THE SCIENCE OF SELECTION AND
PREPARATION OF RAW DRUGS IN AYURVEDA
Unlike any other medical system, the Ayurveda has many specialities, which once upon a time was thought as superstition. However when the modern phytochemical information and knowledge are getting piled up from a series of studies and systematic research, many of the indications and guidance given in the collection and processing of the raw drugs, in the ayurvedic texts, can be easily proved as scientific. They can be easily analysed based on the upto date knowledge on phytochemistry. Many of the guidance lines given in the literature can be justified as the requirement of the probable and possible chemical modification for the final drug formulations. Here an attempt is made to analyze those indications given in the ancient ayurvedic texts.
COLLECTION OF THE RAW DRUGS
Many paramenters are monitored while collecting, raw drugs for the ayurvedic preparations. Those guidance may directly be based most probably on the first hand experience of those scientists. In the Charaka samhita, the most authentic book on Ayurveda written in Sanskrit, it is mentioned that
Saakshaath anubhavair drushto na strutho na guru darsitha, lokaanaam upakaraaya ethath sarvam pradarsitham.
The message of the above lines : All the parameters for the collection of the raw drugs, what ever is mentioned in the ancient texts might have been arrived at through the experience of the ancient scientists. Not presented merely from the teachers or not presented as though it is told by someone. They are described for the benefit of the common people. From these lines it is clear that the directions are given based on their own experience and experiments.
There are variety of plant tissues used as raw drugs. They are roots, rhizomes, stems, barks, leaves, buds, flowers, raw fruits, ripened fruits, seeds, seed coats, etc. In some cases the latex or exudates are also used as raw drugs.
Instructions are given to monitor the maturity while collecting the drugs for the formulation preparation. The other parameters include the thickness, the age, possible content of the skin/carp, the direction of the growth of the root, the soil in which the plant is growing, etc. Similarly direction given for the collections of the barks is so clear that the maturity of the bark, the age of the tree, the dead cells present on the epicarp of the stem, the variety of the plant from which the barks are collected possible pith content in the bark, etc.
Instructions are given to select reasonably matured plants only for the stems unless otherwise specified. It should not have too much dead cells in the form of pith. It should be not too tender because the medicinal constituent or their precursors may not present upto the expected level.
Maturity of the leaves are clearly specified for getting the optimum quality expected for the final formulation. Maturity of the leaves, through the formation stage-deep green stage-yellowing stage-senescence stage-falling stage-dried leaves are the general choice for collection. All these types have their own advantages and disadvantages and depending upon the requirement, one has to select the leaves.
Buds of many plants are used in ayurvedic preparations. When compared to other parts of the plants, the buds used for the drugs preparations are less in number. However the quality of buds depends upon the maturity, size, the day of their formation and the number of days for blooming to flower, etc. Hence care should be taken for procuring the same.
The fruits are selected based on their maturity where the required maturity is specified. Very tender fruits will have an entirely different composition compared to the matured fruits. Even in the last stage of maturity of the fruits, the chemistry will be remarkably different. Hence while collecting the fruits of the plants, specification is essential. In many cases the fruits and seeds remain one and the same as the maturity wise. Here the fruit maturity has a direct bearing on the active principles of the seeds too.
It goes without telling that the plant seeds play very crucial role in many of the drugs / formulations. Sometimes the seeds may be the source of oil, protein, starch and in majority of the cases they may be the source of active principles. Almost all the studies carried out connected with the seeds, at different stages of their maturity, the active principles are proved varying significantly in them. Hence collection should have a firm bearing on the maturity of the drugs. However, if the requirement of the active principles are less for the final formulations, it can also be so monitored by using the less mature seeds.
As we have discussed variety of parameters which should be carefully monitored for the presence of required level active principles in them. Suggestions have also been given for the collection of the raw drugs based on the seasons. The climatic conditions do have direct bearing on the active principles of the roots, stems, leaves and flowers. Another important parameter is the time of collection of the plant tissue. For some of the buds and flowers which stay only for a day or two, the time of collection is very crucial. In some cases collection at the morning and at the evening make a lot of difference compared to the collection at noon or midnight. Yet another important parameter to be looked into while collecting the raw drugs is the infections/breakage/decay/spoilage etc., due to many reasons. Major reasons are the birds, pests, microbes, yeast, etc., These infections in the drugs can cause significant changes in the chemistry of the drug components. Hence all these parameters mentioned in the ayurvedic texts are to be looked into while collecting the drugs, wherever possible.
PLANT TISSUES USED FOR DRUGS
Roots or rhizomes : vetiver roots, kushta, priyanga, ambu, nalada, kopana, nata, rasa, aswagandha, turmeric, wild yam, bala, mustha, ginger, hrivera.
Wood and bark : surahwa, manjishta, loha, hima, devadara, yashitamadhu, Krishna agaru
Leaves : Tulsi, lotus, jasmine, tamarined leaves.
Buds : clove, buds or banyan tree, areca nut buds.
Flowers : coconut flowers, lotus
Fruits and seeds : Misis, red pepper, pippalli, cordiander, dill, cumin, fenugreek, cardamom.
Juice : Sanninayaka,
Latex : Tunshka, nalika, sajarasa, asafoetida
Grass / plant as such : sprik, lemon grass, ginger grass, nakha, sahachara,
General observations on the quality of the above raw drugs and their collection period.
A Tender roots will have minimum pith in it and the active principles will also be minimum in the root and bark, which generally are the carrier of the active principles.
A Immature plant tissues contain high amount of water and hence the active principles will be low and they will only be in the formation stage.
A Collection of tender roots will also be difficult as they are soft in nature and can break during the collection.
A Volatile oil content, alkaloids, etc will be practically absent in the roots when they are too tender.
A In the case of stem too the content of the active principles will be the highest when they are fully matured.
A The stem of the main trunk, branches and branchlets will also vary significantly due to different stages of their formation/maturity. Hence wherever optimum quality parameters are described corresponding maturity level has to be maintaned for the stem, particularly when the bark of the stem is utilized.
A In many drugs the bark is selected as in the case of cinnamon. For such types of raw drugs the bark should have sufficient maturity, thickness and minimum surface dead cells, for the proper chemical composition.
A Whenever the hard wood is utilized for the preparation of the drug, enough active principles can be expected only when the maturity is attained. Hence focus on the collection of stem should be given to see whether the stem is of primary/secondary or tertiary wood parts.
A Special types of stems like that of lotus, tinospora, etc., the maturity may not be as crucial as in other cases, like a banyan tree.
A It is well known that the cedar wood and sandal wood are not suffciently mature, they will not have any medicinal properties.
A Leaves are avaialble at different maturity, even though general stay period of the leaf can range between 20 to 60 days. Their volatile oil, carotenes, tocopherol, fiber content etc will be very low in the initial stages. Hence, depending upon the requirement of the active principles the leaves of required maturity is to be collected. In the case of clove leaves the qualitative and quantitative composition of mature leaves and tender leaves are significantly different. This will fetch a different effect altogether when used in the medicines. However the leaves of lotus, tulsi, cinnamon etc., may have the same composition at all maturity level.
A Buds and flowers may not have the required level of essential oil, polyhenols, aromatic components, alkaloids and other phytochemicals if they have not attained the required level of maturity.
A They are to be plucked in specific time of the day and season to maintain the quality of thier active principles.
A Fruits will have entirely different composition when they are tender from that of the mature ones. This can obviously be seen in the case of pepper, cardamom, gooseberry and for that matter any types of fruits.
A In fruits, majority of the cases, the tender fruit composition will be entirely different from that of the mature fruits. Hence depending upon the suggestion given in the authentic texts, the maturity for the collection should be decided. Due to the paucity of the raw drugs, generally adulterant & substituents etc., of the immature fruits are used for the drugs.
A Whatever guidances are mentioned above, for the fruits, the same are applicable for the seeds also. Particularly the seeds like castor, cardamom, gingly and variety of cereals, spices, etc., used in ayurvedic preparations, the maturiy is very crucial.
A Other than the above general statements, there can be specific cases also, which should be analyzed with the true spirit of modern science.
The seasons for the collections of the plant tissues and places of collection are also specifically guided. It has been proved by the modern methods that the variety of the plant grown at different locations do have different composition of the active principles. The plant grown in Himalayas, Vindyas and those grown in a raw field may vary significantly.
A The composition of the tissues when collected during rainy season will be vary from that of the winter or summer season. This shows that the season of collection has a direct bearing on the content of phytochemicals of the tissue.
A Thus the chemistry of collection of the raw drugs and the suggestions/directions/guidance given by the rishies agree.
DRYING AND STORING THE RAW DRUGS
Generally the drugs collected from their sources are dried or stored before they are used for the preparation of the final products. Other than this, different types of changes can take place in the cells.
Three major types of drying procedures are adopted. The first and the most important procedure particularly connected with tender tissues of the plants like, leaves, buds and flowers are shade drying, where direct sun light is not allowed to fall on the product.
The advantages of the shade drying and the chemistry:
A By this method the loss of volatiles will be minimum and the drug efficiency will be higher compared to other methods of drying. This is due to the fact that the temperature of the tissue is maintained at low level. When heating rate increases the moisture evaporates rapidly resulting in the breakage of the cells and escape of the volatiles with the water vapour.
A Shade drying prevents or reduces the changes of oxidative degradation of the drug components. For oxidative changes sunlight can act as a crucial parameter. The uv light, intense heat and also the free flow of air (wind) activates the oxidative changes in the components present particularly on the surface cells of the raw drugs.
A It prevents the bleaching of the tissues. It is well known that sunlight can bleach the colour particularly chlorophyll, carotene, polyphenols, etc. Even it can affect many micronutrient properties of the above and also the toccopherols. Thus protection of these micro nutrients can be effectively possible when the raw drugs are dried under the shade as specified in the ayurvedic texts.
A The in vitro enzymatic changes taking place during the drying process will be minimum when the moisture of the seed is removed slowly. The enzymatic activity takes place at the peak level when the temperature is at about 40 degree. If drying is done at a lower temperature, the possibility of enzymatic changes can be reduced significantly.
A Quality of the drugs can be maintained without further lowering even if the raw drugs is of the lower grade, when this method is adopted. Many substitutes/lower grade plant products like immature tissues, fallen leaves-fruits and seeds, infected plant parts, etc., undergo faster deterioration at higher temperature of drying.
The disadvantages of shade drying: The shade drying takes, more time, space, manpower for attaining a lower level of moisture contents in the drying process.
It also affects the quality of certain raw drugs in a different way. The moisture removal takes place slowly. Hence the storage time increases. During this period the chemical/enzymatic changes are possible in the stored tissues, particularly if the drug is tender bark, fruit or leaf. Higher rate of growth of microorganisms like fungus, microbes, virus, etc at higher moisture level for a long period is possible. Hence quick or direct sun drying or artificial drying is advocated for that type of drugs.
Depending upon the seasonal variations, the time taken for the shade drying may vary significantly. Hence during rainy season, faster drying either in the available direct sun light or using artifical devises is suggested.
Advantages and disadvantage of direct sun drying : It needs lesser time, manpower, storage space and economical paramenters. It can also maintain the quality of the drugs. But where the possibility of the loss of volatiles, bleaching of the fine components, etc are not expected there this method has disadvantage. However fermentation in fruity drugs like grapes, lemon, gooseberry, etc., is higher. Here maintaining lower temperature for drying is best. The quality of pepper, cardamon, cinnamon etc appeares to be very high when dried in the shade. Drying in the shade is of great importance for all spices, when the humidity in the atmosphere is low (like north Indian states). However care may be taken for adopting suitable methods of drying where humidity is high.
Advantages and disadvantages of direct or indirect heat drying: It is to be remembered that in olden days, heat drying was possible only by placing raw drugs above the fire wood, or on the surface where heat is available from the fire or directly heated on the heated vessel. Under all these conditions controlling the temperature is done arbitrarily. Hence, the possible chemical changes can also be predicted, when the temperature varies without control.
The advantage of the rapid heating for drying method is that, enzymatic in vitro changes can be arrested, the microbial infection and quality deterioration can be prevented. For prolonged storages this method gives better results as the moisture level can be definitely fixed at a known level below 6%. Space, time, manpower etc can be reduced, so it is economically beneficial too. This method may be opted provided other major quality parameters of the drugs are not affected, like loss of volatiles, colour, sudden heat based changes etc. In the modern systems controlled heating equipments are available and they have many well known results and merits.
STORAGE OF THE RAW DRUGS AND THE CHEMISTRY OF STORAGE
In olden days of Ayurveda, raw drugs are available in plenty and commercial production of the formulated drugs was not undertaken at the present level. Hence the storage problems were absent when compared to the present state of art.
Just like the collection paramenters influence the drugs quality, the storage parameters also influence the quality of the drugs. An excellent clean spacious storage house frequent removal of the deteriorated plant tissues, cleaning and removing the pests, avoiding the mixing of good quality drugs with decaying drugs, keeping different types of raw drugs in different spaces, controlled fumigation to get rid of microbial contaminations (important for the storehouses of fruits and sugar rich seeds) are advocated.
It can also fetch good result provided, the drugs are water washed (wherever possible) and dried prior to storage, so that the microganism which might have crept into the drugs can be removed before storing. The microganisms, pests, worms, etc can become a permanent disturbance if not taken care of before taking the drugs into the store houses.
Sufficient ventilation, frequent examination of the stored drugs, removal of olden stocks, surrounding hygiene, etc are to be monitored for keeping the quality of the raw drugs in the optimum level.
CHEMISTRY AND THE METHOD OF USING THE DRUGS.
The common forms of ayurvedic drugs are choornams, kashayams/ decoctions, paste with boiled jaggery lehyam, fermented products/ arishtas, aasavas, guikas/pills or tablets, thylam or oil extractions, ghruthas/ghee products, etc. According to experts each system has its merits. There are very clear, systematic, reproducible, processes for the preparation of these formulations. The proportion of the drugs, the level of grinding, time for the processing of the drugs, heating level, storing, etc. are also clearly mentioned for each drug. Even for the same class of drug formulations the processing parameters may vary significantly. A systematic analyses of the final product can give wonderful information, on the parameters selected for the drug preparation.
CHEMISTRY OF CHOORNAS
Generally raw drugs are finely powdered and mixed with sugar, salt or appropriate materials as advocated in the authentic texts for making the choornas. All the heat based or water based processing steps are avoided in the choornams. It is a way of directly consuming (eating) the raw drug in the powder form. Here the drug particles as such get digested and the active
principles are absorbed. In certain cases the choornams are boiled with water, or mixed with ghee/ honey or milk before taking.
Since heat based processing is avoided in choornams the microorganisms if present will remain as such. Hence the raw drug should be made free from all types of microorganism or deleterious materials/components. Deleterious plant parts should not be present in the products, if the final product is meant for internal use. The choornams are very effective remedies for many health problems due to the fact that the active principles are absorbed in the body without any pyrrolitic/ hydrolytic changes. Some of the choornams are directly applied on the skin also. Here the active principles are slowly absorbed through the skin.
Given below are the names of a few commonly used important choornams:
1. Yavaanyaadi choornam
2. Thaleesa patraadi choornam
3. Magadajaati choornam
4. Kaarpaasaasthyaadi choornam
5. Elaadi choornam
6. Jaateelavangaadi choornam
7. Katukaadi choornam
8. Karpooraadi choornam
9. Ashtachoornam
10. Thukaadi choornam
11. Gulasundi choornam
12. Thekakarajarasa choornam
13. Jeevanthyaadi choornam
14. Trikatuthriphalaadi choornam
15. Sarasijamakarandaadi choornam
16. Amruthaapippalyaadi choornam
17. Pushyaanugam choornam
18. Hutabrungaadi choornam
19. Sooranaadi choornam
20. Raja choornam
21. Kaankaayanamodakam choornam
22. Kayampurandaradi choornam
23. Vahnivajram choornam
24. Kushmaandorvarubeejaadi choornam
25. Akulee choornam
26. Vilangaraasnaadi choornam
27. Thrilavanapasuganadhaadi choornam
28. Hinkuvachaadi choornam
29. Hinkutawagaadi choornam
30. Mahavruksha lavana choornam
31. Ayorajonaagaraadi choornam
32. Naarachaka choornam
33. Pippalyadi choornam
34. Mandooravatakadi choornam
35. Kalyaana kshaara choornam
36. Vilangaadi choornam
37. Vishalaadi choornam
38. Navaayasam choornam
39. Naagaraadi choornam
40. Shardoola choornam
41. Vaiswanara choornam
42. Hapushaadi choornam
43. Varaahyaadi choornam
44. Pittaprasamana choornam
45. Krishnaadi choornam
46. Indrasani choornam
47. Ayaskaantaadi choornam
48. Gugulvaadi choornam
49. Yogaraja choornam
50. Saaraswata choornam
51. Naasikaachoornam
52. Avipathy choornam
53. Maashaaswagandhaadi choornam
54. Huthaasana choornam
55. Raasnaadi choornam
56. Kachooraadi choornam
57. Aswagandhaadi choornam
58. Kapithaashtaka choornam
59. Agnimukha choornam
60. Daadimaashtakam choornam
THE CHEMISTRY OF KASHAAYA
The kashaayas are the most important class of ayurvedic preparations. In many cases they are the final formulation. In some cases kashaayas are intermediate for the preparation of arishta, asava, rasayana, thyla and so on. Under all these conditions the aim of preparing the kashaaya/ decoction is to extract very systematically the active principles from the raw drugs. While preparing the kashaayas, a series of chemical changes known and unknown will be taking place in the extracts. There is a wrong understanding that kashaaya preparation is merely extraction of the active principles present in one or more components of the raw drugs directly. This wrong understanding has also lead to the direct use of plant extracts for the preparation of the final formulation. The kashaaya is a decoction prepared by adopting a series of processing parameters / unit operations.
The quantity of the raw drug components for kashayas is specifically described in various ways. Either as proportions, weights, lengths, volumes or arbitrarily selected amounts. Unless otherwise standardized, the use of a substitutes or extracts may not be as effective as the product obtained by adopting the method described in the ancient ayurvedic text books .
In the traditional method, the temperature of processing ( heating or warming )used to be controlled using the specific fuels or sand bath. This method indicates the temperature control for extraction, concentration, drying, roasting, etc. In some cases the duration of heat processing has also been specified directly or by way of reduction in the volume of the solution
Sometimes other additives are also mixed for improving the curative efficacy of the ayurvedic drugs . Some of the ayurvedic kashayaas are for purgation, vomiting, or sweating, etc and hence may not have direct curative effects.
Chemical changes during the preparation of kashaayas.
The raw drug components when heated with water two types of changes are taking places hydrolytic and pyrolitic changes. The hydrolytic changes include the conversion of esters into alcohols and acids, rearrangement in the chemical structure of the components, better dispersion in the water, removal of the volatile components with steam, imbibitions of the starchy materials, decomposition of the proteins into peptides, isomerization and structural changes in the active principles like carotenes, chlorophylls, vitamins, etc.
In kashaaya preparation, tracing the chemical changes of even the major components during heating is a complicated problem . A kashaaya is a multi drug- multi component system . Hence changes can be multi-facial.
Each chemical change is directly influenced by temperature/duration of heating /presence of additives/other components/ water/alkaline & acidic materials etc. Isomerization, decomposition, polymerization, etc can also take place depending upon the nature of heating.
In majority of the kashaaya preparations, the particle size of raw drug components has been specified indirectly using the words crushed /powdered / pressed / etc . They may be used as powder, crushed products, heated and powdered materials/ preextracted solutions, etc. Addition of components, duration of heating, etc., are also to be specific . Given below are the important kashaayas described in the sahasra yogam.
1. Mahoushadaadi kashaaya
2. Duraalabhaadi kashaaya
3. Dusparsakaadi kashaaya
4. Chirivilwaadi kashaaya
5. Chandanaadi kashaaya
6. Kulathati kashaaya
7. Devadaarvaadi kashaaya
8. Mustaakaranjaadi kashaaya
9. Charngaryaadi kashaaya
10. Chsaananthaadi
11. Dhaanyaadikashaaya
12. Pathyaadi kashaaya
13. Poothikaadi kashaaya
14. Dhaanyaadi kashaaya
15. Dasamoolaadi kashaaya
16. Vyaagryaadikashaaya
17. Bruhatyaadi kashaaya
18. Hareetakyaadi kashaaya
19. Aakulyaadikashaaya
20. Kathakaghadiraadi kashaaya
21. Nisaakatakaadi kashaaya
22. Vidangaadi kashaaya
23. Vyaghryaadi kashaaya
24. Varanaadi kashaaya
25. Nimbaadikashaaya
26. Mustachandanaadi kashaaya
27. Lasunaadi kashaaya
28. Nasoonairandadi kashaaya
29. Raasnaadi kashaaya
30. Saptasaram kashaaya
31. Kanaasathaahwaadikashaaya
32. Chitrakaadi kashaaya
33. Mulailaadi kashaaya
34. Nirgundyaadi kashaaya
35. Satavaryaadi kashaaya
36. Pathyaadi kashaaya
37. Erndadi kashaaya
38. Dasamoola panchakolaadi kashaaya
39. Nikumbaadi kashaaya
40. Punarnvaadi kashaayaa
41. Paasaadi kashaaya
42. Vyoshaadi kashaaya
43. Dvipanchamoolaadi kashaaya
44. Vaasaaguloochyaadi kashaaya
45. Nitambatwagaadi kashaaya
46. Gokshooraadi kashaaya
47. Patolaadi kashaaya
48. Kalakaadikashaaya
49. Jeevanthyaadi kashaaya
50. Sundeevalaadi kashaaya
51. Draakshaadi kashaaya
52. Chandraparpatakaadi kashaaya
53. Dvipanchamoolaadi kashaaya
54. Drakshaadi kashaaya
55. Khadeeraadi kashaaya
56. Kakotumbareekaadi kshaaya
57. Guloochyaadikashaaya
58. Sundyaadi kashaaya
59. Nirgundyaadi kashaaya
60. Vidangaadi kashaaya
61. Mustaadi kashaaya
62. Daadimaadikashaaya
63. Ashtavargam kashaaya
64. Dhanadanayanadi kashaaya
65. Prasaarinyaadi kashaaya
66. Rasonadi kashaaya
67. Sahacharaadi kashaaya
68. Gandharva hastaadi kashaaya
69. Maharaasnaadi kashaaya
70. Mahabalaadi kashaaya
71. Shataavaryaadi kashaaya
72. Rasnaerandaadi kashaaya
73. Vasaadi kashaaya
74. Navakarshikam kashaaya
75. Kokilaakshaadi kashaaya
76. Laghumanjishtaadi kashaaya
77. Bruhanmanjishtaadi kashaaya
78. Varaasanadi kashaaya
79. Katukaamalakaadi kashaaya
80. Patolaadi kashaaya
The quantitative and qualitative intake conditions are specifically described in the texts. Pathyas to be followed for getting the expected results are also mentioned in the text. The period of storage, reheating, preservation methods, etc are clearly directed for each kashaaya. In many cases, the composition of the kashaya and the nature of additives are prescribed keeping the age, sex, other ailments of the patients and their general health conditions. However, many of these parameters are not adopted or followed when large quantity of kashaya is formulated in huge containers using modern equipments and techniques. The modern methods of kashaya preparation have their own advantages and disadvantages.
THE CHEMISTRY OF THYLAM / THE OIL EXTRACTS
The thylam preparations are (generally) used for external applications. Some of them are also used for internal application. In thylams, the medicinal principles of the raw drugs are directly or indirectly dissolved in the oils. These oils may be edible or non edible . Cleanliness/ purity of the drugs, good storage conditions, free from microbial and other contaminations are the pre-conditions satisfied in the preparation of the thylams. The quality of the oil/ghee is to be excellent, otherwise the peroxide formation, rancidity and hydrolytic degradation will result in the thylams.
There are two general methods for the preparation of the thylams either by directly heating the oil with the raw drugs after proper grinding or extracting the active principles of the drug with water or milk and then from that, the thylam is prepared. In the first method the active principles of the drug get dissolved in the oil and it is absorbed either externally or internally depending upon its application. In the second method, all the required heat and hydrolytic changes will be taking place when the raw drugs are extracted as kashaaya and from that concentrate, the active principles get dissolved into the oil.
Commonly used thylams are the following:
1. Dhaanwantharam thylam
2. Suddhabala thylam
3. Ksheerabala thylam
4. Chirabhanjanavimardhana thylam
5. Pinjaadi thylam
6. Kethakyaaadi thylam
7. Parinathakeraksheeraadi thylam
8. Devadaarubalaadi thylam
9. Balagulichyaadi thyalam
10. Kaarpaasaasthyaadi thylam
11. Kottamchukkadi thylam
12. Laakshaa thylam
13. Chandanaadi thylam
14. Aaranaalaadi thylam
15. Pindathylam
16. Mahalakshaadi thylam
17. Bhrungaalarkadi thylam
18. Thekarajaadi thylam
19. Panchavalkaadi thylam
20. Jeernapinyaakaadi thylam
21. Prasaraneethylam
22. Sahacharaadi thylam
23. Balaathylam
24. Dinesavalyaadi thylam
25. Naalpaamaraadi thylam
26. Kachoraadi thylam
27. Gulgulaadi thylam
28. Elaadi thylam
29. Nisoseeraadi thylam
30. Pullanyaadi thylam
31. Vilwampachotyaadi thylam
32. Karambhaadi thylam
33. Nonganaadi thylam
34. Vachadi thylam
35. Durddhuraadi thylam
36. Jeemoothaadi thylam
37. Neelabhrungaadi thylam
38. Neelanisaadi thylam
39. Vacholasoonyadi thylam
40. Nirghundirajanyaadi thylam
41. Thulaseeswarasaadi thylam
42. Thinthrineesarasaadi thylam
43. Thungadrumaadi thylam
44. Jaathyaadi thylam
45. Chandanaadi thylam
46. Maashaadi thylam
47. Kushtaanthakam thylam
48. Vajraka thylam
49. Mahavajra thylam
50. Thriphalaadi thylam
51. Asanavilwaadi thylam
52. Naagaraadi thylam
53. Manjishtadi thylam
54. Balahatadi thylam
55. Arimedaadi thylam
56. Punkhaadi thylam
57. Ramattadi thylm
58. Ajjadaadi thylam
59. Dinesa valyaadi thylam
60. Thilaadi thylam
61. Nagaraadi thylam
62. Anuthylam
63. Sahadevyaadi thylam
64. Vranaropana thylam
65. prasaarineethylam
These are the thylams explained in the sahasra yogam
CHEMISTRY OF GHRUTHA PREPARATIONS
Almost all the ghrutham preparation methods follow the similar unit operations adopted for the production of the thylams. However gruthams are prepared using ghee and in some cases ghee and oil. As explained in the thyla yoga there can be two methods for the preparation of ghruthams. Mixing the raw drugs, after sufficient grinding and sieving, and then directly heating with the ghee for the specified time under the specific temperature for the proper extraction of the active principles is the first method. The second method is preparing the extract using water or milk by continuously boiling the solution for the required time as directed in the kashaaya yoga/ and then mixing the kashaya with ghee and concentrating the mixture till the ghee becomes almost free from the water / moisture. The ghrutham, generally will have the colour and to some extent the flavour of the component drugs.
As mentioned for the thyla yogas, all the parameters for keeping the quality of the final product are to be maintained for getting the best ghrutham products . Since the ghrutham products are (generally) for consumption, additional care should be taken for maintaining the quality of the raw drugs and also that of the ghee.
Ghrutha preparations are to be processed carefully because the ghee contains large amount of lower chain fatty acids compared to any oil preparations ( thyla preparations). Presence of more water/moisture can cause obnoxious flavor for the product. The ghee does not have much antioxidant by itself. The plant oils do have toccopherols, carotenoids, etc for preservation as anti oxidants. Ghee is almost cent percent saturated fat where as the thyla preparations may contain high level of unsaturated fatty acids. The poly unsaturated fatty acid content in the sesame oil is very high and it is the oil commonly used for the thyla preparation, and it contains sesamol, sesamine etc which act as antioxidant for the protection of the oil preparations.
Ghrutham, will have significant amount of cholesterol whereas the plant products contain only phytosterols. The ayurvedic physicians have definitely demarked the qualities of the thylas and ghrutha products which do have scientific standing . As far as the digestion chemistry ( biochemistry of digestion) is concerned, since the ghee and butter have short chain fatty acids, the metabolic pathway of the degradation of these fatty acids are not as specified for the long chain fatty acids.
Common ghrutha preparations given in Sahasra yoga
1. Sukumara ghrutham
2. Mahakooshmaanda ghrutham
3. Kalyaana ghrutham
4. Glguluthikthaka ghrutham
5. Amruthapraasa ghrutham
6. Aswadamshtraadi ghrtham
7. Madhukaadi ghrutham
8. Dhaathryaadi ghrutham
9. Naagabalaadi ghrutham
10. Thikthaka ghrutham
11. Jeevanthyaadi ghrutham
12. Mahathikthaka ghrutham
13. Indukaantham ghrutham
14. Ikshudurvadi ghrutham
15. Panchamoolaadi ghrutham
CHEMISTRY OF ARISHTA AND AASAVA
The arishtas and asavas are the two complicated ayurvedic medicinal formulations. They are alcoholic fermented preparations produced using microorganism in a sugar/ jaggery/ honey/ grape/ fruit base. It is a complicated biotechnological process developed by ancient Indians. In arishta preparations, the alcohol formed during the fermentation slowly but steadily extracts the active principles from the powdered drug mixtures or extracts. Since the duration of fermentation is long, sufficient time is available for the concentration of the active principles in the solution.
There are a number of parameters which are to be strictly followed to avoid the contamination of the products and to keep the curative efficacy of the final product. The most important among these parameters is to examine that all the drug components are free from contaminating pathogenic organisms, which can be easily crept into anyone of the raw materials, sugar, honey or jaggery.
The raw drugs should have required level of fineness so that the alcoholic solvent can penetrate into the cells breaking open the cellular membranes to extract the active principles. The temperature of the fermentation should be kept at 39 - 41° C for efficient fermentation.
The vessel used for each unit operation should be clean with sufficient aeration. The ‘foreign microorganisms’ should strictly be prevented, failing which the product may contain deleterious fermented products like aldehydes and ketones . Correct pH is to be maintained to see that beneficial microbes are not destroyed and deviated from its expected role of producing alcohols . During fermentation nitrogen is to be fed so that the protein will be available for the microbes. Frequent removal of the fermented product give better aeration and stabilized pH, salts, etc for exuberant growth of organisms resulting in quality products.
In general the powdered drugs are mixed with required quantity of water and mixed with jaggery, sugar and honey. In some cases a part or whole of the drugs is boiled to get more medicinal extracts which is used as the source/ starting material for the fermentation.
The Common Arishtas and Asavas
described in Sahasra Yoga Test Book
1. Dasamoolaarishtam
2. Amruthaarishtam
3. Kutajaarishtam
4. Draakshaarishtam
5. Abhayaarishtam
6. Balarishtam
7. Devadaarvaarishtam
8. Asokaarishtamjeerakaarishtam
9. Khadirashtam
10. Karpoorasavam
11. Pippalyaaadi asavam
12. Punarnavaasavam
13. Usiraashtam
14. Aravindaarishtam
15. Patrangaasavam
CHEMISTRY OF LEHAS/ LEHYAS /RASAAYANAAS
The lehyas and Rasayanaas are semi solid, generally, pasty materials having both nutritious and curative effects. The product is generally prepared directly from the drug components after powdering them or cooking. The cooked/ powdered materials are mixed with jaggerry and heated slowly for a long time. The final product should have a semisolid/ solid honey type texture and appearance. Ghee, honey, spices etc are also added to the lehya / rasayana at the end of the preparations.
The active principles present in the raw drugs, with or without hydrolytic and pyrrolitic chemical changes get dissolved in the jaggery based rasayanam. Here the starch, protein and also the fat present in the raw materials give texture for the rasayana. Due to the presence of excess sugar of this product, faster absorption of the active principles may be taking place in the biological system because the sugar is known to get absorbed faster . However, available literature gives less information on the clinical study results on the active principles based curative effects of the lehya/ rasayana. Heat and water based changes of the rasayana / lehyas are inevitable because the final products are heated for a long duration for getting the actual paste like product. Inorganic chemicals/salts are also sometimes added as directed in rasachikitsa texts.
Lehas and Rasayanas given in Sahasra Yogam
1. Vilwaadileham
2. Kooshmaanda leham
3. Maanibhadra leham
4. Manibhadragulam
5. Pinchaadileham
6. Draakshaaadi leham
7. Thippalaadi rasaayanam
8. Thiruvruthaadi leham
9. Sataavarigulam
10. Aswagandhaadi leham
11. Ikshuraadi leham
12. Madhusnuhi rasaayanam
13. Vyoshaadi rasaayanam
14. Dasamoolaadi leham
15. Chitrakagulam
16. Agastyarasayanam
17. Kalyaanavaleham
18. Dantihareetakee leham
19. Madanakaameswara leham
20. Kutajaavalehyam
21. Lavangamaodakam
22. Kanchataavalehyam
23. Dasamoola gulam
24. Vyaaghraadi lehyam
25. Amruthagulgulu lehyam
26. Punarnavaadilehyam
27. Gandhakarasaayanam
28. Bhangeesarkara lehyam
29. Chyavanapraasam lehyam
CHEMISTRY OF GULIKA/ TABLETS YOGA.
As in the modern medicines, the use of tablets or gulika is common in the ayurveda from time immemorial. Generally the spherical tablets were prepared by hand in olden days. However now a days the ayurveic tablets resemble the modern medical tablets in size, shape and packing.
The starting material is almost similar to the choorna preparation. The choorna is mixed with a liquid or ghee/honey/lemon juice/boiled water/jaggery paste/salt/etc, and then converted into gulika by hand or by machine.
All the parameters advocated for the choorna preparation can be followed for the production of gulika too unless otherwise specified. The raw drugs should be clean, free from microorganism, deleterious materials, sufficiently coarse or fine after grinding and sieving. Generally the gulika will have very small size having diameter ranging from few millimeter to one or one centimeter and a half . The gulika can be consumed directly with water or after grinding and mixing with water.
THE COMMONLY USED GULIKA MENTIONED IN SAHASRA YOGA
1. Sooryaprabha gulika
2. Neelimoolaadi gulika
3. Mrudvikaadi gulika
4. Jwraankusam gulika
5. Ramabaanam of various types
6. Vaayugulika
7. Sethubandham gulika
8. Jaatikyaadi gulika
9. Paandivinu gulika
10. Nirooryaadi gulika
11. Vilwadi gulika
12. Kotaasarigulika
13. Kasturi bhooshanam gulika
14. Bhoopati gulika
15. Ananda bhairavam gulika
16. Naagaarjunam gulika
17. Neervaalasuddhi gulika
18. Mareechaadi gulika
19. Dantibeejaadi gulika
20. Raajavierachana gulika
21. Jwaraankusam gulika
22. Mahaajwaraankusam gulika
23. Seethanagaankusam gulika
24. Sarvajwaraharam gulika
25. Anandarasam gulika
26. Thaapajwaraharam gulika
27. Srvarogakulaanthakam gulika
28. Rogathrayaari gulika
29. Chandabhaskaram gulika
30. Neelakantarasam gulika
31. Gaganeswaram gulika
32. Jaatilingaadi gulika
33. Prchanda rasam gulika
34. Agnikumara rasam gulika
35. Sree sannipaata mruthyunjaya rasam gulika
36. Jwaramuraari rasam gulika
37. Soolakattaram gulika
38. Gulmakulanthakam gulika
39. Kanakasundaram gulika
40. Trigunarasam gulika
41. Thrilokyachintamani rasam gulika
42. Virechana gulika
43. Aanthrakutaaram gulika
44. Vasthyaamayaanthakam gulika
45. Marmagulika
46. Sirasthyodagulika
47. Poornachandra rasa gulika
48. Dasaangagulika
49. Bhiarudra rasam gulika
50. Soothikaari rasam gulika
51. Garbhachintaamany rasam gulika
52. Pradarari rasam gulika
53. Sleepadanthakarasam gulika
54. Aamavaathaari rasam gulika
55. Naraayanarasam gulika
56. Soolaanthaka rasam gulika
57. Bahumootraanthakarasam gulika
58. Hemanaatha rasam gulika
59. Mahaanandarasam gulika
Speciality of Ayurveda.
A Ayurveda is a traditional science for treating the patients equipping the body for fighting the diseases or physiological abnormality.
A Ayurvedic drug preparation processes have traditional technology and traditional message in them
A In the ayurvedic drugs, not only the active principles play the curative role but also other principles have very important role in building the health of the patient, for preparing the body to fight against the health problems.
A It may not be the same active principle in the raw drug working in the body when the kashaya, lehya, ghrutha and so on, are prepared from the raw drugs.
A Multiple chemical changes are possible in the final drug formulations/ products when raw drugs are heated/ processed at various temperatures, for different duration, with or without other (raw drug) ingredients.
A Pyrolitic and hydrolytic changes are taking place in majority of the processes at various conditions adopted for the production of the drugs.
A Maturity, storage, stage of collection, processing,….etc ( in short each and every unit operation ) will influence various components of the raw drugs and also the final products.
A Tracing one active principle in the raw drug may not be a very effective method to understand ayurveda, because the curative action may be due to the aggregate molecules of different nature, some of them may even be artifacts ( newly created during the processing.)
A Arriving at a ‘standard’ for the formal products, may not be possible by tracing the analyzing methods adopted for modern drugs. It may be possible to some extent only by adopting the a pathway to arrive at the quality of the products prepared by traditional methods and comparing it with the market samples .
A However, quality of the drugs produced by adopting modern technologies and those of the traditional products can be compared using modern technologies/ analytical tools/ instruments/ physico- chemical methods, etc
A Products prepared using the traditional raw drugs may give a product having different composition from that produced using the extracts of the respective raw drugs.
A The health conditions/ age/sex/body conditions etc., of the patients will have a strong bearing on the action of the ayurvedic drug on different patients. Hence in ancient times, drugs were prepared according to the health, age, sex, physiological conditions, etc of the patient. Rarely the same product is prescribed for all type patients having the same / similar diseases, even though the name of the drug will remain the same (composition may significantly vary).
A The clinical studies adopted for the modern drugs cannot be duplicated for the ayurvedic drugs, because in the former generally a single chemical, is present Tracing a single component from a multiple drug system is not possible in ayurveda.
A The thridosha siddhanta and its applications are the core of ayurveda, whereas in the modern medicine such principles are not significant nor existing.
A Pathyas are important in ayurvedic treatments
A Not merely curing a disease but improving the health is the prime target of Ayurveda.
A Destroying the pathogenic organisms is not sometime adopted but preparing the body to accomodate the pathogenic organism is also one of the targets.
A Antibiotics type of drugs are rarely used even though excellent knowledge on the pathogenic organism existed.
A Even though not adopted now a days, astrological parameters were also used in olden days for treating a patient.
A Spirituality and faith for the physicians are two important criteria adopted as the part of the healing.
A A strong feeling that ‘ I am going to become alright’ is given through different customs and rituals to the patients, in Ayurveda.
A Always positive thinking and optimism are the other two conditions stressed in ayurveda.
A Thus Ayurveda is Ayurveda which cannot be compared with any branch of existing medical science. Even translation of Sanskrit ayurvedic words into English is giving wrong messages and meanings. It is only natural that there may not be appropriate words in English to explain Ayurveda. Under such confusing situation only Sanskrit words should be used. Knowledge of many other parameters described in other Indian literature will be a great support to know Ayurveda theoretically and practically.
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PREPARATION OF RAW DRUGS IN AYURVEDA
Unlike any other medical system, the Ayurveda has many specialities, which once upon a time was thought as superstition. However when the modern phytochemical information and knowledge are getting piled up from a series of studies and systematic research, many of the indications and guidance given in the collection and processing of the raw drugs, in the ayurvedic texts, can be easily proved as scientific. They can be easily analysed based on the upto date knowledge on phytochemistry. Many of the guidance lines given in the literature can be justified as the requirement of the probable and possible chemical modification for the final drug formulations. Here an attempt is made to analyze those indications given in the ancient ayurvedic texts.
COLLECTION OF THE RAW DRUGS
Many paramenters are monitored while collecting, raw drugs for the ayurvedic preparations. Those guidance may directly be based most probably on the first hand experience of those scientists. In the Charaka samhita, the most authentic book on Ayurveda written in Sanskrit, it is mentioned that
Saakshaath anubhavair drushto na strutho na guru darsitha, lokaanaam upakaraaya ethath sarvam pradarsitham.
The message of the above lines : All the parameters for the collection of the raw drugs, what ever is mentioned in the ancient texts might have been arrived at through the experience of the ancient scientists. Not presented merely from the teachers or not presented as though it is told by someone. They are described for the benefit of the common people. From these lines it is clear that the directions are given based on their own experience and experiments.
There are variety of plant tissues used as raw drugs. They are roots, rhizomes, stems, barks, leaves, buds, flowers, raw fruits, ripened fruits, seeds, seed coats, etc. In some cases the latex or exudates are also used as raw drugs.
Instructions are given to monitor the maturity while collecting the drugs for the formulation preparation. The other parameters include the thickness, the age, possible content of the skin/carp, the direction of the growth of the root, the soil in which the plant is growing, etc. Similarly direction given for the collections of the barks is so clear that the maturity of the bark, the age of the tree, the dead cells present on the epicarp of the stem, the variety of the plant from which the barks are collected possible pith content in the bark, etc.
Instructions are given to select reasonably matured plants only for the stems unless otherwise specified. It should not have too much dead cells in the form of pith. It should be not too tender because the medicinal constituent or their precursors may not present upto the expected level.
Maturity of the leaves are clearly specified for getting the optimum quality expected for the final formulation. Maturity of the leaves, through the formation stage-deep green stage-yellowing stage-senescence stage-falling stage-dried leaves are the general choice for collection. All these types have their own advantages and disadvantages and depending upon the requirement, one has to select the leaves.
Buds of many plants are used in ayurvedic preparations. When compared to other parts of the plants, the buds used for the drugs preparations are less in number. However the quality of buds depends upon the maturity, size, the day of their formation and the number of days for blooming to flower, etc. Hence care should be taken for procuring the same.
The fruits are selected based on their maturity where the required maturity is specified. Very tender fruits will have an entirely different composition compared to the matured fruits. Even in the last stage of maturity of the fruits, the chemistry will be remarkably different. Hence while collecting the fruits of the plants, specification is essential. In many cases the fruits and seeds remain one and the same as the maturity wise. Here the fruit maturity has a direct bearing on the active principles of the seeds too.
It goes without telling that the plant seeds play very crucial role in many of the drugs / formulations. Sometimes the seeds may be the source of oil, protein, starch and in majority of the cases they may be the source of active principles. Almost all the studies carried out connected with the seeds, at different stages of their maturity, the active principles are proved varying significantly in them. Hence collection should have a firm bearing on the maturity of the drugs. However, if the requirement of the active principles are less for the final formulations, it can also be so monitored by using the less mature seeds.
As we have discussed variety of parameters which should be carefully monitored for the presence of required level active principles in them. Suggestions have also been given for the collection of the raw drugs based on the seasons. The climatic conditions do have direct bearing on the active principles of the roots, stems, leaves and flowers. Another important parameter is the time of collection of the plant tissue. For some of the buds and flowers which stay only for a day or two, the time of collection is very crucial. In some cases collection at the morning and at the evening make a lot of difference compared to the collection at noon or midnight. Yet another important parameter to be looked into while collecting the raw drugs is the infections/breakage/decay/spoilage etc., due to many reasons. Major reasons are the birds, pests, microbes, yeast, etc., These infections in the drugs can cause significant changes in the chemistry of the drug components. Hence all these parameters mentioned in the ayurvedic texts are to be looked into while collecting the drugs, wherever possible.
PLANT TISSUES USED FOR DRUGS
Roots or rhizomes : vetiver roots, kushta, priyanga, ambu, nalada, kopana, nata, rasa, aswagandha, turmeric, wild yam, bala, mustha, ginger, hrivera.
Wood and bark : surahwa, manjishta, loha, hima, devadara, yashitamadhu, Krishna agaru
Leaves : Tulsi, lotus, jasmine, tamarined leaves.
Buds : clove, buds or banyan tree, areca nut buds.
Flowers : coconut flowers, lotus
Fruits and seeds : Misis, red pepper, pippalli, cordiander, dill, cumin, fenugreek, cardamom.
Juice : Sanninayaka,
Latex : Tunshka, nalika, sajarasa, asafoetida
Grass / plant as such : sprik, lemon grass, ginger grass, nakha, sahachara,
General observations on the quality of the above raw drugs and their collection period.
A Tender roots will have minimum pith in it and the active principles will also be minimum in the root and bark, which generally are the carrier of the active principles.
A Immature plant tissues contain high amount of water and hence the active principles will be low and they will only be in the formation stage.
A Collection of tender roots will also be difficult as they are soft in nature and can break during the collection.
A Volatile oil content, alkaloids, etc will be practically absent in the roots when they are too tender.
A In the case of stem too the content of the active principles will be the highest when they are fully matured.
A The stem of the main trunk, branches and branchlets will also vary significantly due to different stages of their formation/maturity. Hence wherever optimum quality parameters are described corresponding maturity level has to be maintaned for the stem, particularly when the bark of the stem is utilized.
A In many drugs the bark is selected as in the case of cinnamon. For such types of raw drugs the bark should have sufficient maturity, thickness and minimum surface dead cells, for the proper chemical composition.
A Whenever the hard wood is utilized for the preparation of the drug, enough active principles can be expected only when the maturity is attained. Hence focus on the collection of stem should be given to see whether the stem is of primary/secondary or tertiary wood parts.
A Special types of stems like that of lotus, tinospora, etc., the maturity may not be as crucial as in other cases, like a banyan tree.
A It is well known that the cedar wood and sandal wood are not suffciently mature, they will not have any medicinal properties.
A Leaves are avaialble at different maturity, even though general stay period of the leaf can range between 20 to 60 days. Their volatile oil, carotenes, tocopherol, fiber content etc will be very low in the initial stages. Hence, depending upon the requirement of the active principles the leaves of required maturity is to be collected. In the case of clove leaves the qualitative and quantitative composition of mature leaves and tender leaves are significantly different. This will fetch a different effect altogether when used in the medicines. However the leaves of lotus, tulsi, cinnamon etc., may have the same composition at all maturity level.
A Buds and flowers may not have the required level of essential oil, polyhenols, aromatic components, alkaloids and other phytochemicals if they have not attained the required level of maturity.
A They are to be plucked in specific time of the day and season to maintain the quality of thier active principles.
A Fruits will have entirely different composition when they are tender from that of the mature ones. This can obviously be seen in the case of pepper, cardamom, gooseberry and for that matter any types of fruits.
A In fruits, majority of the cases, the tender fruit composition will be entirely different from that of the mature fruits. Hence depending upon the suggestion given in the authentic texts, the maturity for the collection should be decided. Due to the paucity of the raw drugs, generally adulterant & substituents etc., of the immature fruits are used for the drugs.
A Whatever guidances are mentioned above, for the fruits, the same are applicable for the seeds also. Particularly the seeds like castor, cardamom, gingly and variety of cereals, spices, etc., used in ayurvedic preparations, the maturiy is very crucial.
A Other than the above general statements, there can be specific cases also, which should be analyzed with the true spirit of modern science.
The seasons for the collections of the plant tissues and places of collection are also specifically guided. It has been proved by the modern methods that the variety of the plant grown at different locations do have different composition of the active principles. The plant grown in Himalayas, Vindyas and those grown in a raw field may vary significantly.
A The composition of the tissues when collected during rainy season will be vary from that of the winter or summer season. This shows that the season of collection has a direct bearing on the content of phytochemicals of the tissue.
A Thus the chemistry of collection of the raw drugs and the suggestions/directions/guidance given by the rishies agree.
DRYING AND STORING THE RAW DRUGS
Generally the drugs collected from their sources are dried or stored before they are used for the preparation of the final products. Other than this, different types of changes can take place in the cells.
Three major types of drying procedures are adopted. The first and the most important procedure particularly connected with tender tissues of the plants like, leaves, buds and flowers are shade drying, where direct sun light is not allowed to fall on the product.
The advantages of the shade drying and the chemistry:
A By this method the loss of volatiles will be minimum and the drug efficiency will be higher compared to other methods of drying. This is due to the fact that the temperature of the tissue is maintained at low level. When heating rate increases the moisture evaporates rapidly resulting in the breakage of the cells and escape of the volatiles with the water vapour.
A Shade drying prevents or reduces the changes of oxidative degradation of the drug components. For oxidative changes sunlight can act as a crucial parameter. The uv light, intense heat and also the free flow of air (wind) activates the oxidative changes in the components present particularly on the surface cells of the raw drugs.
A It prevents the bleaching of the tissues. It is well known that sunlight can bleach the colour particularly chlorophyll, carotene, polyphenols, etc. Even it can affect many micronutrient properties of the above and also the toccopherols. Thus protection of these micro nutrients can be effectively possible when the raw drugs are dried under the shade as specified in the ayurvedic texts.
A The in vitro enzymatic changes taking place during the drying process will be minimum when the moisture of the seed is removed slowly. The enzymatic activity takes place at the peak level when the temperature is at about 40 degree. If drying is done at a lower temperature, the possibility of enzymatic changes can be reduced significantly.
A Quality of the drugs can be maintained without further lowering even if the raw drugs is of the lower grade, when this method is adopted. Many substitutes/lower grade plant products like immature tissues, fallen leaves-fruits and seeds, infected plant parts, etc., undergo faster deterioration at higher temperature of drying.
The disadvantages of shade drying: The shade drying takes, more time, space, manpower for attaining a lower level of moisture contents in the drying process.
It also affects the quality of certain raw drugs in a different way. The moisture removal takes place slowly. Hence the storage time increases. During this period the chemical/enzymatic changes are possible in the stored tissues, particularly if the drug is tender bark, fruit or leaf. Higher rate of growth of microorganisms like fungus, microbes, virus, etc at higher moisture level for a long period is possible. Hence quick or direct sun drying or artificial drying is advocated for that type of drugs.
Depending upon the seasonal variations, the time taken for the shade drying may vary significantly. Hence during rainy season, faster drying either in the available direct sun light or using artifical devises is suggested.
Advantages and disadvantage of direct sun drying : It needs lesser time, manpower, storage space and economical paramenters. It can also maintain the quality of the drugs. But where the possibility of the loss of volatiles, bleaching of the fine components, etc are not expected there this method has disadvantage. However fermentation in fruity drugs like grapes, lemon, gooseberry, etc., is higher. Here maintaining lower temperature for drying is best. The quality of pepper, cardamon, cinnamon etc appeares to be very high when dried in the shade. Drying in the shade is of great importance for all spices, when the humidity in the atmosphere is low (like north Indian states). However care may be taken for adopting suitable methods of drying where humidity is high.
Advantages and disadvantages of direct or indirect heat drying: It is to be remembered that in olden days, heat drying was possible only by placing raw drugs above the fire wood, or on the surface where heat is available from the fire or directly heated on the heated vessel. Under all these conditions controlling the temperature is done arbitrarily. Hence, the possible chemical changes can also be predicted, when the temperature varies without control.
The advantage of the rapid heating for drying method is that, enzymatic in vitro changes can be arrested, the microbial infection and quality deterioration can be prevented. For prolonged storages this method gives better results as the moisture level can be definitely fixed at a known level below 6%. Space, time, manpower etc can be reduced, so it is economically beneficial too. This method may be opted provided other major quality parameters of the drugs are not affected, like loss of volatiles, colour, sudden heat based changes etc. In the modern systems controlled heating equipments are available and they have many well known results and merits.
STORAGE OF THE RAW DRUGS AND THE CHEMISTRY OF STORAGE
In olden days of Ayurveda, raw drugs are available in plenty and commercial production of the formulated drugs was not undertaken at the present level. Hence the storage problems were absent when compared to the present state of art.
Just like the collection paramenters influence the drugs quality, the storage parameters also influence the quality of the drugs. An excellent clean spacious storage house frequent removal of the deteriorated plant tissues, cleaning and removing the pests, avoiding the mixing of good quality drugs with decaying drugs, keeping different types of raw drugs in different spaces, controlled fumigation to get rid of microbial contaminations (important for the storehouses of fruits and sugar rich seeds) are advocated.
It can also fetch good result provided, the drugs are water washed (wherever possible) and dried prior to storage, so that the microganism which might have crept into the drugs can be removed before storing. The microganisms, pests, worms, etc can become a permanent disturbance if not taken care of before taking the drugs into the store houses.
Sufficient ventilation, frequent examination of the stored drugs, removal of olden stocks, surrounding hygiene, etc are to be monitored for keeping the quality of the raw drugs in the optimum level.
CHEMISTRY AND THE METHOD OF USING THE DRUGS.
The common forms of ayurvedic drugs are choornams, kashayams/ decoctions, paste with boiled jaggery lehyam, fermented products/ arishtas, aasavas, guikas/pills or tablets, thylam or oil extractions, ghruthas/ghee products, etc. According to experts each system has its merits. There are very clear, systematic, reproducible, processes for the preparation of these formulations. The proportion of the drugs, the level of grinding, time for the processing of the drugs, heating level, storing, etc. are also clearly mentioned for each drug. Even for the same class of drug formulations the processing parameters may vary significantly. A systematic analyses of the final product can give wonderful information, on the parameters selected for the drug preparation.
CHEMISTRY OF CHOORNAS
Generally raw drugs are finely powdered and mixed with sugar, salt or appropriate materials as advocated in the authentic texts for making the choornas. All the heat based or water based processing steps are avoided in the choornams. It is a way of directly consuming (eating) the raw drug in the powder form. Here the drug particles as such get digested and the active
principles are absorbed. In certain cases the choornams are boiled with water, or mixed with ghee/ honey or milk before taking.
Since heat based processing is avoided in choornams the microorganisms if present will remain as such. Hence the raw drug should be made free from all types of microorganism or deleterious materials/components. Deleterious plant parts should not be present in the products, if the final product is meant for internal use. The choornams are very effective remedies for many health problems due to the fact that the active principles are absorbed in the body without any pyrrolitic/ hydrolytic changes. Some of the choornams are directly applied on the skin also. Here the active principles are slowly absorbed through the skin.
Given below are the names of a few commonly used important choornams:
1. Yavaanyaadi choornam
2. Thaleesa patraadi choornam
3. Magadajaati choornam
4. Kaarpaasaasthyaadi choornam
5. Elaadi choornam
6. Jaateelavangaadi choornam
7. Katukaadi choornam
8. Karpooraadi choornam
9. Ashtachoornam
10. Thukaadi choornam
11. Gulasundi choornam
12. Thekakarajarasa choornam
13. Jeevanthyaadi choornam
14. Trikatuthriphalaadi choornam
15. Sarasijamakarandaadi choornam
16. Amruthaapippalyaadi choornam
17. Pushyaanugam choornam
18. Hutabrungaadi choornam
19. Sooranaadi choornam
20. Raja choornam
21. Kaankaayanamodakam choornam
22. Kayampurandaradi choornam
23. Vahnivajram choornam
24. Kushmaandorvarubeejaadi choornam
25. Akulee choornam
26. Vilangaraasnaadi choornam
27. Thrilavanapasuganadhaadi choornam
28. Hinkuvachaadi choornam
29. Hinkutawagaadi choornam
30. Mahavruksha lavana choornam
31. Ayorajonaagaraadi choornam
32. Naarachaka choornam
33. Pippalyadi choornam
34. Mandooravatakadi choornam
35. Kalyaana kshaara choornam
36. Vilangaadi choornam
37. Vishalaadi choornam
38. Navaayasam choornam
39. Naagaraadi choornam
40. Shardoola choornam
41. Vaiswanara choornam
42. Hapushaadi choornam
43. Varaahyaadi choornam
44. Pittaprasamana choornam
45. Krishnaadi choornam
46. Indrasani choornam
47. Ayaskaantaadi choornam
48. Gugulvaadi choornam
49. Yogaraja choornam
50. Saaraswata choornam
51. Naasikaachoornam
52. Avipathy choornam
53. Maashaaswagandhaadi choornam
54. Huthaasana choornam
55. Raasnaadi choornam
56. Kachooraadi choornam
57. Aswagandhaadi choornam
58. Kapithaashtaka choornam
59. Agnimukha choornam
60. Daadimaashtakam choornam
THE CHEMISTRY OF KASHAAYA
The kashaayas are the most important class of ayurvedic preparations. In many cases they are the final formulation. In some cases kashaayas are intermediate for the preparation of arishta, asava, rasayana, thyla and so on. Under all these conditions the aim of preparing the kashaaya/ decoction is to extract very systematically the active principles from the raw drugs. While preparing the kashaayas, a series of chemical changes known and unknown will be taking place in the extracts. There is a wrong understanding that kashaaya preparation is merely extraction of the active principles present in one or more components of the raw drugs directly. This wrong understanding has also lead to the direct use of plant extracts for the preparation of the final formulation. The kashaaya is a decoction prepared by adopting a series of processing parameters / unit operations.
The quantity of the raw drug components for kashayas is specifically described in various ways. Either as proportions, weights, lengths, volumes or arbitrarily selected amounts. Unless otherwise standardized, the use of a substitutes or extracts may not be as effective as the product obtained by adopting the method described in the ancient ayurvedic text books .
In the traditional method, the temperature of processing ( heating or warming )used to be controlled using the specific fuels or sand bath. This method indicates the temperature control for extraction, concentration, drying, roasting, etc. In some cases the duration of heat processing has also been specified directly or by way of reduction in the volume of the solution
Sometimes other additives are also mixed for improving the curative efficacy of the ayurvedic drugs . Some of the ayurvedic kashayaas are for purgation, vomiting, or sweating, etc and hence may not have direct curative effects.
Chemical changes during the preparation of kashaayas.
The raw drug components when heated with water two types of changes are taking places hydrolytic and pyrolitic changes. The hydrolytic changes include the conversion of esters into alcohols and acids, rearrangement in the chemical structure of the components, better dispersion in the water, removal of the volatile components with steam, imbibitions of the starchy materials, decomposition of the proteins into peptides, isomerization and structural changes in the active principles like carotenes, chlorophylls, vitamins, etc.
In kashaaya preparation, tracing the chemical changes of even the major components during heating is a complicated problem . A kashaaya is a multi drug- multi component system . Hence changes can be multi-facial.
Each chemical change is directly influenced by temperature/duration of heating /presence of additives/other components/ water/alkaline & acidic materials etc. Isomerization, decomposition, polymerization, etc can also take place depending upon the nature of heating.
In majority of the kashaaya preparations, the particle size of raw drug components has been specified indirectly using the words crushed /powdered / pressed / etc . They may be used as powder, crushed products, heated and powdered materials/ preextracted solutions, etc. Addition of components, duration of heating, etc., are also to be specific . Given below are the important kashaayas described in the sahasra yogam.
1. Mahoushadaadi kashaaya
2. Duraalabhaadi kashaaya
3. Dusparsakaadi kashaaya
4. Chirivilwaadi kashaaya
5. Chandanaadi kashaaya
6. Kulathati kashaaya
7. Devadaarvaadi kashaaya
8. Mustaakaranjaadi kashaaya
9. Charngaryaadi kashaaya
10. Chsaananthaadi
11. Dhaanyaadikashaaya
12. Pathyaadi kashaaya
13. Poothikaadi kashaaya
14. Dhaanyaadi kashaaya
15. Dasamoolaadi kashaaya
16. Vyaagryaadikashaaya
17. Bruhatyaadi kashaaya
18. Hareetakyaadi kashaaya
19. Aakulyaadikashaaya
20. Kathakaghadiraadi kashaaya
21. Nisaakatakaadi kashaaya
22. Vidangaadi kashaaya
23. Vyaghryaadi kashaaya
24. Varanaadi kashaaya
25. Nimbaadikashaaya
26. Mustachandanaadi kashaaya
27. Lasunaadi kashaaya
28. Nasoonairandadi kashaaya
29. Raasnaadi kashaaya
30. Saptasaram kashaaya
31. Kanaasathaahwaadikashaaya
32. Chitrakaadi kashaaya
33. Mulailaadi kashaaya
34. Nirgundyaadi kashaaya
35. Satavaryaadi kashaaya
36. Pathyaadi kashaaya
37. Erndadi kashaaya
38. Dasamoola panchakolaadi kashaaya
39. Nikumbaadi kashaaya
40. Punarnvaadi kashaayaa
41. Paasaadi kashaaya
42. Vyoshaadi kashaaya
43. Dvipanchamoolaadi kashaaya
44. Vaasaaguloochyaadi kashaaya
45. Nitambatwagaadi kashaaya
46. Gokshooraadi kashaaya
47. Patolaadi kashaaya
48. Kalakaadikashaaya
49. Jeevanthyaadi kashaaya
50. Sundeevalaadi kashaaya
51. Draakshaadi kashaaya
52. Chandraparpatakaadi kashaaya
53. Dvipanchamoolaadi kashaaya
54. Drakshaadi kashaaya
55. Khadeeraadi kashaaya
56. Kakotumbareekaadi kshaaya
57. Guloochyaadikashaaya
58. Sundyaadi kashaaya
59. Nirgundyaadi kashaaya
60. Vidangaadi kashaaya
61. Mustaadi kashaaya
62. Daadimaadikashaaya
63. Ashtavargam kashaaya
64. Dhanadanayanadi kashaaya
65. Prasaarinyaadi kashaaya
66. Rasonadi kashaaya
67. Sahacharaadi kashaaya
68. Gandharva hastaadi kashaaya
69. Maharaasnaadi kashaaya
70. Mahabalaadi kashaaya
71. Shataavaryaadi kashaaya
72. Rasnaerandaadi kashaaya
73. Vasaadi kashaaya
74. Navakarshikam kashaaya
75. Kokilaakshaadi kashaaya
76. Laghumanjishtaadi kashaaya
77. Bruhanmanjishtaadi kashaaya
78. Varaasanadi kashaaya
79. Katukaamalakaadi kashaaya
80. Patolaadi kashaaya
The quantitative and qualitative intake conditions are specifically described in the texts. Pathyas to be followed for getting the expected results are also mentioned in the text. The period of storage, reheating, preservation methods, etc are clearly directed for each kashaaya. In many cases, the composition of the kashaya and the nature of additives are prescribed keeping the age, sex, other ailments of the patients and their general health conditions. However, many of these parameters are not adopted or followed when large quantity of kashaya is formulated in huge containers using modern equipments and techniques. The modern methods of kashaya preparation have their own advantages and disadvantages.
THE CHEMISTRY OF THYLAM / THE OIL EXTRACTS
The thylam preparations are (generally) used for external applications. Some of them are also used for internal application. In thylams, the medicinal principles of the raw drugs are directly or indirectly dissolved in the oils. These oils may be edible or non edible . Cleanliness/ purity of the drugs, good storage conditions, free from microbial and other contaminations are the pre-conditions satisfied in the preparation of the thylams. The quality of the oil/ghee is to be excellent, otherwise the peroxide formation, rancidity and hydrolytic degradation will result in the thylams.
There are two general methods for the preparation of the thylams either by directly heating the oil with the raw drugs after proper grinding or extracting the active principles of the drug with water or milk and then from that, the thylam is prepared. In the first method the active principles of the drug get dissolved in the oil and it is absorbed either externally or internally depending upon its application. In the second method, all the required heat and hydrolytic changes will be taking place when the raw drugs are extracted as kashaaya and from that concentrate, the active principles get dissolved into the oil.
Commonly used thylams are the following:
1. Dhaanwantharam thylam
2. Suddhabala thylam
3. Ksheerabala thylam
4. Chirabhanjanavimardhana thylam
5. Pinjaadi thylam
6. Kethakyaaadi thylam
7. Parinathakeraksheeraadi thylam
8. Devadaarubalaadi thylam
9. Balagulichyaadi thyalam
10. Kaarpaasaasthyaadi thylam
11. Kottamchukkadi thylam
12. Laakshaa thylam
13. Chandanaadi thylam
14. Aaranaalaadi thylam
15. Pindathylam
16. Mahalakshaadi thylam
17. Bhrungaalarkadi thylam
18. Thekarajaadi thylam
19. Panchavalkaadi thylam
20. Jeernapinyaakaadi thylam
21. Prasaraneethylam
22. Sahacharaadi thylam
23. Balaathylam
24. Dinesavalyaadi thylam
25. Naalpaamaraadi thylam
26. Kachoraadi thylam
27. Gulgulaadi thylam
28. Elaadi thylam
29. Nisoseeraadi thylam
30. Pullanyaadi thylam
31. Vilwampachotyaadi thylam
32. Karambhaadi thylam
33. Nonganaadi thylam
34. Vachadi thylam
35. Durddhuraadi thylam
36. Jeemoothaadi thylam
37. Neelabhrungaadi thylam
38. Neelanisaadi thylam
39. Vacholasoonyadi thylam
40. Nirghundirajanyaadi thylam
41. Thulaseeswarasaadi thylam
42. Thinthrineesarasaadi thylam
43. Thungadrumaadi thylam
44. Jaathyaadi thylam
45. Chandanaadi thylam
46. Maashaadi thylam
47. Kushtaanthakam thylam
48. Vajraka thylam
49. Mahavajra thylam
50. Thriphalaadi thylam
51. Asanavilwaadi thylam
52. Naagaraadi thylam
53. Manjishtadi thylam
54. Balahatadi thylam
55. Arimedaadi thylam
56. Punkhaadi thylam
57. Ramattadi thylm
58. Ajjadaadi thylam
59. Dinesa valyaadi thylam
60. Thilaadi thylam
61. Nagaraadi thylam
62. Anuthylam
63. Sahadevyaadi thylam
64. Vranaropana thylam
65. prasaarineethylam
These are the thylams explained in the sahasra yogam
CHEMISTRY OF GHRUTHA PREPARATIONS
Almost all the ghrutham preparation methods follow the similar unit operations adopted for the production of the thylams. However gruthams are prepared using ghee and in some cases ghee and oil. As explained in the thyla yoga there can be two methods for the preparation of ghruthams. Mixing the raw drugs, after sufficient grinding and sieving, and then directly heating with the ghee for the specified time under the specific temperature for the proper extraction of the active principles is the first method. The second method is preparing the extract using water or milk by continuously boiling the solution for the required time as directed in the kashaaya yoga/ and then mixing the kashaya with ghee and concentrating the mixture till the ghee becomes almost free from the water / moisture. The ghrutham, generally will have the colour and to some extent the flavour of the component drugs.
As mentioned for the thyla yogas, all the parameters for keeping the quality of the final product are to be maintained for getting the best ghrutham products . Since the ghrutham products are (generally) for consumption, additional care should be taken for maintaining the quality of the raw drugs and also that of the ghee.
Ghrutha preparations are to be processed carefully because the ghee contains large amount of lower chain fatty acids compared to any oil preparations ( thyla preparations). Presence of more water/moisture can cause obnoxious flavor for the product. The ghee does not have much antioxidant by itself. The plant oils do have toccopherols, carotenoids, etc for preservation as anti oxidants. Ghee is almost cent percent saturated fat where as the thyla preparations may contain high level of unsaturated fatty acids. The poly unsaturated fatty acid content in the sesame oil is very high and it is the oil commonly used for the thyla preparation, and it contains sesamol, sesamine etc which act as antioxidant for the protection of the oil preparations.
Ghrutham, will have significant amount of cholesterol whereas the plant products contain only phytosterols. The ayurvedic physicians have definitely demarked the qualities of the thylas and ghrutha products which do have scientific standing . As far as the digestion chemistry ( biochemistry of digestion) is concerned, since the ghee and butter have short chain fatty acids, the metabolic pathway of the degradation of these fatty acids are not as specified for the long chain fatty acids.
Common ghrutha preparations given in Sahasra yoga
1. Sukumara ghrutham
2. Mahakooshmaanda ghrutham
3. Kalyaana ghrutham
4. Glguluthikthaka ghrutham
5. Amruthapraasa ghrutham
6. Aswadamshtraadi ghrtham
7. Madhukaadi ghrutham
8. Dhaathryaadi ghrutham
9. Naagabalaadi ghrutham
10. Thikthaka ghrutham
11. Jeevanthyaadi ghrutham
12. Mahathikthaka ghrutham
13. Indukaantham ghrutham
14. Ikshudurvadi ghrutham
15. Panchamoolaadi ghrutham
CHEMISTRY OF ARISHTA AND AASAVA
The arishtas and asavas are the two complicated ayurvedic medicinal formulations. They are alcoholic fermented preparations produced using microorganism in a sugar/ jaggery/ honey/ grape/ fruit base. It is a complicated biotechnological process developed by ancient Indians. In arishta preparations, the alcohol formed during the fermentation slowly but steadily extracts the active principles from the powdered drug mixtures or extracts. Since the duration of fermentation is long, sufficient time is available for the concentration of the active principles in the solution.
There are a number of parameters which are to be strictly followed to avoid the contamination of the products and to keep the curative efficacy of the final product. The most important among these parameters is to examine that all the drug components are free from contaminating pathogenic organisms, which can be easily crept into anyone of the raw materials, sugar, honey or jaggery.
The raw drugs should have required level of fineness so that the alcoholic solvent can penetrate into the cells breaking open the cellular membranes to extract the active principles. The temperature of the fermentation should be kept at 39 - 41° C for efficient fermentation.
The vessel used for each unit operation should be clean with sufficient aeration. The ‘foreign microorganisms’ should strictly be prevented, failing which the product may contain deleterious fermented products like aldehydes and ketones . Correct pH is to be maintained to see that beneficial microbes are not destroyed and deviated from its expected role of producing alcohols . During fermentation nitrogen is to be fed so that the protein will be available for the microbes. Frequent removal of the fermented product give better aeration and stabilized pH, salts, etc for exuberant growth of organisms resulting in quality products.
In general the powdered drugs are mixed with required quantity of water and mixed with jaggery, sugar and honey. In some cases a part or whole of the drugs is boiled to get more medicinal extracts which is used as the source/ starting material for the fermentation.
The Common Arishtas and Asavas
described in Sahasra Yoga Test Book
1. Dasamoolaarishtam
2. Amruthaarishtam
3. Kutajaarishtam
4. Draakshaarishtam
5. Abhayaarishtam
6. Balarishtam
7. Devadaarvaarishtam
8. Asokaarishtamjeerakaarishtam
9. Khadirashtam
10. Karpoorasavam
11. Pippalyaaadi asavam
12. Punarnavaasavam
13. Usiraashtam
14. Aravindaarishtam
15. Patrangaasavam
CHEMISTRY OF LEHAS/ LEHYAS /RASAAYANAAS
The lehyas and Rasayanaas are semi solid, generally, pasty materials having both nutritious and curative effects. The product is generally prepared directly from the drug components after powdering them or cooking. The cooked/ powdered materials are mixed with jaggerry and heated slowly for a long time. The final product should have a semisolid/ solid honey type texture and appearance. Ghee, honey, spices etc are also added to the lehya / rasayana at the end of the preparations.
The active principles present in the raw drugs, with or without hydrolytic and pyrrolitic chemical changes get dissolved in the jaggery based rasayanam. Here the starch, protein and also the fat present in the raw materials give texture for the rasayana. Due to the presence of excess sugar of this product, faster absorption of the active principles may be taking place in the biological system because the sugar is known to get absorbed faster . However, available literature gives less information on the clinical study results on the active principles based curative effects of the lehya/ rasayana. Heat and water based changes of the rasayana / lehyas are inevitable because the final products are heated for a long duration for getting the actual paste like product. Inorganic chemicals/salts are also sometimes added as directed in rasachikitsa texts.
Lehas and Rasayanas given in Sahasra Yogam
1. Vilwaadileham
2. Kooshmaanda leham
3. Maanibhadra leham
4. Manibhadragulam
5. Pinchaadileham
6. Draakshaaadi leham
7. Thippalaadi rasaayanam
8. Thiruvruthaadi leham
9. Sataavarigulam
10. Aswagandhaadi leham
11. Ikshuraadi leham
12. Madhusnuhi rasaayanam
13. Vyoshaadi rasaayanam
14. Dasamoolaadi leham
15. Chitrakagulam
16. Agastyarasayanam
17. Kalyaanavaleham
18. Dantihareetakee leham
19. Madanakaameswara leham
20. Kutajaavalehyam
21. Lavangamaodakam
22. Kanchataavalehyam
23. Dasamoola gulam
24. Vyaaghraadi lehyam
25. Amruthagulgulu lehyam
26. Punarnavaadilehyam
27. Gandhakarasaayanam
28. Bhangeesarkara lehyam
29. Chyavanapraasam lehyam
CHEMISTRY OF GULIKA/ TABLETS YOGA.
As in the modern medicines, the use of tablets or gulika is common in the ayurveda from time immemorial. Generally the spherical tablets were prepared by hand in olden days. However now a days the ayurveic tablets resemble the modern medical tablets in size, shape and packing.
The starting material is almost similar to the choorna preparation. The choorna is mixed with a liquid or ghee/honey/lemon juice/boiled water/jaggery paste/salt/etc, and then converted into gulika by hand or by machine.
All the parameters advocated for the choorna preparation can be followed for the production of gulika too unless otherwise specified. The raw drugs should be clean, free from microorganism, deleterious materials, sufficiently coarse or fine after grinding and sieving. Generally the gulika will have very small size having diameter ranging from few millimeter to one or one centimeter and a half . The gulika can be consumed directly with water or after grinding and mixing with water.
THE COMMONLY USED GULIKA MENTIONED IN SAHASRA YOGA
1. Sooryaprabha gulika
2. Neelimoolaadi gulika
3. Mrudvikaadi gulika
4. Jwraankusam gulika
5. Ramabaanam of various types
6. Vaayugulika
7. Sethubandham gulika
8. Jaatikyaadi gulika
9. Paandivinu gulika
10. Nirooryaadi gulika
11. Vilwadi gulika
12. Kotaasarigulika
13. Kasturi bhooshanam gulika
14. Bhoopati gulika
15. Ananda bhairavam gulika
16. Naagaarjunam gulika
17. Neervaalasuddhi gulika
18. Mareechaadi gulika
19. Dantibeejaadi gulika
20. Raajavierachana gulika
21. Jwaraankusam gulika
22. Mahaajwaraankusam gulika
23. Seethanagaankusam gulika
24. Sarvajwaraharam gulika
25. Anandarasam gulika
26. Thaapajwaraharam gulika
27. Srvarogakulaanthakam gulika
28. Rogathrayaari gulika
29. Chandabhaskaram gulika
30. Neelakantarasam gulika
31. Gaganeswaram gulika
32. Jaatilingaadi gulika
33. Prchanda rasam gulika
34. Agnikumara rasam gulika
35. Sree sannipaata mruthyunjaya rasam gulika
36. Jwaramuraari rasam gulika
37. Soolakattaram gulika
38. Gulmakulanthakam gulika
39. Kanakasundaram gulika
40. Trigunarasam gulika
41. Thrilokyachintamani rasam gulika
42. Virechana gulika
43. Aanthrakutaaram gulika
44. Vasthyaamayaanthakam gulika
45. Marmagulika
46. Sirasthyodagulika
47. Poornachandra rasa gulika
48. Dasaangagulika
49. Bhiarudra rasam gulika
50. Soothikaari rasam gulika
51. Garbhachintaamany rasam gulika
52. Pradarari rasam gulika
53. Sleepadanthakarasam gulika
54. Aamavaathaari rasam gulika
55. Naraayanarasam gulika
56. Soolaanthaka rasam gulika
57. Bahumootraanthakarasam gulika
58. Hemanaatha rasam gulika
59. Mahaanandarasam gulika
Speciality of Ayurveda.
A Ayurveda is a traditional science for treating the patients equipping the body for fighting the diseases or physiological abnormality.
A Ayurvedic drug preparation processes have traditional technology and traditional message in them
A In the ayurvedic drugs, not only the active principles play the curative role but also other principles have very important role in building the health of the patient, for preparing the body to fight against the health problems.
A It may not be the same active principle in the raw drug working in the body when the kashaya, lehya, ghrutha and so on, are prepared from the raw drugs.
A Multiple chemical changes are possible in the final drug formulations/ products when raw drugs are heated/ processed at various temperatures, for different duration, with or without other (raw drug) ingredients.
A Pyrolitic and hydrolytic changes are taking place in majority of the processes at various conditions adopted for the production of the drugs.
A Maturity, storage, stage of collection, processing,….etc ( in short each and every unit operation ) will influence various components of the raw drugs and also the final products.
A Tracing one active principle in the raw drug may not be a very effective method to understand ayurveda, because the curative action may be due to the aggregate molecules of different nature, some of them may even be artifacts ( newly created during the processing.)
A Arriving at a ‘standard’ for the formal products, may not be possible by tracing the analyzing methods adopted for modern drugs. It may be possible to some extent only by adopting the a pathway to arrive at the quality of the products prepared by traditional methods and comparing it with the market samples .
A However, quality of the drugs produced by adopting modern technologies and those of the traditional products can be compared using modern technologies/ analytical tools/ instruments/ physico- chemical methods, etc
A Products prepared using the traditional raw drugs may give a product having different composition from that produced using the extracts of the respective raw drugs.
A The health conditions/ age/sex/body conditions etc., of the patients will have a strong bearing on the action of the ayurvedic drug on different patients. Hence in ancient times, drugs were prepared according to the health, age, sex, physiological conditions, etc of the patient. Rarely the same product is prescribed for all type patients having the same / similar diseases, even though the name of the drug will remain the same (composition may significantly vary).
A The clinical studies adopted for the modern drugs cannot be duplicated for the ayurvedic drugs, because in the former generally a single chemical, is present Tracing a single component from a multiple drug system is not possible in ayurveda.
A The thridosha siddhanta and its applications are the core of ayurveda, whereas in the modern medicine such principles are not significant nor existing.
A Pathyas are important in ayurvedic treatments
A Not merely curing a disease but improving the health is the prime target of Ayurveda.
A Destroying the pathogenic organisms is not sometime adopted but preparing the body to accomodate the pathogenic organism is also one of the targets.
A Antibiotics type of drugs are rarely used even though excellent knowledge on the pathogenic organism existed.
A Even though not adopted now a days, astrological parameters were also used in olden days for treating a patient.
A Spirituality and faith for the physicians are two important criteria adopted as the part of the healing.
A A strong feeling that ‘ I am going to become alright’ is given through different customs and rituals to the patients, in Ayurveda.
A Always positive thinking and optimism are the other two conditions stressed in ayurveda.
A Thus Ayurveda is Ayurveda which cannot be compared with any branch of existing medical science. Even translation of Sanskrit ayurvedic words into English is giving wrong messages and meanings. It is only natural that there may not be appropriate words in English to explain Ayurveda. Under such confusing situation only Sanskrit words should be used. Knowledge of many other parameters described in other Indian literature will be a great support to know Ayurveda theoretically and practically.
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