A History of Hindu Chemistry from the Earliest Times to the Middle of the Sixteenth Century A.D. v2.c34.237

v2.c34.237

It is to be noted that, throughout, the fluid in the chyle ( or blood ) acts as the menstruum, though occasionally the lymph, which is itself a derivative from the chyle is added as in the case of the fatty tissue and the marrow ; and that each preceding element or constituent of the body (धातु --शरीरारम्भकधातु ) takes up the proper organic compounds from the food-chyle to form the next element or tissue. Throughout also, the chemical changes are due to the metabolic heat which breaks up the compounds and recombines, but the operations and even the vehicles perhaps of this heat are different. For example, these heat-corpuscles in the biliary ducts produce the bile, but the bile secretion is supposed to contain two distinct substances, (1) a digestive fluid in the duodenum (पित्ताशय) which acts on the chyme to produce the chyle, (अन्नस्य पक्तृ पाचकाख्यं पित्तं ); and (2) a colouring bile substance in the liver which adds a red pigment to the chyle and transforms it into blood ( रञ्जकाख्य पित्तम् ). Besides, there are three other biles, of which the acqueous humour in the eye is supposed to be one ( आलोचकपित्तम् ) helping in the formation of visual images ( रूपग्राहकम् ). This is the view of Dhanvantari and his school, but Atreya holds there is no evidence that the bile really performs the first (digestive) function, for this can be accounted for by the animal heat arising from the working of the whole bodily machine. There are three different hypotheses regarding the course of metabolism and the successive transformations of the chyle ( क्षीरदधिन्याय-केदारिकुल्यान्याय-खलेकपोतन्यायेति त्रिधा धातुपोषणक्रमः — Chakrapáni, Bhánumatí, Sútrasthána, Chap. 14, S'loka 10 ; also his commentary on Charaka, Sútrasthána, Chap. 28), but my account is based upon the second hypothesis which has the preference of Chakrapáni (खरसः). It may be added as a curiosity that each element of the body ( धातु ) under the metabolic heat is supposed to give off a finer essence ( सूक्ष्मभाग ) which serves as the material of the next succeeding element, and a dross ( मल ), which forms some of the excreta in the body, ( including the nails, the hair, etc. ), besides retaining its own substance ( the gross or main part ) which is driven along by the Váyus (biomotor or vital currents) or by the Srotas to its destination in the body. Some idea of circulation appears to have been entertained, for the heart which receives and then sends down the chyle through the Dhamanís gets it back transformed into blood, and the Ojas also proceeds from the heart and returns to it along with the chyle and blood. (Cf. Vágbhata — ताः हृत्स्थाः शिराः रसात्मकं ओजः