Sri Sarada Ayurvedic Hospital

Varma (Sanskrit: marma vidya, Sinhala: maru kala) is a south Indian word meaning "art of vital points". It is a component of traditional massage, medicine, and martial arts in which the body's pressure points (varma or marma) are manipulated to heal or cause harm. The healing application called vaidhiya murai is used to treat patients suffering from paralysis, nervous disorder, spondylitis and other conditions.

The hospital has an integral medicine manufacturing unit, catering to the needs of its patients for the purpose of the treatment.Medicines prepared by Sri Sarada Ayurvedic Hospital are not sold outside the hospital.The hospital maintains a herbal garden containing around 150 herbal plants, which serves as learning tool for the new comers of Ayurveda. A small hut constructed in the middle of the herbal garden serves as a ambient environment for meditation.

It is interesting to note that a few elements of Panchakarma were prevalent during the vedic period itself though the word Panchakarma appears only in Ayurvedic literature. There are references tovirechana and vamanadravyas (materials for emesis or purgation) in the vedic and post-vedic literature.Dhanvanthari, the lord of Ayurveda holds a jalooka (leech) in one hands symbolizing surgical procedure. It is understood that different forms of blood letting as a purifying method were prevalent even during ancient period.

Similarly one can see references to nasya (nasal medication) in pumsavana(eugencies) in vedic literature. For example, to achieve conception by an infertile woman, nasya is done with root juice of white flowered Brihati (Solanum anguivi) collected on Pushya nakshatra (Tewari 1992:72). Even though some of these techniques have been described in vedic period itself,Panchakarma as a comprehensive system of therapy took shape in Carakasamhita period.

Panchakarma is a unique contribution of Ayurveda. One can see extensive references to Panchakarma in the earliest classical texts available on Ayurveda. Caraka samhita, Susruta samhita and AshtangaHrdayam of Vagbhata known as Brihathrayi. As a living tradition, Panchakarma is widely prevalent in theAyurvedic practice of Kerala.

Not only in Ayurveda, but in other different medical cultures as well, one could see treatment such as Panchakarma used for purification purposes. Techniques like Panchakarma are mentioned in the other systems of medicines as well. For instance, catharsis in the Greek medicine is a method of purgation or purification. Till recently, in Western Bio-medicine there was practice of medicated enemas for conditions like arthritis, asthma described in the form of high rectal or low rectal enema.

Even in other medical traditions like Unani, Tibetan, Siddha, Chinese, Kampo in Japan and Indonesia, or the different African healing traditions, some of these techniques are used for purification purposes.Treatments like emesis or purgation are techniques that support or activate body's natural processes. One can see techniques like induced vomiting being used by animals as well. when sick Cats or dogs eat grass and induce vomiting.

This is a practice of emesis followed in a Siva temple of Southern Kerala for treating mental disorders. A paste made of specific herbs is given along with milk to the devotees suffering from mental disease to induce vomiting. A milk pudding is also given which would facilitate emesis. Apart from inducing emesis, these medicines would also cause bouts of purgation, which would last for two to three hours. Following this a specific type of rice gruel is given to strengthen the body without any other diet restrictions. This practice is commonly done in artificial poisoning. There are number of such practices of emesis, purgation, bloodletting or enemas in these local health traditions.