A History of Indian Medical Literature v3.c42.s16.3

v3.c42.s16.3

The Hārītasaṃhitā contains one verse that is found in Ravigupta’s Siddhāsāra, a work that dates from about A.D. 650.⁵³¹ Ravigupta’s verses are of his own making and not borrowed from predecessors, which establishes that the Siddhāsāra is earlier than the Hārītasaṃhitā. This fact is in conformity with the appearance of Vāgbhaṭa’s name in the pāriśiṣṭādhyāya, although this chapter may be a later addition. Some more features that may be interpreted as pointing to influences from the side of Vāgbhaṭa consist of the description of mada in the chapter on madātyaya and the description of the disease called upaśīrṣaka, recognized by Vāgbhaṭa, but absent from the Caraka- and Suśrutasaṃhitā. The presence of separate chapters on śūla (III.7), nidrā (III.15), āmavāta (III.21), amlapitta (III.24) and vṛddhi (III.32), in line with the arrangement found in the Mādhavanidāna, is in favour of placing the Hārītasaṃhitā in about the same period, i.e., the eighth century. The question whether or not the Hārītasaṃhitā is posterior to Mādhava’s work remains problematic, since both works may partially be based on the same sources. 532 In addition, there are considerable differences between the arrangement and the nosological system of Hārītasaṃhitā and Mādhavanidāna. The absence of verses on the examination of the urine and the pulse indicates that the Hārītasaṃhitā is anterior to Vaṅgasena’s Cikitsāsārasaṃgraha and the Śārṅgadharasaṃhitā. The absence of prescriptions containing Cannabis corroborates this point. 533