Studies in the Medicine of Ancient India, Part I: Osteology, or the Bones of the Human Body c7.s2.t3.23

c7.s2.t3.23

It is evident that in this explanation the tubercles (*arbuda*) are identified with the costal cartilages which connect the upper ten ribs with the sternum (Fig. 16). But the term tubercle, *arbuda*, would be most inappropriate as applied to the costal cartilages. Moreover, the latter do not belong to the ‘region of the ribs' (*pārśva*), but to the front of the thoracic cage, or the breast (*uras*); see § 57. Further, there are, strictly speaking, not ten costal cartilages, but only seven; for the four lowest connected ribs have, between them, only one cartilage. On this last point, indeed, theories of counting might differ; but what is fatal to the explanation of Nanda Paṇḍita is the explicit statement in the list of Charaka that the numbers of the ribs, sockets, and tubercles are equal, there being twenty-four of each kind. Another fatal objection is that there are, as a fact, not 'thirteen ribs on either side', but only twelve. A thirteenth rib does occur in exceptional cases; but twelve is the normal number, and obviously that number alone can serve for the count. Moreover, it is most improbable that Nanda Paṇḍita had any knowledge of the rare occurrence of an exceptional thirteenth rib. In all probability, he adopted his count of thirteen ribs from the *Śatapatha Brāhmaṇa* (see § 42, cl. 9), which treats the collar-bone as a thirteenth rib, not realizing that by doing so he was duplicating the collar-bones which are separately enumerated in the list of the Institutes of Vishnu under the name *akṣa* (*akṣaka*).