Indian Medicine (Medicin), translated by C. G. Kashikar c14.5

c14.5

3. On the pupil or lense (*drṣṭi*). By a disturbance of the first eye-skin or membrane (*paṭala*) one sees everything indistinctly. By disturbance of the second the eyesight is very corrupted; one sees flies, gnats, diaphrams, circles, flags, rays, rings and the like and thinks distant as near and near as distant. By disturbance of the third one sees big objects as covered with cloth, face without ears, nose and eyes and the like. A disturbance of the fourth membrane stops the vision completely and is called *timira* (darkness) or *liṅganāśa* (loss of sight, cataract). If this dangerous disease is not fully developed, one can see the Sun, moon and the stars and lightning in the sky. Among the different kinds of cataract and allied diseases, the following are prominent: disturbance by *pitta*, by which one sees everything yellow; disturbance by *kapha*, by which night-blindness (*naktāndhya*) which is frequent even at present, takes place; *hrasvajādya*—whereby one sees small objects by day only with trouble; *nakulāndhatā*—whereby one sees by day everything spotted; *gambhirikā*—“deep”, i. e. atrophy of the eye.