The Classical Doctrine of Indian Medicine: Its Origins and its Greek Parallels c7.s2.82

c7.s2.82

There is yet another contrast between the Avestan and Indian nomenclatures of skin-diseases. In effect, the Avestan druka has been identified with the Sanskrit dadruka.¹ In the two words—ka represents a suffix and dadruka is more usually found in the form of dadru. In Vedic neither dadru nor dadruka is found, but beginning from Suśruta, dadru is referred to in medical texts. This author describes it conjointly with the pauṇḍarīka: “The pauṇḍarīkas have the aspect of the leaves of blue lotus, the dermatose dadrus have the colour of the flower of flax or are of copper colour; they are serpiginous and pustulous. The traits common to both are the elevation, the circularity, the pruritus and the slow rate of evolution.² These indications do not allow to identify the diseases in question, these can be those of several different dermatoses.³