Much of current knowledge about ancient Hindu medicine comes from two collections of medical writings.
One, the Sushruta Samhita, was written by a surgeon name Sushruta. The other, the Charaka Samhita, was written by a physician named Charaka.
The Sushruta Samhita appeared during the first millennium BC.
Sushruta is called the ‘father of plastic surgery’. Sushruta was an ingenious court physician in Guptan Imperial times, used Caesarian section for difficulty deliveries. He was an expert in removing stones form the kidneys and the bladder, treating fractures and performing eye operations to remove cataract.
Sushruta Samhita contains 184 chapters and description of 1120 illnesses, 700 medicinal plants, 64 preparations from mineral sources and 57 preparations based on animal sources.
It is India’s first medical text to include surgery, with two chapters in surgical instruments and one on modes of operation.
The medical works of Sushruta and also Charaka were translated into the Arabic language during the Abbasid Caliphate. These Arabic works made their way into Europe via intermediaries.
Sushruta Samhita of Indian medicine
