A History of Indian Medical Literature v3.c51.s3.2

v3.c51.s3.2

Contents³ The maṅgala is addressed to Śiva as the lord of mercury (Raseśa). Chapter one (49 verses) describes the mythical origin of mercury (1.2–4b),⁴ the varieties of mercury (1.4cd–5ab), the doṣas and kañcukas (1.5cd–6), some saṃskāras (mardana, svedana, mūrchana, pātana, gandhakajāraṇa, bandha, māraṇa; 1.7–40), the properties of killed mercury (mṛtarasa) (1.41–46), the side effects of the use of mṛtarasa and their treatment (1.47–48), and the results of paying homage to the lord of mercury (1.49). Chapter two (65 verses) is concerned with the description of the six natural metals (loha), their properties, varieties, purification and killing (2.1–49), lohakitta (2.50–51), kharpara (= rasaka; 2.52–53), the purification and killing of some alloys (kāṃsya and pittala; 2. 54ab), the treatment of disorders caused by the metals (2.54cd), and the nirutthakaraṇa⁵ of the metals (2.55–57); the chapter ends with the description of abhraka, its varieties, killing, the extraction of its essence (sattvapātana), the killing of the essence,⁶ and the uses of the products obtained (2.58–65). Chapter three (16 verses) deals with viṣas⁷ and upaviṣas (3.1–9), opium (3.10–12), and bhṛṅgī (3.13–16). Chapter four (129 verses) is a collection of rasayogas to be employed against various diseases and for rasāyana and vājīkaraṇa purposes. Chapter five (40 verses) contains formulae for pills (guṭikā; 5.1–30) and some other preparations (5.31–40).⁸