History of Medicine
India’s Long-Standing Traditions

The principal system of traditional medicine in India developed from a set of early religious texts called the Ayurveda, which date to the early 1st millennium CE. The two most important texts are the Carakasamhita and the Susrutasamhita, supposedly the works of the sages Caraka and Susruta. Both reflect a theoretical perspective in which the body tissues are the product of three humors. Kapha, or phlegm, is composed of the elements earth and water. Pitta, or bile, represents fire and water. Vata, or wind, is from air and space. As in the Chinese tradition, illness results from an imbalance of humors, and treatment aims to restore balance.

Both treatises describe the causes and symptoms of numerous diseases. Listed treatments include a balanced diet, plant and animal remedies, enemas, applications of substances such as cow dung and urine, the application of leeches for blood letting, and manipulation of the bones (to treat fractures). Incantations and other magical practices were also recommended. The Susrutasamhita is particularly interesting because it includes a section on surgical procedures. Indeed, its supposed author, Susruta, is sometimes considered "the father of surgery." The work describes 120 surgical instruments and 300 procedures, including cataract surgery on the eyes, nose reconstructions, bladder surgery, caesarian births, and hernia surgery. Surgical wounds were closed with stitches as well as cauterization.

Despite the detailed information on surgery in the Susrutasamhita, the practice did not survive long as part of traditional Indian medicine. The reasons are not clear. Increasingly rigid taboos against physical contact among the castes and between the sexes may have played a role. In addition, new noninvasive diagnostic techniques that did not involve extensive touching were introduced. Pulse-taking and examination of the tongue and urine became standard.

Image courtesy of P. Kurup, World Health Organization. A patient undergoes Ayurvedic massage, given by the practitioner’s feet.		Image courtesy of A.S. Kochar, World Health Organization. The young girl is given an oil bath by Ayurvedic doctors as part of the treatment for rheumatoid arthritis.

Ayurveda and other native medical traditions continued to exist even after Islamic invaders introduced other medical practices starting in the 11th century. Western medicine was brought in by British rulers in the 18th century. Ayurvedic medicine declined under the British but received new encouragement after Indian independence in 1947. The Indian government supports a number of Ayurvedic training colleges. The students also receive basic training in modern medicine, family planning, and public health.

India’s traditions likely influenced, and were influenced by, other cultures in relative proximity, including ancient Greece. The concept of humoral medicine also took hold there.