A History of Indian Medical Literature v3.c46.114

v3.c46.114

Fourteen main nāḍīs are mentioned by name: Iḍā, Piṅgalā, Suṣumnā, Sarasvatī,55 Vāruṇī,56 Pūṣā,57 Hastijihvā,58 Yaśasvinī,59 Viśvodarā,60 Kuhū,61 Śaṅkhinī,62 Payasvinī,63 Alambuṣā,64 and Gāndhārī65 (30–32).66 Iḍā, Piṅgalā and Suṣumnā are the most important among these, and Suṣumnā, located in the backbone and the head, is the foremost of the three (32–33). The frequency of the beats of the pulse in the various periods of life is described (50–53).67 The pulse should be examined at six places: the hands, the feet and the temples (55), or at eight: the hands, the feet, the sides of the throat and near the two sides of the nose (56). The pulses felt at the sides of the nose and at the throat reveal particular disorders (57 and 59). The span of life as determined by the pulse is described (174–176).