Indian Medicine (Medicin), translated by C. G. Kashikar c8.31

c8.31

§ 7. Atreya-Harita :—Atreya i. e. the son of Atri, also called Punarvasu, is unquestionably one of the most famous medical Rsis. Thus he is called in the Bower MS. 1.8. as the first of the wise men of old times engaged in the search and testing of medicinal plants; so also in AS 1.1, AHr. 1.1.2, and Car 1.1.9. Immediately after Atreya, Harita is mentioned in the Bower MS. The hypothesis that the oldest medical work is preserved in the Samhita ascribed to Atreya or Harita appears to be resting on firm ground¹. On the other hand, the name alone is not convincing enough and several modern falsifications² in the domain of legal literature are concealed especially under the respected names of Atreya and Harita. Haas regards the medical Atreya Samhita as "the most miserable scribbling in this domain". Still both the arguments which he advances for this harsh judgement, namely the theory of karmavipaka (cf. § 3) and the use of various substances (see Kausika sutra) causing nausea are already peculiar to the Vedic medicine. Indeed Harita says at the end of his work that in the four eras (Yugas) Atri, Caraka, Susruta and Vagbhata were the standard authors and consequently betrays hereby his acquaintance with and the anteriority of Vagbhata. The genuineness of this concluding part can, however, be challenged, since the text of Harita is in general very badly preserved, the MSS as well as the printed text differ to a great extent and a commentary and old dated MSS appear to be wanting³. The complete work requires a closer examination; it nevertheless contains in its six sthanas which are of unequal extent a complete system of medicine with many peculiar statements on diseases and therapeutic substances which are often used in later texts, though with precaution.