Siddha Medicine
The Siddhars were great scientists in ancient times. According to tradition, the origin of Siddha system of medicine is attributed to the great Siddha ‘Agastiyar’. Some of his works are still standard books of medicine and surgery being used among the Siddha Medical practitioners.
According to Tamil tradition, there initially were 18 siddhars; these individuals often are portrayed as having received their knowledge of the Siddha system indirectly from the deity Shiva. Siddhars held that the object of their study was to preserve and prolong life. To do so, they believed, required humans to live according to the laws of nature. They led simple lives themselves and were unconcerned with caste, creed, colour, or nationality. They contributed not only to a system of medicine but also to the knowledge of eternity, alchemy, and Yogic living. Some believe that the siddhars travelled widely to other countries to propagate their system of medicine and enrich the sciences.
· Siddhars possessed ashtama siddhi, the eight great supernatural powers. These powers may have been attained at birth (because of one’s previous karma), by chemical means, by the power of words, or through concentration. Meditation on the elements, beginning with the “gross” and ending with the “subtle,” enabled the siddhars to gain mastery over the elements. Many of the ancient philosophical tenets of the Siddha system continue to be relevant to modern practitioners.
Basic Principles in Siddha Pharmaceutical Science-
The system has a classification of metals and alloys, which melts on heating and solidifies on cooling. These include gold, silver, copper, tin, lead and iron. These are incinerated by special processes and are used in medicine after purification or ore dressing. There is a group of drugs that exhibit sublimation on heating, which includes mercury and its different forms like red sulfide of mercury, mercuric chloride and red oxide of mercury etc. Sulphur, which is insoluble in water, finds a crucial place in Siddha Materia Medica along with mercury for usage in therapeutics and in maintenance of good health. In addition there are drugs obtained from animal sources like milk and milkproducts, conch, bones, teeth, bile, etc. Eventhough the usage of Thadhu ingredients are more advanced in Siddha system, it was mentioned that the application of metallic preparations is preferred only after the use of herbal preparations. That was mentioned as
‘Vaerpaaru thazhaipaaru minjinakkal mella mella parpam chendhooram paaru’
Siddhars applied the Pancha bhoothic principles in raw materials also, classified them as Panchabhootha ulogam, Pancha bhootha uppu, Panchabhootha Pashanam, Panchabhootha uparasam, and formulated the preparations according to the dominating Pootham, Suvai and Veeriyam.
Drugs In Siddha System
The source of Pharmaceutical preparations in Siddha system comprises Thadhu (Metals, Minerals & Arsenical compounds), Thavara (Herbs), and Jeeva (materials and products of Animal origin) elements. Apart from the vast herbal sources, Gunapadam- Materia Medica describes the detailed classification of Thadhu drugs.
“Kaelappa kaaramodu…………………………. ……………………. yirunoorodu yirupa thaache “–Bohar Karasarathurai
