Ashtanga Hridaya
Ashtanga Hridaya is a substance used in the Ayurvedic materia medica. Ashtanga Hridaya's Uttarasthana chapter on Rasayana cites the Chyawanprash formulation tradition with reference to Charaka Chikitsasthana 1.1 (Rasayana Adhyaya, Abhayamalakiya pada).
| Also known as | Ashtanga Hridaya, Ashtanga Hridayam, Ashtanga-Hridaya, Astanga Hridaya, AH |
|---|
One of the three canonical compendia of classical Ayurveda — the Brihat Trayi (“great triad”) — alongside Charaka Samhita and Sushruta Samhita. Composed by Vagbhata circa 6th–7th century CE, Ashtanga Hridaya (“The Essence of the Eight Limbs”) is a synthesis-treatise that distills and reorganizes the earlier Charaka and Sushruta corpus into a more compact, verse-pedagogical form.
Structure
7,120 verses organized into 6 sections (Sthanas) and 120 chapters:
| Sthana | Focus | Chapters |
|---|---|---|
| Sutrasthana | Fundamentals, dravyaguna, dinacharya, rtucharya | 30 |
| Sharirasthana | Embryology, anatomy | 6 |
| Nidanasthana | Etiopathogenesis | 16 |
| Chikitsasthana | Internal medicine treatment | 22 |
| Kalpa-Siddhi Sthana | Pharmaceutics, panchakarma | 6 |
| Uttarasthana | Specialty chapters (pediatrics, psychiatry, ENT, surgery, toxicology, rejuvenation) | 40 |
The “eight limbs” (Ashtanga) of Ayurveda covered are: Kayachikitsa (internal medicine), Shalakyatantra (ENT/ophthalmology), Shalyatantra (surgery), Kaumarabhritya (pediatrics), Agadatantra (toxicology), Bhutavidya (psychiatry), Rasayana (rejuvenation), and Vajikarana (virility).
Why it matters for Chyawanprash
Ashtanga Hridaya’s Uttarasthana chapter on Rasayana cites the Chyawanprash formulation tradition with reference to Charaka Chikitsasthana 1.1 (Rasayana Adhyaya, Abhayamalakiya pada). Vagbhata’s compact verse-treatment of the Rasayana concept became the primary teaching reference for Kerala and South Indian Ayurvedic schools — hence the enduring pedagogical centrality of the text.
Vagbhata also codifies the viruddha (incompatibility) doctrine — Sutrasthana Chapter 7 — including the amrita-tulyam madhu vishavat bhavati ushnikritam rule (honey heated becomes poisonous). This rule directly governs the Phase 4 cold-honey addition in classical Avaleha pharmacy.
Commentaries
- Sarvangasundara by Arunadatta (ca. 12th c.) — the foundational Sanskrit commentary
- Ayurvedarasayana by Hemadri (ca. 13th c.) — the second principal commentary
- Modern English translations: Srikantha Murthy (Chowkhamba), Ranjit Rai Desai, and critical editions by CCRAS
See also
- Sharangadhara Samhita
- Chyawanprash
- Chyawanprash Royale
- Rasayana
- Avaleha
Classical-text reference hub. Expand with chapter-level citation index as needed.
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