Martha Bhaskar Rao

By Martha Bhaskar Rao - Oct 15, 2011

Long before modern medicine came into existence, there existed in all countries a knowledge of herbs that helped in various ways. The very fact that humanity has survived critical transitions, wars and famines is itself empirical proof of the value of these herbs. Now that we are realising that modern medicine pays a heavy price, there is an attempt the world over to dig into the lost secrets. This search is not without difficulty. It is like learning an entirely new language. Our present knowledge sometimes becomes a bar. The ancients saw the world differently: they felt and experienced it in another way, a way we have lost but whose trail still lingers in our memory, energising us to undertake the same journey from our present point. This article tries to bridge a gap that is the need of the hour.

By Martha Bhaskar Rao - Jan 15, 2012

While modern medicine has identified certain causative factors that operate behind an illness or predispose us to it, this knowledge does not always and necessarily translate into finding a cure for it. The reasons for the gap between knowing and controlling are many. Systems of knowledge such as Āyurveda have a slightly different approach to the problem and so are sometimes quite effective against illnesses where modern medical knowledge fails even if it has identified the causative organism. One reason behind this anomaly lies in the fact that Āyurveda has developed through intuition and therefore touches some very fundamental and essential root-causes that bypass the immediate ones. Going beyond material aspects, it identifies subtle states and works through its prescriptions and proscriptions to correct them, to reset the inner balance, so to speak. It is thereby hoped that the body-consciousness will take care of the rest. This article explores the role of Āyurveda in a knotty problem area that is such a drain on the healthcare system.