Ashtangasamgraha 18

English (machine translation) 18

Language: English

18.1

Now we shall explain the chapter on the classification of tastes. / Thus spoke the great sages led by Ātreya. / Thus spoke the great sages led by Ātreya. / Thus spoke the great sages led by Ātreya.

Taste is indeed watery and initially unmanifest. / Because time has six seasons, when joined with deficient or excessive qualities of the great elements, transformed unevenly, it changes into six distinct forms by division into sweet and the others. / A kuḍava of pomegranate juice, half a kuḍava of coriander, one-eighth [kuḍava] of pippalī, and a pala each of dry ginger and citraka, made into a paste together, cooked with an āḍhaka of water and twenty palas of clarified butter: this dispels heart disease, anemia, abdominal swelling, splenic disease, hemorrhoids, asthma, cough, impaired vāta, and afflictions of vāta and kapha, kindles the digestive fire, and is commended for barren women and those with difficult labor. / Piercing pain, throbbing, and tearing in the temples, eyes, brows, forehead, and mouth.

18.3

Among them, the sweet taste is from the predominance of earth and water; / the sour from earth and fire; / the salty from water and fire; / the bitter from wind and ether; / the pungent from wind and fire; / the astringent from wind and earth. / It destroys anemia, jaundice, bleeding disorders, fever, burning sensation, menorrhagia, eruptions, swelling, and fistula-in-ano. / Opening and closing the eyes with difficulty, like the crawling of insects.

18.4

Among them, the sweet, when tasted, coats the mouth, clarifies the sense faculties, / gladdens the body, / and is exceedingly dear even to bees, ants, and the like. / The sour agitates the tongue, burns the chest and throat, / causes salivation, contracts the eyes and brows, and sets the teeth on edge and hair on end. / The salty causes fluid to flow in the mouth, burns the throat and cheeks, and stimulates relish for food. / The bitter cleanses the mouth, clears the throat, and impairs the tongue. / The pungent severely agitates, causes tingling at the tip of the tongue, causes secretions from the throat and cheeks, and burns the mouth, eyes, nose, and body. / The astringent numbs the tongue, binds the throat, and oppresses the heart. / And again, one should have [the patient] drink unctuous cow's or buffalo's milk mixed with urine for half a month; / or boiled with long pepper; / or triphalā prepared with urine; / or harītakī made into a paste with urine for seven days; / or roots of svarṇakṣīrī, bhadradāru, dry ginger, śyāmā, and trivṛt decocted with that same [urine]; / or milk boiled with these. / And pacification by unctuous and hot measures; ophthalmia that is neglected,

18.5

There, the sweet taste, because it is wholesome from birth onward, increases all bodily tissues, promotes longevity, is beneficial for the young, the aged, the wounded, the emaciated, and for strength, complexion, the sense faculties, skin, hair, and throat, produces pleasure, is nourishing, vitalizing, refreshing, promotes stability and union, promotes breast milk, pacifies vāta, pitta, poison, burning sensation, fainting, and thirst, and is unctuous, cold, soft, and heavy. / This dispels anemia, jaundice, fever, anorexia, abdominal swelling, abdominal distension, āmavāta, bleeding disorders, cough, and asthma. / And the forehead, eyes, eyebrows, and surrounding areas are churned as if by fire-drills.

18.6

Though possessing such qualities, when always consumed in excess, it produces obesity, depression of the digestive fire, heaviness, alasaka, loss of sensory power, / asthma, urinary disorders, throat diseases, loss of consciousness, sweetness in the mouth, eye and throat tumors, and cervical lymphadenitis; / diverse forms arise, and an ulcer on the pupil that destroys vision.

18.7

It brings about vomiting, urticaria, head diseases, cough, chronic rhinitis, intestinal worms, filariasis, fever, abdominal enlargement, and spitting. / And immediately afterward, one should prepare pills; / these, taken habitually with a buttermilk vehicle, are a supreme medicament for those suffering from anemia, swelling, hemorrhoids, skin diseases, jaundice, urinary disorders, splenic disease, and afflictions of vāta and kapha. / Severe pain, non-sliminess, redness, swelling, contracting the eye, / shedding tears all around—it is called anyatovāta.

18.8

The sour [taste] subdues vāta, promotes downward movement [of bodily wastes], causes burning in the abdomen, produces bleeding disorders and pitta, is hot in potency, cold to the touch, and awakens the sense faculties.

It is appetizing, digestive, kindles the digestive fire, nourishing, saturating, pleasing, moistening, diffusive, light, unctuous, and good for the heart.

Taken according to one's digestive fire by one eating a soup of horse gram and the like, it is equal to the previous one;

and it destroys consumption, poisons, irregular fever, cough, dyspnea, and epilepsy.

18.9

Used in excess, it produces in the body flaccidity, liquefaction of kapha, itching, pallor, and impairment of vision;

it causes erysipelas originating from wounds, bleeding disorders, thirst, swelling even in emaciated persons due to its fiery nature, and giddiness.

Taken with an after-drink of any of pomegranate water, milk, meat-juice, water, surā, or āsava, [these pills] called 'Vajra' destroy, like a thunderbolt, the aforementioned diseases,

as well as heart disease, throat disease, artificial poison, abdominal enlargement, menorrhagia, fistula-in-ano, abdominal swelling, enlargement of the scrotum, and disorders of semen and urine.

Internal moisture, hot and yellow tears, redness, seeing things as yellowish,

and an eye having the sensation of being washed with caustic alkali or wounded—such are the symptoms of pitta-conjunctivitis.

18.10

The salty [taste] dispels stiffness, obstruction, and accumulations; counteracts all tastes; kindles the digestive fire, is appetizing, digestive, moistening, drying, oleating, sudorific, laxative, cutting, mobile, diffusive, and relaxing; it removes vāta, liquefies kapha, clears the bodily channels, is not overly heavy, and is unctuous, sharp, and hot.

When it has become like a linctus and cooled down, one should add a prastha of honey;

and having powdered three karṣas of the three aromatics, stirring it with a ladle, one should store it in an earthen jar scented with jasmine flowers and the like.

This grape linctus, when used, forcefully sweeps away—like the wind does clouds—anemia, heart disease, jaundice, chlorosis, fever, abdominal swelling, abdominal enlargement, swelling, upward movement of vāta, and other diseases curable by purgation.

In adhimantha the eye undergoes [the same], whereas in an effusion arising from kapha:

18.11

Alopecia, premature graying, thirst, burning sensation, fainting, erysipelas, swelling, kiṭibha, spasm and obstruction of the trunk, and bleeding disorders;

it increases wounds, poisons, and intoxication, causes gout, and destroys strength and vital essence when excessively consumed.

As an after-drink: water boiled with the five roots when vāta is predominant;

prepared with mustā, hrībera, and dry ginger when pitta is predominant;

in the case of śleṣman: ariṣṭas, sīdhu, and wine or fermented liquor made from grapes;

or buttermilk in all cases.

Heaviness, great swelling, itching, sleepiness, aversion to food,

and discharge of thick, unctuous, copious, white, and slimy crusts and tears;

18.12

The bitter [taste], not appetizing in itself, cures anorexia, poisons, parasites, fainting, nausea, fever, burning sensation, thirst, skin disease, and itching; dries up moisture, fat, muscle fat, marrow, feces, urine, pitta, and śleṣman; kindles the digestive fire, is digestive, scraping, clears breast milk and the throat, enhances intelligence, is not excessively dry, is cold, and is light.

Twenty-five palas of varā,

five of grape, and seven of balā are boiled in a droṇa of water to a quarter remaining; taking their decoction, when strained and cooled, one adds a tulā of sugar, a prastha of honey, and powdered vyoṣa, vyāghranakha, uśīra, areca nut, elāvāluka, kuṣṭha, and madhuka, each in the measure of a karṣa; having placed it all together in a vessel smeared with ghee, one should keep it inside a heap of barley for ten nights in summer, or for twenty nights in the cold season.

This Bījakasārāriṣṭa destroys anemia, jaundice, urinary disorders, heart disease, gout, irregular fever, anorexia, cough, and dyspnea.

Excessive salivation, fullness of the nose, and the eye feeling as if filled with dust;

18.13

Decline of the bodily tissues and strength, fainting, exhaustion, giddiness, vāta-disorders, and roughness [of the body]—

[these] it causes through its rough, clear, and dry nature when excessively consumed.

Half a tulā of daśamūla, half a prastha each of triphalā and kuṭaja bark;

a kuḍava each of mustā, marking nut, kṛmighna, and indrayava;

a pala each of pāṭhā, dantī, madhurasā, rāsnā, śaṭhī, and citraka;

and half a prastha of grapes: having boiled these in sixteen times as much water down to a quarter remaining, one should take the decoction.

When strained and cooled, mixed with two tulās of sugar candy, a prastha of iron powder, half a prastha of finely ground pippalī, a pala of granthika, and half a pala each of black pepper, viḍaṅga, and elavāluka, one should deposit it into a ghee-smeared pot.

Left standing for a month, this Gaṇḍīrāriṣṭa has greater qualities than the previous one,

and it destroys tumors, growths, and parasites.

In a flow of blood, the eye exhibits the symptoms of an effusion with pitta:

18.14

The pungent [taste] remedies indigestion with stagnation, swelling, urticaria, obesity, conjunctivitis, parasites, diseases of the mouth, poisons, skin disease, and itching; reduces ulcers, dries up unctuousness and moisture, is appetizing, digestive, kindles the digestive fire, scraping, purifying, dries food, sharpens the senses, breaks up blood accumulations, severs obstructions, opens the bodily channels, diminishes śleṣman, and is light, dry, sharp, and hot.

Then, having left it in a heap of barley for a fortnight, one should drink it according to one's strength.

This Mastvariṣṭa cures anemia, urinary disorders, obesity, excess fat, piles, digestive disorders, spleen enlargement, swelling, abdominal enlargement, and fistula-in-ano,

and it is the foremost kindler of the digestive fire.

With redness like the bandhūka flower, it suffers from darkness, cannot bear touch,

resembles a nimba fruit submerged in blood, is black, and vision appears like fire;

18.15

Consumed in excess, it produces thirst, intoxication, fainting, vomiting, confusion, and prostration of the body,

as well as drying of strength, semen, and throat, trembling, giddiness, burning, distress, and extreme emaciation.

The course of treatment that has been prescribed for the pacification of anemia

should be adapted by a wise physician in accordance with the strength of the respective doṣas.

They produce severe pain in the temples, teeth, elbows, and skull;

18.16

A very severe aggravation of vāta in the hands, feet, flanks, back, and other parts,

with contraction, pricking pain, and tearing, due to the predominance of wind and fire qualities.

In that caused by śleṣman, [use medicines that are] pungent, dry, and hot; in one caused by all three doṣas, a combination.

The eyelids and eyes become dry and rough, with difficulty in opening and closing them;

18.17

The astringent [taste] quickly destroys kapha along with pitta and blood, binds the stool, is very dry,

heavy, restores the normal color of the skin, dries moisture, is cold, pleasing, healing, and scraping.

In a purified abdomen, however, one should administer medicated ghees that impart strength.

This has been declared as dryness of the eye; swollen, it is caused by the three waste products.

18.18

From excessive habituation, even that causes suppression of semen, thirst, distension, stiffness, sluggish digestion, emaciation,
obstruction of bodily channels, retention of flatus, feces, and urine, and diseases such as hemiplegia and convulsions.
Mustā, iron filings, pāṭhā, viḍaṅga, and devadāru;

18.19

Now, the sweet group: ghee, honey, oil, milk, muscle-fat, marrow, sugarcane products, grapes, walnuts, dates, moca, coca, jackfruit, siñcatikā, priyāla, rājādana, wild date, palmyra heart, kāśmarya, madhūka, parūṣaka, tāmalakī, vīrā, vidārī, śatāvarī, tugākṣīrī, jīvaka, ṛṣabhaka, kṣīraśuklā, madhūlikā, ātmaguptā, balā, atibalā, viśvadevā, sahadevā, śālaparṇī, mudgaparṇī, pṛśniparṇī, māṣaparṇī, mahāsahā, kṣudrasahā, ṛddhi, vṛddhi, śrāvaṇī, chatrā, atichatrā, ṛṣyaproktā, aśvagandhā, aśvadaṃṣṭrā, lotus fibre, puṣkara seeds, śṛṅgāṭaka, kaśeru, kataka, kanaka, bimbī, prapauṇḍarīka, and so on, the jīvanīya group, and the group of five grasses.
It quickly pacifies all disorders caused by eating earth,
likewise with filaments [of saffron or nagakesara], liquorice, pippalī, milk, and śādvala.

18.20

The sour group of substances: pomegranate, āmalaka, mango, āmrātaka, kośāmra, citron, vṛkṣāmla, tamarind, amlavetasa, kuvala, lakuca, pārāvata, bhavya, karamarda, dhava, dhanvana, kola, badara, airāvata, kapittha, dantaśaṭha, prācīnāmalaka, orange, tilakaṇṭaka, rūpya, curd, whey, buttermilk, sour gruel, alcoholic drink, fermented wash, and so on.
With viḍaṅga, ativiṣā, pāṭhā, and neem shoots;

18.21

The salty group of substances: rock salt and the like, ending with alkaline salts, tin, lead, and so on.
Medicine is to be administered according to the variation of earth and the following doṣas.
Smeared with kapha, dark, white, with excessive exudation and redness,
burning sensation, obstruction of vision, and fluctuating pains;

18.22

The bitter group of substances: agaru, tagara, uśīra, bālaka, sandalwood, nalada, kṛtamāla, naktamāla, apāmārga, the two turmerics, mustā, mūrvā, madanaphala, ajāśṛṅgī, trāyamāṇā, kaṭukā, kirātatikta, karavīra, viśālā, suṣavī, ativiṣā, yavāsa, jyotiṣmatī, pāṭhā, vikaṅkata, arka, kākamācī, vacā, varaṇa, vatsaka, vaijayantī, vetasa, saptaparṇa, somavalka, sumanas, bell-metal, iron, and so on, and the paṭola group of vegetables.
A prastha of ghee prepared with the decoction of one hundred pathyā fruits and the paste of fifty pathyā stalks
conquers abdominal swelling, jaundice, and anemia.
Ascended to the eye through the vessels, it turns [the eye] dark-red.

18.23

The pungent group of substances: black pepper, asafoetida, tejovatī, hastipippalī, viḍaṅga, marking-nut kernel, radish, mustard, garlic, onion, karañja, realgar, orpiment, devadāru, kuṣṭha, cardamom, surasā, coraka, hareṇukā, urine, bile, and so on, the kuṭhera group of green herbs, and the group of five pungent spices.
A prastha of ghee boiled in the same manner conquers spleen disease and swelling.
These are said to be the sixteen generalized diseases dwelling in the sourness;

18.24

The astringent group of substances: harītakī, priyaṅgu, anantā, honey, lodhra, kaṭphala, dhava, dhanvana, dhātrī fruit, dhātakī flowers, padmā, padmaka, lotus flower, nāgakesara, kumuda, utpala, tuṅga, tinduka, kadamba, udumbara, jambū, mango, plakṣa, vaṭa, bibhītaka, vikaṅkata, kernels of jambū and mango, unripe kapittha, aśvattha, mocarasā, samaṅgā, somavalka, saptaparṇa, syandana, asana, sallakī, sāla, palmyra, priyāla, elāvāluka, paripelava, jiṅgiṇī, badarī, khadira, kadara, arimeda, kāśa, kaśeruka, bamboo, aśmantaka, aśoka, śirīṣa, śiṃśapā, palāśa, śamī, śṇa, conch navel, meṣaśṛṅgī, young date, sphūrjaka, bhūrja, arjuna, ajakarṇa, varaṇa, priyāla, pearl, añjana, red ochre, lotus rhizome, lotus stalk, and so on.
It removes jaundice, abdominal swelling, anemia, fever, urinary disorders, and abdominal enlargements;

18.25

There, the sweet is generally phlegm-producing, except for aged śāli-rice, barley, wheat, mudga-beans, honey, sugar, and meat from arid tracts;
the sour is generally pitta-producing, except for pomegranate and āmalaka;
the salty is generally non-beneficial to the eyes, except for rock salt;
the bitter and the pungent are generally vāta-producing and non-aphrodisiac, except for amṛtā, paṭolī, dry ginger, long pepper, and garlic;
the astringent is generally cold and arresting, except for harītakī.
Buffalo ghee mixed with milk is excellent for removing jaundice.
That arising from blood likewise kills in three nights; that caused by pitta, through improper conduct, [kills] immediately;

18.26

Thus, in a general way, is the summary of the most important substances that are in daily use.
In the decoction of five palas of dārvī, with kālīyaka as paste, it is superior;

18.27

Ghee, āmalaka, rock salt, paṭolī, dry ginger, and abhayā
are the best in their respective groups. The habitat of tastes, however, will be described.
Prepared in a decoction of kālīyaka along with turmeric, it is beneficial in the later [stage];

18.28

Now, that which has cool winds and mountains, is strewn with various dense forests, rivers, lakes, ponds, reservoirs, blue and white water-lilies, and lotuses, is delightful, has firm and unctuous soil, abundant green grass, trees covered with far-spreading creepers and shoots, is full of crops, reptiles, and birds, is dominated by phlegm and pitta, has heavy medicinal herbs and water, and is an inhabited region afflicted with diseases such as elephantiasis, neck diseases, apācī, and fever—that is the marshy region, the source of the sweet taste.
One should administer [the paste of] a bilva fruit's size with the three pungents, which dispels jaundice;

18.29

On the other hand, that which has an abundance of rugged and vast sandy grounds, very deep and tasteless water, and whose population generally tolerates hardships, has disease-free bodies, lives long, and is free of marshiness—that is the arid region, the source of the pungent taste.
From these very [regions], the marshy-intermediate and the arid-intermediate are to be differentiated.
Of those two, the first is the source of the salty and sour tastes, and the other of the other two.
The combinations of these [tastes], however, are fifty-seven.
And on this there are [the following verses]:
One should administer the powder of kumbha with honey or with the juice of the three fruits,
or tribhāṇḍī with sugar, or gavākṣī;

18.30

In combinations of two, the sweet enters into five, the sour into four, the salty into three,
the bitter into two, and the pungent into one; they are just fifteen.
Every morning, mixed with honey, one should administer it to the person afflicted with jaundice;

18.31

In combinations of three, sweet combined with sour has four, with salty
it enjoys three, with bitter two, and with pungent one.
When pitta has its pathway blocked by kapha, one should overcome it with kapha-pacifying remedies.

18.32

Sweet has ten [combinations] thus; sour has six; the procedure is as before.
Salt partakes in three, bitter in one; thus there are twenty.
When vāyu, thoroughly mixed with kapha, throws pitta outward,

18.33

In groups of four, sweet has six, sour has three; followed by salt,
combined with bitter it has one; the sweet taste has ten.
There would be flatulence with gurgling and constipation, and a heavy feeling in the heart.

18.34

Sour has four and pungent has one; thus fifteen varieties [of four-taste combinations].
By leaving out one by one, there are six combinations in groups of five.
Gradually, when pitta, residing in the peripheral tissues, is attached to a mild [degree],

18.35

And one consists of all six tastes; and six singly; thus there are sixty-three kinds.
Due to [their distinction as] primary and secondary tastes, and through calculating their relative degrees,
these varieties of tastes become beyond count; they should be employed according to the doṣas and medicines.
One should feed [the patient] with soups prepared from dried radish and prepared from horse gram.

18.35_1

Thus ends the eighteenth chapter.

Linked texts (1)

Aṣṭāṅgasaṃgraha — Vāgbhaṭa, Sanskrit