India has a medical heritage that has the longest  continous history in human civilization.About 7500 species of plants are in use by 4635 ethnic communities for human and veterinary healthcare across the various echo systems of  this sub continent.Indian traditional  health care programmes function through  two social streams.One is the local or folk system which  is purely decentralised and empirical leased  on local

resources .The  system is highly region specific and  community rooted.

The second stream is based on codified knowledge. This system has sophisticated theoratical foundations in the form of lexicons, palm leaf medical manuals etc. Perhaps a lakh in number, of which, only one percent or so are currently available for reference. The rest are yet to be decoded. Palm leaf manuscripts enjoy  a rare

relevance and significance because they contain age old nuggets of knowledge  and wisdom. In a world which relied on palmleaf for inscribing vital matters , palm leaf texts preserved  aworld of scholarly insights and rare herbal formula for posterity thereby keeping alive a tradition, transcending a passage of time and generations.

The codifioed systems of Indian medicine comprise of Ayurveda, Sidha, Unani  and the Tibetian system or

Amchi.These  apart there are a number of ill proven therapies  and  practises such  as  Magnetotherapy, Aroma Therapy , Reiki, Pranic healing, Bee pollen therapy, Shark cartilage therapy etc  as  alternate systems of  medicines.Of the various traditional systems of medicines in India, Ayurveda is the most ancient  one. According to astronomical  calculations, the period of origin of Ayurveda is bnetween  4500  B   C  and 2500 BC.

Currently the system provides 750 odd conventional formulations  recognised  by the government  of India as traditional medicines  and  qualify for  medical reimbursement  and insurence claims. As many  as 700 species  of  flowering  plants are used as raw  drugs for  Ayurvedic preparations.Rigveda (3000 B C) the  oldest  book in the library of man mentions the use of 107  flowering plants for health care programmes.

Yajurveda  deals with  81  medicinal plants and  Atherva veda (2000 B C )records 290 plants.

Charaka Samhita (900 B C ) mentions 341 plants.

Susrutha (2ns century BC ) deals with 395 species Susrutha is the father of  Surgery.  He performed allmost  all the general surgeries  in his period. It is  believed that  he used a secret anesthesia “ Sammohini vidya” by

performing surgery.

Susrutha samhita is the first  written documentation known describing  surgical  methods to be adopted in

different ailments and anatomical study of human body.

The codified medical lexicons of Ayurveda studies enumerate some 1700 species of plants that are fully documented in terms of their biological properties, actions and drug formulations foe a range of health conditions from a common cold to raising of the body’s general immunity.

Check lists of plants do exist but rigorously  referenced inventories from the corpus of original lists of the

plants used in Ayurveda,Sidha,Unani and Tibetian Medical Systems are lacking.

The science of plant life dealing with drug plants is known as ‘ Vrkshayurveda”.The Ayurvedic literature on

nonemclature of plants may be categorised into 3 sections as suggested below.

1.Ancient Period - upto 7th century A.D.

2.Medieval  - 8th Century A.D. to 15th Century A.D.

3.Recent or Modern - 16th Century A.D. onwards

Ancient period: We have to start with Vedas where 162 plants find a place. The quantum numbers of plants mentioned is the present paper do not stand unatterable since one plant is referred to by many hams and one and the same plant refers to many different taxonomic entities. In addition   Vedic plants the following sanhitas are written is the Ancient period to describe the plant. 1. Charaka Samhita (1100 plant names). 2. Susruta Samhita 1250 names 3.Brahittrayi Samhita and Ashtanga Hrudaya (1150 names)

During Medieval period a number of  encyclopedias were written containing elaborate details  of plants  with synonyms.A list of such compilations is given below.

1)The oldest is Dravyavali.(500 A D).This is now available as the Dhanwanthari Nighantu.

2)Ashtanga Nighantu of Vagbhata (7th-9th century AD)

3)Paryaya Ratnamala of  Madhava (9th century A D )

4)Sidhasara Nighantu of Ravigupt (9th century A D )

5) Indu Nighantu 11th century

6) Dravya guna  Sangraha of Chakrapanidalla

7)Nighantu Sesa of Hemacandra (12 th century)

8)         Sodhala Nighantu of Sodhala (12th Century)

9)         Madhava dravyaguna (13th Century)

10)       Sidhamandra of Kesava  (13th Century)

11)       Hridaya Dipika Nighantu  (13th Century)

12)       Sushava Vaidyaka or Ayruveda Mahanidhi (14th Century)

13)       Madanapala Nighantu (1374 AD)

14)       Kayyadeve Nighantu 1450

Modern Period:-

1.         Bhavaprakaso Nighantu 166AD

2.         Raja Nighantu (17 th Century)

3.         Vaidyavatamsam  (17th Century)

4.         Dravyaguna Satakam (17th Century)

5.         Siva Kosa (17th Century)

6.         Raja Vallabha (18th Century)

7.         Nighantu Retnakaram (18th Century)

8.         Nighantu Samgraham 1893

9.         Saligrama Nighantu 1896

                                      Content from “Global Ayurveda” Magazine

Prof T A Panicker