Studies in the Medicine of Ancient India, Part I: Osteology, or the Bones of the Human Body c6.s1.t1: § 4. The genuine Recension of Charaka

Studies in the Medicine of Ancient India, Part I: Osteology, or the Bones of the Human Body c6.s1.t1

Language: English

§ 4. The genuine Recension of Charaka

c6.s1.t1.1

The genuine traditional recension of the statement of Charaka on the bones of the human body runs as follows (Original Text in § 71):

‘The body consists of the following parts (aṅga): the two arms (bāhu), the two legs (sakthi), the head and neck (śiro-grīvā), and the trunk (antarādhi). These make up the sexipartite (ṣaḍaṅga) body. Inclusive of the teeth and nails, it has three hundred and sixty bones. These are
1. 32 teeth (danta).
2. 32 sockets (ulūkhala) of the teeth.
3. 20 nails (nakha).

c6.s1.t1.3

4. 60 phalanges (*aṅguli*) in the hands and feet.
5. 20 long bones (*śalākā*) of the hands and feet.
6. 4 bases of the long bones (*śalāk-ādhiṣṭhāna*).
7. 2 heels (*pārṣṇi*).
8. 4 ankle-bones (*gulpha*) of the two feet.¹
9. 2 wrist-bones (*maṇika*) of the two hands.¹
10. 4 bones of the two forearms (*aratni*).
11. 4 bones of the two legs (*jaṅgha*).
12. 2 knee-caps (*jānu*).
13. 2 elbow-pans (*jānu-kapālikā*).¹
14. 2 hollow bones (*nalaka*) of the two thighs (*ūru*).
15. 2 hollow bones (*nalaka*) of the two arms (*bāhu*). 16 *a*. 2 shoulders (*aṃsa*). 16 *b*. 2 shoulder-blades (*aṃsa-phalaka*).
17. 2 collar-bones (*akṣaka*).
18. 1 windpipe (*jatru*).
19. 2 palatal cavities (*tāl-ūṣaka*).
20. 2 hip-blades (*śroṇi-phalaka*).
21. 1 pubic bone (*bhag-āsthi*).
22. 45 back-bones (*pṛṣṭha-gat-āsthi*).
23. 15 bones of the neck (*grīvā*).
24. 14 bones of the breast (*uras*). 25 *a*. 24 ribs (*pārśvaka*) in the two sides. 25 *b*. 24 sockets (*sthālaka*) of the ribs. 25 *c*. 24 tubercles (*arbuda*) fitting into the sockets.
26. 1 (lower) jaw-bone (*hanv-asthi*), or chin.
27. 2 basal tie-bones of the (lower) jaw (*hanu-mūla-bandhana*).
28. 1 bone constituting the nose, prominences of the cheeks, and brows (*nāsikā-gaṇḍakūṭa-lalāṭa*).
29. 2 temples (*śaṅkha*).
30. 4 cranial pan-shaped bones (*śiraḥ-kapāla*).

c6.s1.t1.4

¹ The terms ‘ankle-bone’ and ‘wrist-bone’, here and throughout this dissertation, signify the malleoli and styloid processes respectively; also, ‘elbow-pan’ signifies the olecranon process.

c6.s1.t1.5

These are the three hundred and sixty bones, inclusive of the teeth and nails.’