| ABOUT THE BOOK : | Dravyaguna/Dravyagunasangraha written by Chakrapanidatta, is concerned with the medicinal properties of solid and liquid articles of food. On this subject it represents the earliest special treatise that has been preserved. This work, based on treatises of predecessors, consists of 592 verses, divided into thirteen sections (varga): (1) dhanyavarga; after verses on the rasa, vīrya and vipaka, Cakrapani describes the properties of grain, pulse, sesamum, and related articles of diet; (2) māmsādivarga, on the flesh of a long series of animals and the eggs of some of these; (3) sakavarga, on vegetables; (4) lavaṇadivarga, on types of salt and related substances, spices and condiments; (5) phalavarga, on fruits; (6) pānīyavarga, on various types of water and the watery juice from the coconut, young kramuka, and tāla; rules for the use of cold or warm water in diverse disorders, rules for the use of boiled water; (7) ksīravarga, on milk and dairy products: (8) tailavarga, on oils and some o her fatty substances: (9) ikṣavādivarga, on products of the sugarcane and types of honey; (10) madyadivarga, on alcoholic drinks and other fermented liquids, on types of urine; (11) kṛtānnavarga, on prepared foods of a liquid and semi-liquid nature; (12) bhakṣyavarga, on prepared foods of a solid nature; (13) āhāravidhi, rules for serving and taking food, description of the digestive processes; anupānavidhi, rules for the use of anupānas, i.e., drinks to be taken during or after meals; gunakarmani, the effects of the qualities of foods and drinks on the human organism; svasthavṛtta, rules about the maintenance of health. The chief sources of the Dravyaguna are the Carakasamhita and Suśrutasamhita. |
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