The Classical Doctrine of Indian Medicine: Its Origins and its Greek Parallels c15.102

c15.102

Under these conditions it was, therefore, very easy for the Indians to have knowledge of the Mesopotamian teachings in medicine, like that of the manual published by Mr. Labat and which was in circulation, during the reign of Artaxerxes in 453 B.C. In this case, the hypothesis that the teachings regarding presages and medical prognostics having a place of its own in Sanskrit texts, and resembling that of the Accadian texts, owe this resemblance like this situation in Sanskrit medical tradition, to an influence of the Accadian manual exerted in those very centuries when this medical tradition developed into a classical system and that it is not due to a chance encounter, may be admitted as very likely. The hypothesis of chance encounter is the least likely when it is seen that an Accadian manual current among the Persians, has its counter-parts during their epoch or during the following epoch in the countries which were part of the Persian empire, i.e., Hellenic in the West and Indian in the East.