to both countries, and the rest were originally trade
commodities native to one or the other . This comparative survey includes a brief
historical backg round, each drug’ s Latin, Sanskrit and Chine se names, and the
part(s) of the source plant, mineral or animal which was traditionally used. As will become evident hereafter , the Chinese and A yurvedic systems
categorized and utilized most medicinal substances in approximately similar ways. The general uniformity of opinion on the taste and temperature properties of the
substances amo ng both systems is perhaps due to the fact t hat both taste and
temperature are deduced directly through sensory feedback and physical
interaction with the substance. T hose diver gences of opinion which do occur may
be partially explained by the subtle changes a plant goes through in adapting to a
dif ferent habitat, and partially by the specific uses that each discipline emphasizes
in a ccordance with its own medical paradigm. Also, the con text of the whole
materia medica af fects how a substance may be emphasized,  so that what is aminor remedy in one system may in the other be portrayed as an indispensable
drug. Chebulic myrobalan holds a position of high esteem in A yurveda , perhaps its
most im portant plant. Chebulic myrobalan’ s Sanskrit name (haritaki) has the triple
meaning of taking away all diseases (harayet), of being gree n in natural color
(harita) and of growing in the abode of Lord Shiva (Hara), the Himalayas
(considered the plant’ s ideal ha bitat). Since Charaka’ s time chebulic myrobalan
fruit has been c onsidered a powerful tonic and rejuvenative that “never causes
harm to a person  who takes it.” Chebulic myrobalan found favo r wherever it went,
in Grec o-Roman, T ibetan, Ch inese and Arabic medicine, being praised by
A vicenna, the great 1 1th century Muslim physician, and extolled in the Four
T antras (Gyushi),  T ib et’ s preeminent medical tex t, as the “king of medicines.” So
sacred is chebulic myrobalan to T ibetans that it is the Me dicine Buddha is
visualized holdi ng in his exten ded right hand in a gesture of giving. T ibetan
medicine utilizes every part of this plant for medicinal purposes. A yurveda utilize s not one but three myrobalans, however; the other two
being Em blica o f ficinalis (amal aki) and T erminalia belerica (bibhitaki). The three
together form triphala ("three fr uits"), a remedy par excellence for regulating and
toning th e digestive tract, and o ne of A yurveda’ s foremost prescriptions. A yurveda
considers chebu lic myrobalan calming to all Doshas, and especially beneficial for
reducing V ata, for though the  fruit is predominantly astringent in taste it is
warming in its inherent attribute and its post-digestive ef fect is sweet. Chebulic
myrobalan’ s main therapeutic function is to scrape away digestive toxins from the
digestive tract and the tissues (especially the blood). It is much used in abdominal
distension, malabsorption, jaundice, tumors, urinary infections, edema, and in both
constipation and  diarrhea. Chebulic myrobalan is said to rejuvenate both the body
(especially the colon and lungs)  and mind, to impart wisdom and intelligence, and
to increase longevity . This makes it ideal for use in chronic conditions such as
asthma (in which case its jam is consumed or its coarse powder is smoked),
prolapses of various or gans, abnormal dischar ges (spermatorrhea, leucorrhea, and
sweating), and bleeding gums. Chebulic myrob alan was first mentioned in Chinese medicine in the Materia
Medica of Medicinal Pr operties  (Y ao Xing Ben Cao),  a text p ublished around 600
A.D., as a fruit originating from India. Nowadays it is grown in the southernChinese provinces of Y unnan, Guangdong and Guangxi. Chebu lic myrobalan has
no special status in Chinese medicine. It is said to bind up the intestines, and to be
useful in treating dysentery an d chronic diarrhea due to eith er internal heat or
coldness (which is why Chinese medicine considers it to have a neutral
temperature). A lso, since chebulic myrobalan is said to contain  the lung’ s Qi it is
able to stop coughing, relieve asthma, and soothe the throat. Chinese medicine
administers the fruit in the roasted form for intestinal symptoms, and in the raw
form for respiratory complaints.Of t he many varieties of smilax  or sarsaparilla throughout Asia, one highly
regarded species  called china ro ot was exported to India unde r the name “chob-
chini.” This became an import ant Chinese trade commodity with the spread of
syphilis from the New W orld, after the 15th century . According to Chinese
medicine, china  root’ s main use  is in treating syphilis and chronic skin disorders
(ulcers, gout and hot boils) which are characterized by the presence of damp-heat. In fact the inc reased importance of smilax in Chinese med icine occurred in
response to the spread of syph ilis. Furthermore, china root eliminates systemic
damp-heat which may display itself as rheumatic joint pain, dif ficult, cloudy and
painful urination, or jaundice. A yurvedic medicine utilizes china root (and the other species of sarsaparilla)
as deep- acting b lood cleansers for more or less the same physical complaints as
does Ch inese medicine. One major dif ference is that A yurveda ascribes to china
root a purifying and tranquilizin g ef fect upon the mind, which  makes it useful in
treating disorder s of the nervou s system such as epilepsy and insanity . Generally ,
sarsaparilla reduces V ata and purifies Pitta (and so improves Es sential Fire), while
being ne utral in ef fect on Kapha . It has a slight tonic ef fect upo n the reproductive
or gans and is used externally to treat venereal sores and herpes.Fennel i s thought to have originally come from the Mediterrane an area, and
to have slowly s pread eastward over the centuries. The first m ention of fennel in
the C hinese texts is in the T ang Materia Medica (T ang Be n Cad)  ( 65 9 A. D.), and
this herb  probably arrived in Ch ina from India. In the Chinese  tradition fennel is
mainly used to move the Qi (especially through the liver) and to warm the kidneys
and abdominal or gans. Fennel is considered beneficial in all abdominal complaints
(such as pains, indigestion, hernias and vomiting) that arise from coldness. According to A yurveda, fennel is a good herb for all constitutional types,
balancing V ata, Pitta and Kapha, and promoting mental alertness. Because fennel is
an e xcellent digestive tonic that can promote the digestive fire without aggravating
Pitta, it is useful in all sorts of intestinal complaints, including colic and ulcer . In
A yurveda fennel  is also employ ed in gynecology , since it prom otes both a healthy
menstrual flow and a nursing mother ’ s flow of milk.In the Ramayana,  the revered Hindu scripture, a city is mentioned whose
Sanskrit name was “ginger” it w as an important ginger trading center of the time. Ginger has been shipped since a t least the second century B.C. from South India’ s
Malabar Coast by both sea and land to Egypt, Arabia , Rome and the
Mediterranean. G inger is highly prized not only as a spice but also as a medicine;
A yurveda calls it “vishwabhesa ja,” the “universal medicine.” It is considered one
of the best and most Sattvic of herbs, and alleviates V ata and Kapha while only
slightly aggrava ting Pitta. Generally , dry ginger is hotter and drier than the fresh;
dry ging er reduc es Kapha and p romotes the digestive fire, while fresh ginger acts
primarily on V ata but may be more aggravating to Pitta. In A yur veda ginger helps to regulate the whole alimentary tract, and is
regarded such a strong digestive aid that it is given in such varied conditions as
constipation, indigestion, vomiting, belching, flatulence, and dry hemorrhoids. Ginger has an equally beneficial ef fect upon the lungs, especially in respiratory
infections, dyspn ea, sore throat a nd cough, and edema. It is also applied externally ,
in certa in types of rheumatic pains and headaches. One traditional A yurvedic
medicinal pill is made by mixing fresh ginger juice with ginger powder and rolling
the combination into pea-size balls. This type of ginger pill, which thus combines
virtues o f both the dried and fresh forms, can control Kapha if it is mixed with
honey , subdue V ata if combined  with rock salt, and reduce Pitta if given with rock
candy . Ginger h as been  known and use d in China since antiquity; Conf ucius is said
to ha ve eaten fre sh ginger with e ach meal to improve his digestion. Many consider
the plan t to have come from the north, possibly Mongolia, on the basis of the
etiology of the original charac ter for ginger in the written language. Later on
ginger became a commodity  imported from India, as mentioned in the
Compendium of Materia Medica  under the name “celestial drie d Indian ginger”
(tian zhu gan jiang). Chinese medicin e teaches that both fresh and dried ginger have a powerful
warming ef fect,  with the dried form being slightly hotter tha n the fresh (which
concurs with A yurvedic opinion). Therapeutically , both forms of ginger are used to
disperse coldnes s and promote sweating (as in the common cold or influenza),
remove cold-phlegm lodged in the lungs (for coughs with thin sputum), alleviatecoldness in the Middle Burner (which may cause stomach pai ns, chronic colitis,
vomiting, indige stion, and so o n), and dispel coldness trapped in the limbs (in
cases of  cold extremities and w eak pulse). Fresh ginger is also used to reduce the
toxicity of certain mushrooms a nd other herbs, such as aconite and pinellia, while
dried ginger is used to stop chronic bleeding of various types (especially uterine
hemorrhage). Chinese medicine also uses ginger whose surface has been charred. This
form of ginger has a bitter and astringent taste, and is slightly cooler in temperature
than either the f resh or dried fo rms. This charred ginger mainly acts on the liver ,
and helps to relieve abdominal pain and discomfort due to coldness.In China, there is a tradition which says that the second Em peror of the
legendary era, the mystical Shen Nong who taught the people to cultivate the
mulberry tree for raising silk worms, also taught them to cultivate hemp. Every
part of the hemp plant was used medicinally in China: the male flowers to treat
menstrual disorders, wounds and numerous other disorders that result from injury
by the wind; the oil for hair loss, sulfur poisoning and throat dryness; the stalk as a
diuretic and to expel urinary t ract stones; and the juice of the root to expel a
retained placen ta or for post-partum hemorrhage. Although the leaves were
considered poisonous, their freshly expressed juice was used to expel intestinal
parasites and to neutralize the bi te of a scorpion. The resinous female flowers were
also con sidered poisonous; used  in moderation they were held  to calm the spirit,
but, as Li Shi Z hen warns, when used in excess they “will produce hallucinations
and unsteady the gait." Currently the seeds are the most commonly used part of the plant in Chinese
medicine, and the other parts are rarely employed. The seeds, which are considered
to posse s the sweet taste and to have a neutral temperature, a re used mainly to
moisten and nourish the intestin es. They are thus useful in constipation, especially
when th e body’ s  Y in becomes depleted (as it does with advancing age) or in cases
of blood -deficiency (as seen in post-partum or sur gical recovery). The seeds are
used as an antid ote to aconite and vermilion poisoning, and are said to help in
maintaining the firmness of one ’ s flesh. Externally the seeds are  used to clear heat
from sores and ulcerations. That the  ancient  Chinese master of medicine Hua T uo used a ca nnabis drink
as a  sur gical an esthetic suggests, along with his remarkable sur gical techniques
which re semble those of the In dian sur geon Jivaka, that his k nowledge came at
least in part fro m Indian sources. India’ s most ancient book o f healing lore, the
Atharva V eda,  mentions bhanga (Cannabis sativa) as one of five sacred
(psychotropic) p lants; another Sanskrit name for hemp is v ijaya ("conquest"),
because hemp grants victory to  those who consume it. Of the three parts of the
plant wh ich are  commonly used today in India (bhang, which is made from the
leaves of both the female and male plants, and possibly from the male flowers also;
ganja, which is the flowering tops of the female plants; and charas, the resin), only
bhang and ganja are used in medicine. Bhang is often associated with seekers of
religious ecstas y , and has been popularly used in temple celebrations and
ceremonies sinc e at least medieval times. One af fectionate folk-name for LordShiva, t he god of transformation, is in fact Bhangeri Baba ("Bhang-exhilarated
Father"). In A yur vedic medicine hemp is considered to be bitter and sweet, while
having a slight heating quality . In small doses it can mildly aggravate Pitta while
alleviating Kapha and V ata, but in lar ge doses or when used ov er a long period of
time it aggravates all Doshas. Hemp is rarely used alone in medicine, and its
ef fects on the b ody vary according to the other herbs administered with it. W ith
digestive herbs hemp can increase appetite, reduce nause a and abdominal
distension, control diarrhea or relieve constipation; with aphrodisiac substances
hemp its elf beco mes aphrodisiac ; and when smoked with tobacco it suppresses the
appetite and becomes anti-aphrodisiac. Given with V ata-controlling herbs hemp
becomes an analgesic for headaches, abdominal spasms an d neuralgia. More
recently hemp has been found u seful in alleviating the nausea and pain in cancer
patients, and to reduce conditions of blood pressure and inter -ocular pressure (as in
glaucoma). In such cases, A yur veda recommends oral administration rather than
inhaling smoke for greatest therapeutic ef ficacy .Licorice is one of the most important and frequently used plants in Chinese
pharmacology b ecause of its sw eet taste and neutral temperature which gives it an
ability to moderate and harmonize the characteristics of other herbs. Licorice is
frequently utilized to modulate excessively hot or cold substances, and to mitigate
or n eutralize the violent prop erties of certain toxic substances. Furthermore,
licorice is believed to help other substances penetrate to their appropriate
destination in the tissues, with many an ancient and modern te xt claiming that it
can enter all or gans and Meridians. So common is the use of licorice that it appears
in almost all prescriptions. Chinese medicine teaches that licorice by itself strengthens both Qi and
blood, and uses it to treat such symptoms as palpitations, shortness of breath,
irregular pulse, and fatigue. Lic orice is specific for most lung complaints (such as
wheezing, sore throat, and cough), be they accompanied by either heat or cold
symptoms. It is also specific for spasms in the abdomen or legs, in which case it is
administered in the honey-fried form (which is considered th en to be warm in
temperature). A yurveda has long used licorice , and good-grade licorice was im ported from
Northern China  and Mongolia during their long periods of contact. A yurveda
classifies licoric e as cooling in  temperature and as alleviating to both Pitta and
V ata, though it can aggravate Kapha if used over a long time. Because licorice
slightly increase s body fluids, i t is counter -indicated in Kapha disorders such as
edema or hypertension (which agrees with Chinese medicine’ s prohibition of
licorice in the p resence of internal dampness). In lar ge doses however licorice is
used to induce vomiting, and to remove Kapha from the stomach and lungs
thereby! It is th is ability to increase body fluids which mak es licorice a good
aphrodisiac. Licorice extract made into lozenges is very popular in India even
today to  soothe the throat and to help relieve obstruction in breathing. It is also
known to have a wonderful Satt vic quality which balances the mind and calms the
spirit.In A yurveda long pepper is con sidered a powerful digestive stimulant that
increases digestive fire and reduces accumulation of diges tive toxins (ama). Indeed, the Charaka Samhita  praises the long pepper as being the best of all
digestive stimulants. Historically , long pepper and its cousin black pepper were
two of India’ s m ost important trade commodities, bringing many seafaring nations
to the shores of the southern st ate of Kerala since Roman tim es or even before. Though pungent in taste, long pepper possesses a sweet post-digestive ef fect,
which en ables it to reduce both V ata and Kapha. Being strongly heating it removes
internal cold and congestion. Long pepper is considered to be a rejuvenative and
virilizer , an aphrodisiac which can regulate the sexual sec retions due to its
unctuous, sweet  nature; its cou sin black pepper , which is dry ing, has neither of
these two ef fects. Long pepper is traditionally u sed in digestive disorders like abdominal
distension, ascites, diabetes, dia rrhea, liver and spleen enlar gement; in respiratory
complaints like cough and asth ma; and in rheumatic conditions. When used to
enkindle the digestive fire, long  peppers are often first soaked in salt water and
then administered orally as a paste. When used as a nourishing agent, they are
taken w ith ghee (clarified butter) and honey to treat consumptive disorders or
anemia or to gain weight. The root is used almost exclusively to enkindle the
digestive fire. The Chi nese na me for this plant “bi po li” is given in the Compendium of
Materia Medica  as bein g an approximation of the Sanskrit “pippali” which ca me
from the Buddhist lands of Magadhi (present day North India ). Interestingly , the
Chinese name for black pepper ("hu jiao") literally translates as  barbarian pepper! This sam e text considered the root of this plant to be weaker in quality than the
fruit, but not inferior in its action. Clinically , in Chinese medicin e, long pepper is mainly used to dispel
coldness and warm the abdominal or gans. It is therefore considered useful when
coldness has lodged in the stomach and intestines (as in nausea, vomiting, belching
and abdo minal p ain), uterine coldness (as in infertility), and blad der coldness (as in
urinary tract infections).Madder is a prolific weed which  grows throughout Asia. Perhaps early .man
was first drawn to this plant by t he deep red color of the root which was much used
as a dye. In China since antiquity , madder was highly prized for its ability to
rectify d isorders of the blood. In  the Historical Recor ds (Shu Jing),  an ancient text
from the Spring and Autumn Period 770–476 B.C., it is stated that “he who plants
a thousand mu (roughly two hundred acres) of this plant and gardenia is considered
to be equal in rank to a nobleman who controls a thousand households." In tradit ional Chinese medicine madder ’ s cooling property i s thought to
counteract all kinds of bleeding conditions (from the nose, uterus, colon or
respiratory tract) arising from heat-in-the-blood syndrome. Because madder also
invigorates the blood and dispels blood flow stagnation, it is useful for various
joint and muscular pains that arise from injuries, as also for contusions and
fractures. Madde r is also used for amenorrhea due to blood stasis. Modern Chinese
research has shown madder to have antibacterial ef ficacy against both
staphylococcus and streptococcus. A yurveda views  madder as one of its most important Pitta-r educing and
blood-purifying herbs, and uses it for conditions similar to those for which it is
used in Chinese medicine. A yur veda also uses madder to help mend broken bones,
to treat toxic b lood conditions such as genital herpes, jaundice, hepatitis and
obstinate skin disorders, and to d issolve kidney stones and tumors in the body . It is
also applied externally to inflamed or burned skin tissue.Rhubarb has a l ong history in Chinese trade and medicine. Chi nese rhubarb
root pro duced in Shaanxi province was exported via the Silk Road as early as 114
B.C. This medicine became a much prized commodity throughout Eurasia, and
particularly in Rome, T urkey , R ussia and India. Rhubarb is me ntioned in the late
first cen tury A.D . by Dioscorides, a Greek physician who ser ved in the Roman
army , in his Materia Medka (Peri Hulas Iatrikos). Similarly rhubarb soon found a
place in the A yurvedic materia medicas. Marco Polo, the thirteenth-century
V enetian traveler -merchant, imported the root into Europe. Fro m roughly 1650 to
1780 Im perial R ussia tried to m onopolize the trade of rhubarb through a specially
assigned “Rhubarb Of fice” at her frontier . This ef fort was partially successful, in
the sense that r hubarb exporte d out of China from other ports was considered
inferior in quality to that acquired and marketed by the Russians. Since an tiquity Chinese medicine has recognized and utilized rhubarb root’ s
medicinal virtues; it considers the leaves to be poisonous. Raw rhubarb acts as a
strong p ur gative on the gastrointestinal tract; when charred it can arrest bleeding;
and whe n prepa red with wine or vinegar it invigorates the blood. Rhubarb also
removes heat and damp-heat symptoms in conditions such as jaundice, liver or
gallbladder inflammation, dysentery , high fever , appendicitis, constipation,
hemorrhoids, bl eeding duodenal or intestinal ulcers, and painful urination. In
consequence of rhubarb’ s blood invigorating ef fect it is used  to treat immobile
abdominal masses or localized  pain due to blood stasis, amenorrhea, and hot,
painful, sore eyes due to toxic liver fire. Rhubarb is grown in many cou ntries including India, although the original
Chinese variety is still imported into India and sold in her baza ars under the name
“revanda-chini.” A yurveda, like Chinese medicine, recognizes rhubarb as a
pur gative plant,  using it almost exclusively for gastro-intestinal cleansing and
regulation. Rhub arb reduces V ata (by channeling the wind downward through the
intestines) and drains Pitta thro ugh its cooling nature. Rhubarb is considered to
have a slightly  astringent after -ef fect that protects the tone of the intestines,
although it is rarely used alone because it can be too drying for the intestines. Externally a paste of the root is applied to reduce bruises and similar swellings.In In dia the Acorus calamus var iety of sweet flag has long been used since at
least the V edic period. In China various species of sweet flag have been used since
ancient times (they find a place  in the celebrated Shen No ng’ s Ma teria Medica  of
the later Han dynasty). Both traditions use sweet flag in similar ways. In A yurvedic medicine sweet flag is renowned for its rejuvenating and
purifying ef fect upon the mind. Its Sattvic and warm nature helps to enhance
memory and awareness, increasing mental vigor while simultaneously calming the
mind. S weet fla g (also known as calamus), which calms V ata  and Kapha while
aggravating Pitta , is said to revitalize Prana and clear the subtle channels of toxins
and obstruction, is especially beneficial in treating seizures. It is  highly ef ficacious
in treati ng sleepwalking, sleep talking and bedwetting. It is suf fused into the
nostrils in powder form for nasal congestion and polyps, or t o induce return of
consciousness in  cases of shoc k or coma. Externally , a paste is used to relieve
headaches and insomnia. Sweet flag is also an antidote for the m ental and physical
side ef fe cts of cannabis and other mind-altering drugs, particularly when they are
smoked or otherwise consumed together . Calamus also regulates breathing,
relieves asthma,  and helps expel phlegm from the lungs. Externally , it is used in
massage oils to invigorate circulation and promote muscular relaxation. In Chin a a number of varieties of sweet flag are used, inclu ding Acorus
gramineus, Acor us terrestris and Acorus calamus. Chinese medicine, perceives all
these di f ferent species to contain the same therapeutic properties, and considers
sweet flag as mostly aromatic. This signifies its ability to awaken the spirit and
sensory orifices,  especially when they are obstructed by the presence of phlegm (as
in d eafness, dizziness, for getful ness, mental dullness, or seizures). Sweet flag is
also used to disp el dampness that has become lodged in the chest or abdomen (as
in as thma, chest pain and conge stion, abdominal distension, or indigestion), and is
also app lied as a useful external remedy for musculoskeletal pains, trauma, and
sores that are the result of cold, dampness or wind invasion. The use of cin nabar by T aoist alchemists in search of the elixir of
immortality cam e into vogue in  China during the Han dynasty . Their researches
disclosed that cinnabar possesses the perfect balance of Y in a nd Y ang (mercuryand sulf ur on a physical level) once it has been purified from i ts toxic crude form
to a transformed  state via an exacting process of nine-fold sublimation. Cinnabar
played a  key role in the T aoist’ s proto-chemistry experimentations, which also led
to major  discoveries of methods for neutralizing potent naturally-occurring toxins. This research benefited medicine by opening up a wide variety of previously toxic
mineral, plant and animal substances for therapeutic use. Eventually much of this
information was  shared with In dian T antric adepts who went on to master their
own unique processes of chem ical transformation. This India nized art of proto-
chemistry may have been the foundation of the Siddha system of medicine whose
techniques have  influenced A yurveda. It is interesting to note in passing that today ,
the u se and imp ortance of minerals and metals in A yurveda greatly exceeds their
use in Chinese medicine. Cinnabar in Chinese medicine is mainly used to calm and balance the mind
and spirit for such conditions as insomnia, anxiety attacks, convulsions and
restlessness. Due to its cooling nature, cinnabar also acts as a potent agent for
clearing excess toxic heat from the body as evident in suppurative skin infections,
mouth sores and snake bites. In A yurveda, most minerals are used in very refined forms which have been
subjected to repeated incineratio ns that leave the end-product ch emically inert and
thus non -irritating to the tissues. Such mineral ash (bhasma) preparations have a
powerful catalytic ef fect on the metabolic processes. Both the naturally-occurring
cinnabar and artificially-prepared mercuric sulfide are considered ideal re-
juvenator of the blood because it contains both mercury and sulfur , the primal
minerals, which  are used in treating a whole host of chronic d iseases. Cinnabar ,
according to A yurveda, also p romotes the health of reproductive tissues and
secretions and is used specifically , as in China, for obstinate skin disorders and
certain t ypes of poisonings. In terms of the Doshas, cinnabar alleviates both Pitta
and Kapha; some say it can be mildly aggravating to V ata. Human beings for at least the last 2,500 years have been using the preputial
glands o f the musk deer for m edicine and perfume. The best quality of musk
reportedly becomes available du ring the rutting season when the  animal breaks the
gland’ s capsule with its hooves to empty the contents on to th e ground, but this
quality is extremely rare. Each capsule is said to contain up to 50 ml. of muskwhich has a mil ky texture and color when fresh but this gradually turns viscous
and redd ish-brown over time. Long ago the wild mountain mu sk deer roamed in
lar ge numbers throughout the H imalayas from Kashmir , Assam , Nepal, T ibet and
into the Chinese provinces of  Sichuan and Y unnan. T oday it has become an
endangered species, and wild musk has become dif ficult to obtain. Most
commercially av ailable musk is either synthetically produced or  comes from musk
deer farms. The uses of musk are general ly similar in both A yurveda and Chinese
medicine, thoug h the specific c onditions for which it is prescr ibed dif fer greatly . Because musk is highly regarded  in Chinese medicine for its potent consciousness-
reviving ef fect it is used to treat fainting, seizures, collapse, delirium, heart attacks,
and trau matic in juries which cause mental shock and confusion. Musk’ s ability to
awaken the mind and spirit is d ue to its intense aromatic and penetrating nature. T raditionally musk is also used to treat amenorrhea and hasten  delivery including
expulsion of retained placenta o r facilitation of the downward passage of stillborn. Musk is used topically , in the form of a plaster (usually mixed with other herbs and
beeswax), to treat traumas and injuries that result from nerve damage and painful
conditions. Musk is perhaps A yurveda’ s mo st well known animal-derived product due to
its powerful aphrodisiac ef fect, and which can markedly increase semen production
in th e male. Musk is said to alleviate V ata and Kapha while  aggravating Pitta. Being b oth pun gent and warming (as well as having a special vasodilator ef fect
upon the blood vessels), musk stimulates the heart and blood circulation, and is
thus considered a general tonic in cases of debility .A P P E N D I X  I I
T h e  U s e  o f  V i t a l  P o i n t s  i n  A s i a
The practices of acupuncture and moxibustion, which use needles and
mild ca uterization respectively to stimulate the vital points  along the
ener getic pathways called Meridians, are considered integral parts of
traditional Chine se medicine. While a growing body of scientif ic evidence
supports acupuncture’ s therapeutic claims, a scientific explanation for how
acupuncture wo rks still remains elusive. The origin of these tr eatments go
back as far as the origin of Ch inese Civilization itself, althoug h historical
evidence suggests that acupuncture and moxibustion arose separately and
were slowly integrated over t ime. The ancients maintained  that while
acupuncture cam e from the eastern parts of China, moxibustion originated
in t he north, p robably Mongolia. The mer ger of these two medical
modalities into a single system occurred sometime during the W arring
States period (475-221 B.C.). The basic philosophy of acupuncture and
moxibustion is summarized in the Y ellow E mper or ’ s Inner Classic ,  which
appeared during  that era, and in the Classic of Difficult Issues,  which was
written during the Han Dynasty (206 B.C-220 A.D.). Both acupuncture and moxibustion have been refined and enlar ged
over the centuries, and in recent years acupuncture has “gone high tech”
with the development of both laser acupuncture and electro-acupuncture. Most practitioners however continue to practice acupuncture and
moxibustion, as  well as the adjunctive techniques of acupressure, massage
and micro-bloodletting in traditional ways, according to teachings based
upon the laws of Y in-Y ang and the Five Elements. China is not alone in Asia in the use of vital points in therapy . V arious
indigenous systems have mapp ed such points on the body’ s surface, and
assigned to them specific ef fects and uses. The most notable among these
comparable trad itions is the Indian concept of Marmas, which is discussed
particularly in A yurveda’ s most important sur gical texts, the SushrutaSamhita. The Sri Lankan, T ibetan, and Mongolian healing traditions
incorporate elements of either the Chinese or Indian concepts or both into
their own distinctive ideas. Marmas probably were first identified during the V edic period, when
kings an d warriors may have u sed this science either to ef fectively inflict
fatal wounds on their enemies (or animals of prey) or to prevent such
wounds from becoming fatal. Sushruta, who teaches that every Marma is a
seat of Prana, de scribes 107 Marmas on the surface of the hum an body . He
states th at when a Marma is traumatized, the destabilized Prana  aggravates
the body’ s V ata Dosha, which in turn blocks the Pervasive (vyana) V ata
channels that circulate near th e body’ s surface. Marmas  are classified
according to the underlying structure involved (muscles, blood vessels,
ligaments, nerves, bones, joints), their regional location, their dimension,
and the consequences of injury (swift death, death after some delay , death
as soon as any foreign body is extracted from the wound, disability , or
simply intense pain). Knowledge of the Marmas was an integral part of A yurvedic study ,
especially for sur gery . Later physicians, such as V agbhata and Sharngadhara
(respectively of the 7th and 13th century A.D.), wrote comment aries on the
Marma teachings of Sushruta. These ancient Indian doctors emphasized that
the situation and dimension of each local Marma should be studied before
any sur gical operation, so that t he incision could elude even th e edge of a
Marma thus avoiding further aggravation of the body’ s Prana. The use of
certain external medicines (especially minerals or strong plants) were
prohibited on Marmas. In South  India the practical application of Marmas was deve loped
into a unique f orm of treatment called “marma-chikitsa” by  A yurvedic
physicians, and “varma-kalai” by Siddha physicians. Practitioners of the
martial art known as “kalarippayattu” in the state of Kerala use similar
techniques. In the Southern tradition many of the same 107 Marmas are
used, along with a number of sp ecial or secret Marmas, often unique to that
practitioner ’ s sc hool of training. Therapeutically massage, finger pressure,
medicated oils or mineral-vegetable poultices are applied to the individual
Marmas. In the South Indian view , Marmas are considered  to possess
unique h ealing virtues because they intimately link with and thereby af fectthe body’ s Prana and Nadis. These properties of Marmas are therefore
utilized to treat numerous ailments. Bloodletting (siravedhividha) and cauterization (agnikarmavidh i) are
frequently employed in India, although not to the 107 Marma  points, for
such conditions as hernias, hemorrhoids, and arthritic joints. Bloodletting is
done directly to the superfici al veins at precise locations along their
pathways, and cauterization is applied by way of ignited plant s, alkalis or
special instruments either to specific points or directly to the disordered
tissues. Bloodletting is generally used to dissipate excess heat and to cool
the blood, while cauterization dispels coldness and heats the blood. The T ib etan tradition of vital points basically modified and re fined
the A yurvedic model to suit its concept of the body . The main distinctions
between the two models are that the T ibetans used a greater number of
points, and classified these into various types according to t heir use in
bloodletting (gtar -dmigs), minor sur gery (thur -dmigs), or cauter ization (me-
dmigs) points. Some, such as the vulnerable (gnad-dmigs) p oints, were
prohibited for use. These dif ferences are illustrated in the 17th century
medical paintings of Sangye Gyamtso called the Blue Beryl,  a series of 77
drawings depicting the essential medical teachings of the Four T antras. It is a curious fact that the T ibe tans, who understood and borrowed
many C hinese medical teaching s (such as pulse diagnosis), did not adopt
the techniques of Chinese acupuncture. Indeed, the Blue Beryl  has no
illustrations of any acupuncture points or instruments; it does show
ener getic pathways, but they dif fer from the Chinese Meridians in number
and trajectory . Another anomaly : while the Chinese system of moxibus-tion
uses mugwort almost exclusiv ely as its cauterizing agent, the T ibetans
apply (depending on symptoms) many other substances including gerbera,
yellow champa, saf fron, chebulic myrobalan, ginger and thistle. Sri Lanka appears to possess an indigenous form of therapeutic
acupuncture. Numerous documents on Sinhalese Buddhist and A yurvedic
medicine written on palm-leaf attest to the ancient use of fine acupuncture
needles (22 recorded types), sur gical lances for bloodletting, and
cauterization on specific points (nilas) on the body’ s surface. The Sri
Lankan vital points for acu puncture, bloodletting and c auterizationsurprisingly dif fer from the 107 Marmas of A yurveda, but a ppear to be
similar in their location to those of the Chinese system. A study done b y Laxman Devasena, entitled Some T raditional Sri
Lankan Medical T echniques Re lated to Acupunctur e,  reveals a system of
great bre adth an d long history . I n Sri Lanka even today many practitioners
use these ancient techniques both on humans and animals. Acco rding to Dr . V . Dharmalingam, there exists a small group of Siddha and A yurvedic
practitioners in  South India who use gold and copper needles to
acupuncture certain vital points. Apparently the long periods of mutually
enriching contact between Sout h India and Sri Lanka, which lie across the
Palk Strait from each other , led to much medical cross-fertilization. The concept of v ital points in the Indian and Chinese traditions  share
many similar features overall:
a) v ital points a re individually named and located through a s ystem of
precise anatomical measurement based on figure units,
b) th e points are situated on ener getic pathways (Nadis or Mer idians) in
which Prana and Qi flow respectively ,
c) sur gery , trauma or imbalance to a vital point (or Meridian, in the
Chinese view) causes serious harm, and compromises health,
d) a considerabl e number of Ma rma points correspond in location to the
Chinese points (according to res earch done by Dr . D. G. Thatte; see his
book Acupunctur e, Marma and Other Asian Therapeutic T echniques),
e) in both systems there is a comparable use of bloodletting and
cauterization or moxibustion. Important dif ferences between Indian and Chinese views include the
following:
a) In the A yurvedic tradition on ly 107 vital points are used, all of which
are considered vulnerable points and thus unsuitable for therapy
(except among those South India practitioners who  employ these and
other po ints for  healing). Chinese medicine describes more then 365
points for therapeutic use by puncture, cauterization, or bleeding.b) Unlik e the Marmas or Sri Lankan acupuncture points (n ilas), the
Chinese vital points are generally all linked together in a  series of
Meridians, which are in turn associated to specific or gans and tissues. c) Marm as are used, in the South Indian tradition mainly  to treat
disorders in their adjacent tissues or or gans, whereas in China,
acupuncture points are used for systemic ef fect and local use.
_OceanofPDF.com_Tao_and_Dharma_-_Svoboda.txt
Summarize the following text section accurately and concisely. Maintain specific details and numerical information, and use anti-repetition mechanisms:

        Both systems believe that healing once begun often causes
the disease to retrace its path in the opposite direction to exit out of the body. 5
D i a g n o s i s
A yurveda and Chinese Medicine utilize fairly similar diagnostic methods
based on  sensory observation and questioning by the practitioner. In both
systems this process is a synthetic one that allows the practitioner a great
deal of latitude in choosing from an assortment of investigatory procedures. Examination of the pulse is still  the preeminent diagnostic technique within
both traditions, and the method ology employed in the two sy stems dif fers
only slig htly. Moreover the interpretations given to pulse analysis in both
show a wide co ncordance. The  general characteristics of the three Doshas
and their analogous Chinese counterpart pulses are: V ata or Qi-floating,
empty a nd irregu lar; Pitta or Y ang-tight, rapid and wiry or full; and Kapha or
Y in- lar ge, slow and deep. Both sys tems postulate that the pulses reflect both the overall level of
vitality and the diseased condition of the individual. One major dif ference
between the two in pulse diagnosis, however, is that the Chinese utilize the
pulse to  determine the conditions of the individual or gans and their
associated Meridians as also to the pernicious influences and state of the
substances; whereas in A yurveda, the state of the Doshas by pulse diagnosis
is o f paramount concern, refle cting the lack of emphasis on or gans as
mentioned earlie r. The state of the body’ s Qi or Prana, too, is emulated in the
pulse, and therefore pulse examination is used to prognosticate the
immanence of death as well. Because A yurveda acquired the procedure of pulse examination later
in its developme nt, A yurvedic doctors originally relied on such observations
as facial  color, tongue, eyes, ga it, etc. ; questioning, and inference for their
diagnoses. Urin alysis, commonly used in India today, also seems to have
been acquired later from the T ibetans (see illustration 23). A great deal of similarity exists in the methodology for observation of
the tongue for diagnostic purposes. In each system the tongue is divided into
thirds—the tip, middle portion and root—which are linked, respectively, tothe ches t, upper and lower abd omen, and the or gans therein. Observations
pertaining to the tongue’ s color, shape, texture and coating are analyzed in
both traditions, primarily, for th e presence of heat or cold, and secondarily
for other pathogenic factors. In A yur veda a  practitioner learns the art of prognosis, which
incorporates a highly intuitive  and spiritual understanding of life. This
deep  stu dy refle cts on the doct ors’ skills and hence reputation as much as
does dia gnosis and resultant treatment. The prognosis is determined through
a variety of procedures: a thorough examination to determine the general
constitution of the patient, the nature and stage of the illness, and a
consideration of a myriad of omens including the patient’ s dreams. Chinese medicine is lar gely devoid of the systematic spiritual aspect of
this type  of prognosis as a res ult of the abandonment of spi ritual beliefs
within its philosophical rationa le. Thus one finds a greater belief in spirit
possession, ef fec ts of curses, and  other occult influences in A yurveda than in
modern Chinese medicine. Following diagnostic inquiry, the physician must or ganize and
dif ferentiate the information elicited by the procedures. While A yurveda tries
to u tilize the Do sha theory as e xclusively as possible in its pat hology, with
the addition of allied concepts such as Digestive T oxins; Chinese medicine
employs a wider variety of patterning frameworks. The most commonly used
theories referred to are the Eigh t Guiding Principles based on t he Y in-Y ang
doctrine, the Five Element model, and patterns based on the Or gan theory
and Climatic influences. Both  medical systems delineate the signs and
symptoms of common diseases that have specific identifiable patterns, such
as anxiety, jaundice, seizures, and indigestion. Permutations of patterns are however common to both. Just as in,the
Dosha theory of A yurveda, dera ngements of two or even three Doshas can
simultaneously exist, Chinese medicine also recognizes the presence of
multiple patterns in most patients. And through an analysis of each
patterning mode l the complex clinical presentations of each patient are more
easily understood. Theoretically Chinese medicine with its inherent diversity
of mode ls is less constrained than A yurveda, wherein the Dosha model
predominates, fo r in Chinese m edicine if a practitioner is inef fective with a
treatment based on the strategy  of a particular disease model, the condition
may be reexami ned and treated utilizing an approach outlined b y a dif ferent
patterning model. In practice, however, A yurvedic physicians do usually
evince the ability to successfu lly manipulate the Dosha theory when a
revaluation of therapy is called for. 6
T r e a t m e n t
T he purpo se of therapy in A yurve da and Chinese medicine is to a I achieve
balance within the body and mind. In A yurveda a person’ s lifestyle, diet,
psychological make-up and spiritual beliefs are actively addressed in
formulating an overall strateg y, while contemporary Chines e medicine
focuses more on addressing a  patient’ s specific problems or disease. A yurveda as a b ody of practice emphasizes treating a person’ s constitution
to a far greater extent than does Chinese Medicine. V iewed this way, these
two systems can be perceived a s complementary to each other: A yurveda
tends to have a more long-term perspective, while Chinese medicine
focuses primarily on immediate relief of symptoms and disease. In Chin ese medicine the broad treatment strategy for any sort of
disease pattern is to sedate E xcess patterns first and tonify Deficient
patterns thereafter. Similarly according to A yurveda, conditions of excess
involving derangement of the Doshas and/or accumulation of toxins should
first be redressed before rejuv enative techniques (rasayana) are to be
employed to tonify and build u p the system. Common forms of therapy
used by both these traditions are: massage and manipulation; bonesetting;
sur gery; various methods of cautery; dietary regimentation; for internal
usage medicines  prepared from plants, mineral and animal products; and
exercise. Chinese medicine’ s unique field of expertise has been acupuncture,
which fo r some obscure reason was never transmitted into Ind ia until this
century. Acupuncture has been openly embraced and popularized by many
nations during the last twenty years, and its powerful treatment potential
and utilization for pain contr ol was instrumental in generating much
scientific and public interest in not only acupuncture itself, but also in all of
Asian medicine. A yurveda’ s un ique modality is in its Purification therapy
(panchakarma), which is a complete system for detoxifying the body and
initiating balance unto the system. Both systems base most of their prescriptions on plant-derived
substances, thou gh due to the enduring influence of the ancient  alchemical
arts, A y urveda utilizes mineral preparations to a greater extent than does
Chinese medicine, but Chinese medicine’ s pharmacopeia is replete with
many m ore animal parts than d oes that of A yurveda. Both systems have
sophisticated methods of preparing their remedies, particularly those  which
include toxic plants and minera ls which need to be detoxified by elaborate
processes. The medicinal prepar ations appear in a wide variety of forms as
detailed earlier. Both A yurveda and Chines e medicine have, through their
understanding of the unique properties of plants, minerals and animal
substances, achieved a sophisticated knowledge of how substances interact. Each system thereby developed myriads of syner gistic compounds whose
total ef fect surpasses the sum of its individual ingredients, a nd in each
country this accumulated knowledge was recorded in texts which
specialized in materia medical and formulation. This continuity of
knowledge has allowed practitio ners of both healing arts access to centuries
of data collected  on the benefits, limitations, interactions and possible side-
ef fects of substances. Even toda y hundreds of the medicinal fo rmulas used
in C hina and Ind ia both, are base d upon ancient prescriptions, some of them
over 2,000 years old. Chinese medicine classifies the medicinal substances use d in
prescriptions by their taste, temperature, direction of action and ef fect upon
Meridians and Or gans; whereas A yurveda’ s categorization pertains to taste,
potency, post-digestive ef fect and special power. A yurveda distinguishes six
dif ferent tastes—sweet, sour, salty, pungent, bitter and astringent—of which
only astr ingent i s not found in Chinese medicine’ s five classes of tastes. In
Chinese medicin e rather, two separate tastes, astringent and aromatic, are
used to denote, respectively, a s ubstance’ s ability to prevent edema and to
awaken the digestive fire and  spirit. Even in A yurveda a stringent is
regarded by some authorities to be an action instead of a taste, since
astringent causes tissues to contract, which is why it makes the mouth
pucker. According to Chinese medicine each taste has a distinct  ef fect upon
the Qi, a concept useful in understanding the action of a substance in
totality. In both Chinese medicine and A yurveda the tastes are linked to each
system’ s version  of the Five Elements. While Chinese medicine associates
only one  element with a particu lar taste, A yurveda associates two elements
with each taste. The concepts o f taste in the two systems are however in
general agreement with regard to their ef fects on the physical body, though
there is a diver gence of opinion in the case of salty taste: salt is considered
by A yurveda to be heating, while Chinese medicine regards it to be cooling. In C hinese medicine, salt’ s cool ing nature is congruent with its  close
association to the water element. Salt has a Y in, softening quality that is in
harmony with the innate nature of water. Indeed, ocean water  and human
blood contain the same relative proportion of salt. Internally, salt regulates
body fluid levels, primarily thro ugh its ef fect upon the kidney s. It softens
and disp erses congealed Qi, loosens the muscles, and cools the blood. Goiter is an example of a condition that arises from internal  heat and Qi
stagnation, and may be influenc ed by salt. Chinese medicine utilizes salt or
salty her bs to cool and soften th e tissues, and in higher amounts salt pur ges
the intestines, thereby reducing internal body heat. A yurveda views salt as heating b ecause it creates a burning sensation
when pl aced in the mouth or upo n an open wound, stimulates di gestive fire,
promotes retent ion of body fluids, and inhibits perspiration, resulting in
increased internal heat. But A yurveda does recognize salt’ s softening ef fect. Perhaps these varied views on salt’ s cooling and heating ability reflect,
respectively, its initial or prolonged ef fects on the body. Classification of  substances by tendency to cause heating or cooling
is called a subst ance’ s temperat ure in Chinese medicine and its  potency in
A yurveda. A yurveda’ s concept of potency actually embraces other polarities
of a substance’ s  action including heavy and light, and wet and dry, thus
conforming to the Y in-Y ang theory and to the Chinese concept of direction
of a ction. Unique to Chinese f ormulation is the concept of a substance’ s
ef fect on  particular ener getic Meridians and Or gans, while the idea of a
substance’ s post-digestive and special ef fect is distinctly specific to
A yurveda. For comparative pur poses, a brief outline of twelve medicinal
substances utiliz ed by both Chinese and Indian medicine has be en provided
in Appendix I. As regar ds to the process of drug administration, A yurveda emp loys a
greater variety of preparations and methods of delivery. A yurvedic
formulations include expressed plant juices; powders and pas tes; hot and
cold decoctions;  pills; wines; medicated fats, oils and butters; and mineral
and gemstone preparations. In A yurveda, subject to the nature o f the illness,
medicines may be administered orally, through the nostrils, via the anus (in
the form  of an enema), droppe d into the ear, or applied over the skin. In
contrast, Chinese medicine relies, almost exclusively, on the oral
administration o f decoctions, wines and pills; only for external injuries are
liniments and plasters applied topically. 7
P r i m a l  D i s t i n c t i o n s
G iven their many similarities, it  is instructive to examine some of the
reasons for the dif ferences wh ich exist between these two q uite similar
medical systems. V ariance of climate is certainly one reason for dif ferences
in theory. China is situated gen erally further to the north of India and has
mostly a  cooler,  temperate climate, and therefore the medical pr eoccupation
has alwa ys been  to keep the body warm. This concern may perhaps also be
deduced from the impetus for c oncepts such as the T riple Burner. India’ s
climate, however, being more tropical, A yurveda has necessarily been more
concerned with keeping the bo dy cool yet maintaining a stron g digestive
fire. It is also  evident though, that there are profound dif ferences in Indian
and Chinese thought patterns. The civilization of India that  developed
A yurveda has a tendency to promote linear thinking, as reflected in the
linear sc ript it developed for its  languages. Chinese thought, on the other
hand, is markedly more circular  and pattern-oriented, as evinced by China’ s
refusal t o renoun ce its symbolic language based on pictographic characters. Since m ost human knowledge is couched in language, the stru cture of the
language in which a theory is expressed inevitably helps to determine its
orientation. Political dif ferences have also played a part in the development of
these m edical systems. China during its long history, has enjoyed several
periods of unification which promoted social homogeneity, and its
relatively more stable social setting may have encouraged medical
innovation, prov iding Chinese medicine with a range of theoretical models
and prac tices that are inherently more diverse than A yurveda’ s. India has
never been as homogenized as China, even though all the foreign
conquerors who arrived and set up house eventually became assimilated as
a new sub-grou p within India’ s diverse cultural mosaic, at lea st until the
coming of the Europeans. Perpetual political turmoil may well have playeda ro le in the codification and standardization of A yurveda during its long
history, for it flourished for  centuries despite frequent changes in
government. That the British attempted to “outlaw” A yurveda was
consistent with their adamant refusal to “go native,” a refusal which
probably facilitated their successful political unification of the subcontinent. The extreme complexity of both of these ancient civilizations makes
any sort  of facile conclusions hazardous. It seems, however, li kely that as
exposure of traditions to each other increases, the awareness of the ways in
which an d the extent to which c ultural traits have af fected medical concepts
will gradually become more apparent. Hopefully it will then become easier
to get rid of f many of the prevalent cultural biases from the systems,
facilitating their communion, if not integration. 8
I n t e g r a t i n g  T r a d i t i o n s
S ince A yurveda in general, focuses more on understanding and treating
constitutional types, whereas C hinese medicine predominantly addresses specific
disease patterns, these two approaches towards healthy living are potentially
complementary. For example, from a Chinese medical perspective Kapha displays
the gen eral characteristics of hypo-activity. This manifests in the body as a
tendency towards heaviness an d coldness due to deficiency o f Y ang (i. e. heat). Body flu ids easily accumulate due to impaired circulation, and a diminution of
digestive and metabolic functio ning takes place. The diseases of dampness, cord
and phle gm fall within the domain of Kapha. The mental disposition eminently
distinct for Kapha is a dullness  of mind that causes possessiveness, melancholy,
calmness, and a tendency to over -indulgence. In Chinese m edicine these are
primarily the syndromes associated with the Spleen and Stomach, and secondarily
with those involving the Lungs, Kidneys and Bladder, that appear to be most
closely related with Kapha. Both Chinese medicine and A yurveda agree that
Pungent taste, keeping warm, di spersing and drying conditions,  all Y ang in nature,
are ideal for countering excess of Kapha. Pitta dis plays the general characteristic of hyperactivity, a decidedly Y ang
attribute. In the body this manifests as lightness and heat due to deficiency in the
body’ s Y in. Thi s condition of excess heat injures the Blood,  and increases the
digestive and metabolic activit y. In Chinese medicine heat d isorders (fire and
summerheat), in cluding the pattern of heat in the Blood, are fo und to correspond
with Pitt a. The mental dispositio n of this Dosha involves sharpn ess of mind, acute
discrimination, aggressive disposition, anger and jealousness. In Chinese medicine
the patterns of th e Liver and Gallbladder, and secondarily those of the Heart, Small
Intestine and Kidneys, relate most closely with Pitta. Foods and medicines that
posses the bitter taste are best to sedate Pitta, followed by sweet and astringent. There is  consens us between A yurveda and Chinese medicine that Bitter, due to its
inherent cooling, clearing and drying properties, and its Y in natu re, best neutralizes
Pitta. V ata has the general characteristic of being mobile and unstable like the
wind and generates a sense of constant shifting in body and mind. In excess this
manifests as pains and sensations that are not fixed  in location or duration, and in atendency toward s dryness. V ata is closely associated with Pran a in A yurveda; and
the latter in C hinese medicin e can be likened to Qi disorders. Thus V ata’ s
manifestation w ill correspond to deficiency states of Qi and derangement of its
circulation. The mental state of V ata reveals a changeable mental disposition
marked by fear, moodiness, nervousness, anxiety and restles sness. In Chinese
medicine V ata imbalance primar ily correlates with the Or gan patterns related to the
Liver and Lung, and secondari ly with Heart Protector, T riple Burner, and Lar ge
Intestine syndromes. Salty food s and medicines are best suited to stabilize V ata,
but to a lesser degree sour and sweet foods and medicines are also ef fective. Though A yurved a and Chinese medicine disagree on the salty taste’ s ef fects, both
systems do agree that salt does possess a softening capability. Historically, the greatest cross -fertilization between Indian and Chinese
systems has occurred in the field of the therapeutic uses of plant, mineral and
animal p roducts; and hence there already exists a certain commonality of practice
in Internal Medicine which may turn out to have a potential for ef ficacy
enhancement. For example, A yurveda could profitably absorb Chinese medicine’ s
methods of formulation and its understanding of the T astes according to their ef fect
upon the Qi; whereas Chinese medicine could integrate the A yurvedic concepts of
Post-Digestive ef fect and the principle of the ten Pairs of Qualities to its advantage. Massage, bloodletting and moxibustion are common adjunctive practices of
Chinese medic ine. While bloodletting is indicated in heat disorders and
moxibustion in cold patterns, m assage while useful in many ty pes of illnesses is
most ef f ective in  disorders of Qi  circulation. These modalities are used similarly in
A yurveda. Below  is a breakdow n of these three adjunctive tech niques, as well as
other beneficial practices, according to the Dosha alleviated:
In th e authors’ experience, acupuncture is useful in most type s of patterns
and should benefit any Dosha  constitution. However, by modification of the
acupuncture tech nique in accordance with the patient’ s main Dosha imbalance, the
ef ficacy of acupuncture can be greatly enhanced: The following chart gives general
parameters of acupuncture treatment according to the three Dosha types:From an A yurvedic perspectiv e, the general role of acupu ncture is in
balancing Prana  and harmonizing the relationship between the physical and mental
body, sin ce the Prana operates between these two bodies. Certa inly acupuncture is
one mod ality tha t would be of great benefit to incorporate within  A yurveda, though
it may be dif ficult to harmonize the conceptual model of the Meridian Network
and Or gan Images with A yurvedic theory without adopting the Chinese Y in-Y ang
and Five Element perspective. The Purification  practices in A y urveda similarly can be of great  utility when
incorporated int o the treatment strategy of Chinese medicine. The purification of
the body accelerates the healing  of the patient as well as enhanc es the ef fectiveness
of a ny therapies that follow, su ch as acupuncture, exercise or Internal Medicine. Y et purification can only be ini tiated when the patient’ s symptoms become mild
and non-threate ning. Therefore, acupuncture can be used pr ior to Purification
therapy to curtail the symptoms. In any event, clinical experimentation is likely to be the key to any possible
eventual detente between these two titans, for theoretical integration of two
systems which follow separate modes of thought and diver gent doctrines is much
more problematical. Since these diver gent outlooks are complementary, however,
some sort of correlation between them does seem worthy of serious study. C O N C L U S I O N
A yurveda and Chinese medicine are both living systems of medicine with
ancient roots, the oldest continuously practiced and recorded medical
traditions in the world. Both systems are based on a natural empiricism
coupled with intuition that was  practiced by the doctor -sages of old. The
study of their history shows many points of contact and many attempts
(some su ccessful, others not) to cross-fertilize ideas and practices, the early
Buddhists having been particularly instrumental in facilitating this contact
and exchange. Fundamental to both systems is the belief that an individual who lives
in ac cord with t he laws of Natu re remains healthy, and that dev iation from
Nature’ s path is the root cause of all ill health and suf ferin g. Chinese
medicine uses the concepts of the T ao, Y in and Y ang and the Five Elements
to e xplain the working of Na ture, while A yurveda bases itself on the
Sankhya philoso phy and uses th e theory of Doshas, Five Elements and the
Three A ttributes (equilibrium, a ctivity and inertia) to explain its vision of
the n atural order. Although Chi nese and Indian doctrines do s hare certain
common themes, they are essentially unique, and their concepts cannot be
interchanged in their entirety. One common feature of both medical paradigms is the belief in an
essential life force, called Prana by the Indians and Qi by the Chinese. Both
paradigms have remarkably similar ideas on the nature, transportation,
origin an d impo rtance of this su bstance, and they are in general agreement
in their views o f the other substances of life such as blood a nd essence. Mind and body are understood a s inseparable by both systems, though their
explanations about the structure of consciousness do diver ge. Etiological understanding is linked to each system’ s explanation of
the forces of Nature, and images  of these external forces are used to explain
how dev iation fr om the laws of Nature manifests as symptoms o f disease in
the body. Both systems use the natural sensory skills of the p hysician tointerpret the patient’ s symptoms, with striking similarities in diagnostic
techniques, particularly in palpation of the pulse, visual inspection, listening
and questioning. The current worldwide explosion of interest in botanical medicine
and acup uncture has increased the profile of and generated enthusiasm for
research into both of these Asian systems of medicine. W e believe that
botanical medic ine and the practice of acupuncture are probably the key
areas in  which the relationship between these two systems can be
immediately strengthened. Plant, minerals and even certain p rescriptions
are know n to have been incorpo rated into each others’ pharmacopeias; and
the sim ilarity and practicality of their use of a substance’ s taste and
temperature in its classification is a topic that is being widely studied today
in modern botanical medicine. Although integration on several levels seems directly possible, much
experimental work will be needed to make it more widely applicable. Perhaps one feasible way to init iate this process may start with introduction
of inter -discipli nary courses into the curricula of both A yurvedic and
Chinese Medical colleges. Syner gizing the overall characteristics of both
disciplines can ultimately lead to  the development of a truly holistic science
of ener getic medicine in the future. A P P E N D I X  I
C o m p a r i s o n  o f  S o m e  I m p o r t a n t  M e d i c i n a l  S u b s t a n c e s
China an d India  have traded and  exchanged much information on the use of
plants, minerals and animal products for food and medicinal p urposes over their
long history. The merchants, priests and scholars who over the past two millennia
sought n ew sources of medicines undoubtedly exchanged infor mation about each
culture’ s use of drugs. About a  quarter of the plants listed in t he Chinese classic
Compendium of Materia Medica {Ben Cao Gang Mu),  w hich was writ ten in 1590
A. D. by Li Shi Zhen and was co nsidered the most extensive materia medica in its
time, ar e common to both India and China. Many of the p lants listed in this
Chinese materia  medica were in  fact imported from India. T rad e and information
historically also went the other way, over the Himalayas to influence A yurveda’ s
formulations, and new medicin al substances are still being introduced into the
market p lace in both India and  China. Ginseng root, for exam ple, is now being
cultivated and sold in India. In this appendi x a representative group of twelve substances which are
common to both traditions, ten of plant origin and one each from the mineral and
animal kingdom s, is discussed from both perspectives. Abo ut half the drugs
mentioned below  are native to both countries, and the rest were originally trade
commodities native to one or the other. This comparative survey includes a brief
historical backg round, each drug’ s Latin, Sanskrit and Chine se names, and the
part(s) of the source plant, mineral or animal which was traditionally used. As will become evident hereafter, the Chinese and A yurvedic systems
categorized and utilized most medicinal substances in approximately similar ways. The general uniformity of opinion on the taste and temperature properties of the
substances amo ng both systems is perhaps due to the fact t hat both taste and
temperature are deduced directly through sensory feedback and physical
interaction with the substance. T hose diver gences of opinion which do occur may
be partially explained by the subtle changes a plant goes through in adapting to a
dif ferent habitat, and partially by the specific uses that each discipline emphasizes
in a ccordance with its own medical paradigm. Also, the con text of the whole
materia medica af fects how a substance may be emphasized,  so that what is aminor remedy in one system may in the other be portrayed as an indispensable
drug. Chebulic myrobalan holds a position of high esteem in A yurveda, perhaps its
most im portant plant. Chebulic myrobalan’ s Sanskrit name (haritaki) has the triple
meaning of taking away all diseases (harayet), of being gree n in natural color
(harita) and of growing in the abode of Lord Shiva (Hara), the Himalayas
(considered the plant’ s ideal ha bitat). Since Charaka’ s time chebulic myrobalan
fruit has been c onsidered a powerful tonic and rejuvenative that “never causes
harm to a person  who takes it. ” Chebulic myrobalan found favo r wherever it went,
in Grec o-Roman, T ibetan, Ch inese and Arabic medicine, being praised by
A vicenna, the great 1 1th century Muslim physician, and extolled in the Four
T antras (Gyushi),  T ib et’ s preeminent medical tex t, as the “king of medicines. ” So
sacred is chebulic myrobalan to T ibetans that it is the Me dicine Buddha is
visualized holdi ng in his exten ded right hand in a gesture of giving. T ibetan
medicine utilizes every part of this plant for medicinal purposes. A yurveda utilize s not one but three myrobalans, however; the other two
being Em blica o f ficinalis (amal aki) and T erminalia belerica (bibhitaki). The three
together form triphala ("three fr uits"), a remedy par excellence for regulating and
toning th e digestive tract, and o ne of A yurveda’ s foremost prescriptions. A yurveda
considers chebu lic myrobalan calming to all Doshas, and especially beneficial for
reducing V ata, for though the  fruit is predominantly astringent in taste it is
warming in its inherent attribute and its post-digestive ef fect is sweet. Chebulic
myrobalan’ s main therapeutic function is to scrape away digestive toxins from the
digestive tract and the tissues (especially the blood). It is much used in abdominal
distension, malabsorption, jaundice, tumors, urinary infections, edema, and in both
constipation and  diarrhea. Chebulic myrobalan is said to rejuvenate both the body
(especially the colon and lungs)  and mind, to impart wisdom and intelligence, and
to increase longevity. This makes it ideal for use in chronic conditions such as
asthma (in which case its jam is consumed or its coarse powder is smoked),
prolapses of various or gans, abnormal dischar ges (spermatorrhea, leucorrhea, and
sweating), and bleeding gums. Chebulic myrob alan was first mentioned in Chinese medicine in the Materia
Medica of Medicinal Pr operties  (Y ao Xing Ben Cao),  a text p ublished around 600
A.
Examination of the pulse
What is a common diagnostic technique used in both Ayurveda and Chinese medicine?
Ayurveda focuses on understanding and treating constitutional types, while Chinese medicine primarily addresses specific disease patterns.
How do Ayurveda and Chinese medicine approach the concept of treatment?
Ayurveda emphasizes treating the patient's constitution, whereas Chinese medicine focuses on addressing specific symptoms and disease patterns.
What is a key difference in the approach to treatment between Ayurveda and Chinese medicine?
Both Ayurveda and Chinese medicine believe that an individual who lives in accordance with nature remains healthy, and that deviation from nature's path is the root cause of all illness.
What is a commonality between the two medical systems?
Ayurveda incorporates a highly intuitive and spiritual understanding of life, which is not present in Chinese medicine.
What is a unique feature of Ayurveda's approach to diagnosis and treatment?