Prachin Bharate Chikitsabijnan by Dr Shyamal Chakraborty [Hardcover]

Compared to other branches of science, ancient India made remarkable progress in the field of medicine. Foundational texts of Indian medical science, such as the *Charaka Samhita* and *Sushruta Samhita*, were created. "Charaka" and "Sushruta" were probably not individual names but rather collective identities for groups of ancient itinerant physicians and surgeons. In defiance of the rigid Brahmanical caste divisions, the wandering physicians and surgeons of ancient India advanced medical science through the dark ages, leading it toward the light of knowledge, long before the dawn of the modern era. With intense dedication, sharp investigative skills, and tireless mobility, these fearless travelers of light ultimately succeeded in establishing the foundation of Indian medicine. That foundation is Ayurveda, which is by no means the "fifth Veda." Through exchanges with Buddhist physicians and the indigenous forest-dwellers, a rich repository of knowledge in Indian medicine was created. Naturally, the rigid Brahmin elite could not accept such progress in Indian medical science. Physicians were declared "impure" for treating "lower caste" individuals. In the face of religious narrow-mindedness, Indian physicians tried to protect the knowledge they had gained by all means possible. The details of these struggles and developments are explored in depth in this book. This is the first comprehensive research work in the Bengali language on the medical science of ancient India.