Siddha system of medicine

For B.Pharm, 6th Sem

1. SIDDHA SYSTEM
OF
MEDICINE

2. Introduction
•SiddhaisaTamilwordderivedfrom"siddhi"--
attainingperfectioninlifeorheavenlybliss.
•ItisexclusivelylinkedwithTamilcultureand
civilization.
•Itistheforemostofallothermedicalsystemsinthe
world.ItsorigingoesbacktoB.C10,000toB.C
4,000.
•TherootsoftheancientSiddhaSystemare
intertwinedwiththemythologyandcultureofthe
ancientTamilcivilizationthatexistedinthe
southernmosttipoftheIndianpeninsula,predating
muchofrecordedhistory.

3. •Siddhascienceconsidersnatureandmanas
essentiallyone.
Nature is man and man is nature.
•ManissaidtobethemicrocosmandUniverse
isthemacrocosmbecausewhatexistsinthe
worldexistsinman.

4. HISTORY
•Developmentinpre-Ayurvedicperiodwithcivilizationof
Mohenzo-daro&HarappainIndusrivervalley.
•ItwastransplantedinSouthernIndiabyDravidianpeople
about2500years.
•ThefirstTamilsiddhatextistheTirumandiram(3000
stanzas)writtenbyTirumularanddatedprobablytoaround
the6
th
&7
th
century.
•TurumullarwasfounderofvarioussiddhaschoolinIndia.
•Significantly,oneofthedefinitionsofSiddhamedicineis
conquestofdeath“thatwhichensurespreventiveagainst
mortality”.
•Themajorsourceofsiddhamedicinebelongtoreligious
groupswhocallthemselves-Kayasiddhas.

5. •Akattiyur(sanskrit-Agastya)-founderofsiddha
medicine.
•In17
th
century,Teraiyurwrittentwelveworks
onmedicineandwhosefamousdiscipline
IramatevartravelledtoMeccawherehe
studied,convertedtoislamandtookonthe
name-Yakkopu(Jacob).
•Bogar,ataoistchineseworkedextensivelyon
medicineandalchemy
•PullpariwasanotherChinesesettledinTamil
Nadu.

7. Origin
•TheoriginofSiddhaisattributedtoLordSiva,
whoissupposedtohavehandeditdownto
hisconsortParvathi(Shakthi),whoin
turnpassedonthesacredknowledgeto
Nandi,fromwhomitwastransmittedtothe
firstof"Siddhars“.
•Traditionlistsatotalnumberofeighteen
siddhars,beginningwithNandiandthesemi-
legendary-Agattiyarthroughtothefinal
Siddhar-Kudhambai.
•Theyweretheancientsupernaturalspiritual
saintsofIndia.

9. •Siddhars:TheyarethesaintsinIndia,
mostlyinTamilNadu,whoprofessed
&practisedanunorthodoxtypesof
sadhanatoattainliberation.
•SiddharsadoptedprinciplesofShiva
Siddhantham
•Asiddharobtainsyogicpowerscalled
siddhibyconstantpracticeofcertain
yogicdisciples&tapasya.
•Agastyawasthefirstsiddha&guru
ofallsiddhars.

10. Principle of system
•Thereare96basicprinciples(Thathuas).
•Theuniverseconsistsoftwoessentialentities-
matterandenergy.Thesiddhascallthem‘’matter’’
(Shiva,male,)and‘’energy’’(female,Shakti).
Mattercannotexistwithoutenergyinherentinit
andviceversa.Thetwoco-existandare
inseparable.
•Thesetwoentitiesofexistenceoperateinhumans
aswellasnatureandconnectthemicrocosmwith
themacrocosm.

11. •It follows Babylonian & Greco-Roman system
of head-to-toe & illustrated using Latin-based
zodiac names.

12. •TheyaretheprimordialelementscalledBhutas.
•Bhutasconsistsoffiveelements-Nilam
(Prithivi,Earth,Solid), Neer (jal,Water,fluid),
Neruppu (agni,Fire,radiance,heat), kattru
(vayu,Gas,wind)andVeli(Akash,Space,ether,sky).
Thesefiveelementsarepresentinevery
substance,butindifferentproportions.These
combinesincertainwaystogivethethreebodily
humours,calledMuupuorMuppiniinmodernTamil.
•Theyarefoundinthebodyintheproportionof1
windto½bileto¼phlegm.

13. •Whicharemadeupofthefiveelements.
Theyarevatham,pithamandkarpam.In
eachandeverycellofthebodythese
threedoshasco-existandfunction
harmoniously.
•VathamisformedbyAkasaandVayu.It
controlsthenervousactionssuchas
movement,sensationetc

14. •Pithamisformedbyfireandwaterand
controlsthemetabolicactivityofthebody,
digestion,assimilation,warmth,etc.
•Karpamisformedbyearthandwaterand
controlsstabilityinthebody.
Whentheirequilibriumisupsetsdisease
setsin.

15. Basic of Siddha medicine
•ThebasicconceptsoftheSiddhamedicineare
almostsimilartoAyurveda.Theonly
differenceappearstobethattheSiddha
medicinerecognizespredominanceofvatham,
pithamandkapaminchildhood,adulthoodand
oldage,respectively,whereasinAyurvedaitis
totallyreversed:kapamisdominantin
childhood,vathaminoldageandpithamin
adults.

16. •AspertheSiddhamedicinevariouspsychologicaland
physiologicalfunctionsofthebodyareattributedtothe
combinationofsevenelements:
1.Saram(Digestivejuice).SarammeansPranavayu(Oxygen)
responsibleforgrowth,developmentandnourishment;
2.Cheneer(blood)responsiblefornourishingmuscles,imparting
colorandimprovingintellect;
3.Ooun(muscle)responsibleforshapeofthebody;
4.Kollzuppu(fattytissue)responsibleforoilbalanceand
lubricatingjoints;
5.Enbu(bone)responsibleforbodystructureandpostureand
movement;
6.Moolai(Bonemarrow-responsiblefortheproductionofRBC,
etc).
7.Sukila(semen)responsibleforreproduction.

17. DIAGNOSIS
•Thediagnosisofdiseaseinvolvesidentifyingitcauses.
•Physiciangenerallyidentifiesthecausativefactors
Thr’examofNadi(pulse),Dhwani(speech/voice),
Twaka(tongue),Deiham(body),Malam(feacesand
thestatusofdigestivesystem),Mutram(urine),
Vizhi(eyescolour).
•Thesystemhasworkedoutdetailsprocedureofurine
examinationwhichincludesstudyofitscolour,smell,
density,quantityandoildropspreadingpattern.

18. PULSE EXAMINATION
•Pulsereadingisimportant&helpfulin
diagnosis.Pulsechangeswithbalanceof
triguna(tri-dosha).
•FullNadiindicatesasthama&½or¼nadi
denotespain,arthrities&swelling.
•AbnormalintensepulseshowsT.B
•Ifpulsepropagatestoleftsideitdenotesloss
ofselfcontrolwhilepropagationtorightside
showssignofcoma.

19. URINE EXAMINATION
•OildropTest:Withadropper,thereisanecessarytoplace
onedropofsesameoilinasampleofurine.Ifthedropspreads
immediately,thephysicaldisorderiseasytocure.Ifthedrop
sinkstothemiddleoftheurinesample,thisindicatesillnessis
difficulttocure.Ifthedropsinkstothebottom,illnessmaybe
verydifficulttocure.
•Ifdropofsesameoilspreadsonthesurfaceinwave-like
movements,thisindicatestheVatadisorderinhumanbody.If
thedropofsesameoilspreadsonthesurfacewithmultiple
coloursvisiblelikearainbow,thisindicatesPittadisorder.If
dropofthesesameoilbreaksupintopearl-likedropletsonthe
surfaceofurine,thisindicatesKaphadisorder.

21. •Thenormalurinehasatypicaluremicsmell.
However,iftheurinehasafoulodour,thisindicates
thattherearetoxinsinthesystem.Anacidicsmell
whichcreatesaburningsensationindicatesexcess
Pitta.
•Asweetsmelloftheurineindicatesa
possiblediabeticconditioninhumanbody.Inthis
condition,theindividualexperiencesgoosebumps
(smallraisedareasthatappearontheskinbecauseof
cold,fear,orexcitement)ontheskinwhilepassing
urine.
•Thegravelintheurineindicatesthelikelihoodof
stonesintheurinarytract.

22. •VoicewithhighsoundshowsPitta(digestion
problems)&lowsounddenoteslowB.P
•TonguewithboilsshowsimbalanceofVata,
senseofbitternessdenotesPitta&white
slimytongueshowslowB.P
•BodywithvibrationshowsVatta.Hot&cold
bodyisindicativeofPitta&Kapha
respectively

23. METHOD OF TREATMENT
•Thetreatmentfortheimbalanceofthe
Triguna(Tridoshas)aremadeupofthe
fiveelements.Thedrugsaremadeupof
fiveelementsBysubstitutingadrugofthe
sameconstituents(guna)theequilibrium
isrestored.
•TreatmentbasedonalldiagnosticChr’sof
patient

24. •TreatmentalsotakeintoaccountEnvironment,
Age,Sex,Race,Habits,MentalStatus,
Habitat,Diet,Appetite,PhysicalCondition,
PhysiologicalConstitution,Etc.
•Vaidya(physician)hasknowledgeofherbs&
theireffectivenessinspecific

25. Types of formulations in Siddha system
SL.NO GROUPS EXAMPLES
1. Kashayam(extract) KashyamFir Infants, Jaundice, Piles
2. Churnm(powder) Panchammruta, Kadukai, Ashwagandha
3. Lehyam(confections) AmlaLehya, Ginger Lehya, Coconut Lehya
4. Tailam(medicated oils) Bhringamla, Amlahat, Nutmeg, Neem, Etc.
5. Bhasmam(calxprepared by
calcination)
Tortoise Shell, Egg Shell, Snake, ShrungaBhasma
6. Chenduram(metal complex) Rasa Chenduram, ChenduramOf Copper &
Magnet
7. Mezhugu(waxes) KasturiWax, SaffronWax, TurmuricWax
8. Ghrtam(medicated ghee) AdhatodaGhrta, BrahmiGhrta, Tender Fruit
Ghrta
9. Gulligai(tablet) KasturiTablet, SaffronTablet, PalasanjiviTablet

26. Benefits of Siddha system of Medicine
•Balancing, uprighting and eliminating the pathogens as the main principles of
treating diseases and maintaining health.
•Plays a good role in the fight against viral diseases, chronic inflammation,
functional disorders, endocrine disorders and other diseases.
•Traditional medicine stresses “prevention before diseases rather than treating
diseases”. But Siddha Medicine give equel importance in prevention and curing.
–According to the Siddha medicine, various psychological and physiological
functions of the body are attributed to the combination of seven elements
–According to the siddha medicine system, diet and lifestyle play a major
role, not only in health but also in curing diseases
–Internal medicine was used through the oral route and further classified into
32 categories based on their form, methods of preparation, shelf-life, etc
•External medicine includes certain forms of drugs and also certain applications
(such as nasal, eye and ear drops), and also certain procedures (such as leech
application).