1. Charaka was one of the principal contributors to Ayurveda, a system of medicine and lifestyle developed in ancient India.
19 Facts About Charaka
1. 2.
Charaka is known as a physician who edited the medical treatise entitled Charaka Samhita, one of the foundational texts of classical Indian medicine and Ayurveda, included under Brhat-Trayi.
3.
Charaka, known as Charak acharya, was an ancient Indian physician and scholar who made significant contributions to the field of Ayurveda.
4.
Charaka is believed to have lived during the 4th century BCE, although the exact dates of his birth and death are uncertain.
5.
Charaka is considered one of the principal contributors to the Charaka Samhita, an ancient Ayurvedic text that is one of the foundational texts of Ayurvedic medicine.
6.
The Charaka Samhita is a comprehensive treatise on various aspects of medicine, including etiology, diagnosis, treatment, and ethical considerations.
7.
Charaka emphasized the importance of maintaining a balance among the three doshas and believed that disease resulted from an imbalance in these doshas.
8.
Charaka's treatments aimed to restore this balance through dietary changes, herbal remedies, lifestyle modifications, and therapies such as massage and detoxification.
9.
Maharishi Charaka is known as the court physician during the reign of the famous king Kanishka of Kushan Empire.
10.
Charaka has been identified by some as a native of Kashmir.
11.
Jejjata, the author of commentary on the Charaka Samhita, was Kashmiri and so was Udbhatta who commented upon Sushruta Samhita.
12.
The term Charaka is a label said to apply to "wandering scholars" or "wandering physicians".
13.
Charaka seems to have been an early proponent of "prevention is better than cure" doctrine.
14.
Charaka studied the anatomy of the human body and various organs.
15.
Charaka gave 360 as the total number of bones, including teeth, present in the human body.
16.
Charaka claimed that the heart was connected to the entire body through 13 main channels.
17.
Charaka claimed that any obstruction in the main channels led to a disease or deformity in the body.
18.
The Agnivesha Samhita was revised by Charaka and renamed the Charaka Samhita.
19.
The Charaka Samhita is one of the two foundational text of Ayurveda, the other being the Sushruta Samhita.