Astrology and Ayurveda



“The basics of ayurveda are used in medical astrology. Those basic points which are essential to learn the Arigya Jatak are discussed below”

The object of this branch of science is to diagnose and cure the sick and protect those who are already healthy.
The theoretical physics in ayurvedic treatise explains the origin of the man and the universe and their relation to each other. According to that science, the unmanifested ground “Prakriti” is the progenitor of all creation and the formation of living and non-living physical system of matter. The ayurvedists declare that matter constitutes everything in the universe and the five bhutas Prithvi, Apu, Tej, Vayu and Akasha are the five modes of existence of matter. And the origin of the three fundamental qualities (vata, pitta and kapha) of matter, is in the five modes of existence of matter. So according to them the three physical qualities kapha, vata and pitta of matter interpenetrate one another and by their mutual interplay give rise to physical, physiological and biological changes. Thus, the tridhatu-tridosh theory accepts the equilibrium, order or stability of the three physical qualities- Dhatawas-vata, pitta, kapha, in matter as the cause of its equilibrium, order or health and their abnormality or disorder causes disease.
Before discussing this aspect of the theory in full and applying that reasoning to matter in living or non-loving physical systems it would be advisable to know what exactly the ayurvedists mean by the three qualities vata, pitta and kapha and the five modes of existence Prithvi, Apu, Tej, Vayu and Akasha in their relation to physics, physiology, pathology, therapeutics and material medica of ayurveda.
The word bhuta is derived from the root bhu sattyam meaning that whose existence is already there. The word is used in this connection by Vagbhatta for bhuta as a mode of existence of matter.
Robert Boyle who overthrew the Aristotelian theory of matter composed of earth, water, air and fire, holding the field for a considerable time defined in his book “Sceptical Chemist” elements as things which cannot be decomposed further.
So the word element as used by Robert Boyle and accepted by modern scientists cannot be a correct translation of the word bhuta used by ayurvedists. Bhuta (Bhu Sattyam) means mode of existence of matter a quality of matter and not the constituent, a composition of mater as is implied by the term element. So the five bhutas Prithvi, Apu, Tej, Vayu and Akasha are the physical qualities and not the chemical constituents of matter- the elements or component parts of matter.
The three Dhatawas vata, pitta, kapha denote the three physical qualities of matter and not the three chemical substances wind, bile and mucus.
The word vata is derived from the root va meaning motion or indicative of motion. The word pitta has its root in tapa meaning agitation, excitation, energy, and the word kapha or sleshma means clasp, attraction, embrace, gravitation .
Sushruta has clearly stated that Chakrapani the famous commentator of the ayurvedic treatise clarifies that Merely he indicates that one has to understand the inherent meaning of the three words vata, pitta and kapha as agility, motivity and gravity respectively.
Agility, motivity and gravity are the three physical qualities-motion, energy and inertia.
That the terms vata, pitta and kapha cannot be the three chemical substances wind, bile and mucus get support from the quotation in Vriksha ayurveda.
And from the application of these terms to cosmic phenomenon.
It is thus the peculiarity of ayurvedic vocabulary or technical terminology that the three terms vata, pitta and kapha occurring in their physiology, pathology, therapeutics and material medica and in the theory of evolution of planet-ayurveda and cosmic knowledge are indicative of the quality sense of those words and their roots.
Thus the tridosh-tridhatu theory of ayurveda explains the working of the three qualities-slish (clasp, embrace, attraction, gravitation and inertia), tapa (agitation, motivity, heat and energy) and va (motion) inherent in the three words sleshma, pitta and vata.
In the case of a living cell of a plant or animal origin these three physical qualities sustain it; that is keep the cell healthy and nay differentiation or disequilibrium or disorder in the work of these three physical qualities causes disease or disorder.
Further on the ayurvedic physics declares matter- Dravyam-having five modes of existence or bhutas are Prithvi, Apu, Tej, Vayu and Akasha.
The Sanskrit synonyms for the bhuta- Prithvi are having the qualities solidarity, stability, massivity, density and gravity, etc. This quality gives the structural foundation for the matter. The two bhutas Prithvi and Apu posses the quality of matter sleshma (gravity, attraction, clasp) and therefore these bhutas are nothing but the gravitational fields of the modern physics which create the quality inertia and the physical quantities of mass and weight.
The Siddhanta Siromani has described this gravitational quality of matter in the bhuta.

The English rendering of it is that the Mahi-Prithvi- the physical structure possesses power of attraction which produces in its surrounding a field of gravitation.
The Aristotelian passivity of matter or the Newtonean inertia of matter is indicated by the word slish meaning clasp-attraction.
Till the present day the definition of matter as given in the text-books on physics was that “matter is passive, inert and possesses mass and occupies space”. According to the ayurvedists inertia is not the only quality of matter. It has also other qualities pitta (mechanical energy, heat energy, chemical energy, electrical energy, light energy, living force, and so on) and vata (motion).
According to the modern physics, it is the energy (pitta) which makes the matter to exist into three states- solid, liquid and gaseous. So, the bhuta agni (heat energy) cannot be the elemental constituent of matter as propounded by Aristotle and accepted by some unstudious minds. It is the mode of existence of matter (Hkwr-bhuta), a physical quality of matter.
The third quality of matter va-motion operates if there is space to extend. The word space is derived from the latin word spateo meaning drawn out or extended. The word akash is derived from the root ka-shru meaning it is the space where light waves move. These are the electro-magnetic fields of modern physics and the universe of light of Sir William Bragg, the famous physicist.
Thus, in the tridhatu theory of vata, pitta and kapha, ayurveda accepts va-motion, tapa-energy and slesh-attraction inertia as the three main physical qualities of matter which makes the matter exist in various modes. For the quality of motion va-vat, there must be a space of extension-Akasha and for the quality of inertia-slesh, there must be a field of attraction-Prithvi.
So, according to ayurvedic physics any physical system of matter-living or non-living, remains in that state if the three physical qualities are in equilibrium. The word dhatu is derived from the root dha meaning that which maintains or sustains, and that is why the three Dhatwas kapha, vata, pitta or inertia, motion and energy are essential to keep a system in equilibrium, in order or in health. The disequilibrium of kapha, pitta and vata by an increase or decrease of one or more of them manifests itself in varieties of disorder or diseases.
It took years of theoretical reasoning and practical experimentation for the present day physics to discard that matter consists of only absolutely discontinuous parts which are inert. In the earlier days of its development it accepted that mass (inertia) and energy, were distinct from one another in being mutually inconvertible.
The Euclidean geometry and Newtonean mechanics failed to explain the behaviour of matter in motion. Boyle and Newton had supernatural explanation of matters’ activity or being in motion. They treated matter and energy as two distinct entities. They never thought of energy as quality of matter till the presentation by Einstein of his theory of relativity.
According to modern physics matter is that which occupies space and has weight. It is inert as well as self-motivated and generally exists in three states solid, liquid and gaseous and has four modes of existence, extension, motion, motivity and inertia.
We know that it is the heat energy that changes a solid to a liquid and thence to a gaseous state. Ordinarily in a sold state the molecules are adhered, clinged or clasped . In liquids there is molecular embrace or clasp but there is no definite shape. It takes the shape of the container. In solid and liquid states there are boundary surfaces or structures . These are the spheres of attraction, the gravitational fields where the molecules are attached towards each other or clung together. These are the bhutas Prithvi and Apu.
In the case of a gas, the molecules are further torn apart by energy the molecules are activated by the heat energy and those occupy space, because there is extension . So matter in a solid, liquid and gaseous state, is governed by the three physical qualities inertia , energy and motion .
Any state of matter is governed by the three qualities inertia, energy and motion, and its state depends upon the equilibrium of these three qualities. Any inbalance of the three qualities crates disorder in that state. Any particular crystal structure remains that structure till one of three or all the qualities are not disturbed. The moment the energy quality is made to get an upper hand, the inertia quality gets disordered and the molecules get apart. The crystal structure or the solid state is changed. That is the health or the order of the crystal is disturbed. The crystal gets converted into a liquid. So the energy which was a dhatu in the solid state became vitiated or turned into a dosha and got the solid state converted into a liquid state. Similarly if the motion also gets an upper hand and if there is space the molecules of the liquid get further torn apart and a gaseous state is formed.
Thus the physical qualities which are normally dhatwas in any state of matter become doshas and destroy that particular state of matter.
This reasoning could be applied satisfactorily to matter in a living state. A living cell is a mixture of colloidal slime of varying degree or fluidity. The actual living substance when freed from food matter and stored chemical products is a translucent gel or slime.
Ultra-microscope reveals that the translucent material to be composed of optically homogenous substances in which are embedded a multitude of minute particles. These particles are in a Brownian movement (va-motion). The gel structure indicates the kaphic constitution (agglomeration-molecular aggregate clinging) and the electric charge on the colloidal slime indicates the paittic constitution.
Thus the living cell also shows that the three qualities vata, pitta, and kapha (motion, energy and inertia) play their part in the maintenance of the cell. Any disorder in the qualities destroys the cellular structure and makes the cell diseased.
Many an allopathic physician doubt the efficacy of ayurvedic bhasmas as they view those as chemical compounds used for killing a germ or filling in the chemical deficiency. But if we view the remedy as a physical one and not a chemical one, the doubt may disappear.
Modern physicists are making an attempt of formulating quantitative relations of extension (akash), motion (vat), motivity (pitta) and inertia (kapha) to grasp the general laws of behaviour and development of living as well as non-living physical systems, and the theoretical biology has been discovering the cause of order and disorder, the stability and instability, the growth and decay of living organisms.
And so there should be nothing ridiculous when the ayurvedists in their theory of evolution and tridhatu apply the physical qualities of matter to explain and thereby unify all the functions of the living organisms and classify the metabolic processes in the three groups of the physiological properties of matter and make a comprehensive utility in linking physics, physiology, pathology, therapeutics and material medica and thus introduce a medical science to solve this riddle of life and death and the problems pertaining to the living matter.
It is the duty of every rationally minded researcher to give a deep thought to all the reasonings expounded by the ancient Hindu seer in various fields of knowledge.

Compilation by Dewavrat Buit
for MA students old course.