Hygiene in the Åyurvedic sense of ‘knowledge of life’ is the axis of
the ancient medical traditions of Greece and China as well as India. Al-
though these medical systems developed advanced medical knowledge
and procedures, the foundation of each was proper hygienic measures.
Plato’sTimaeus says of diseases:
... if anyone regardless of the appointed time tries to subdue them by
medicine, he only aggravates and multiplies them. Wherefore we ought
always to manage them by regimen, as far as a man can spare the time,
and not provoke a disagreeable enemy by medicines.^81
The Huang Ti Nei Ching Su Wên,“The Yellow Emperor’s Classic of
Internal Medicine,” opens with discussion of why people become so de-
crepit and no longer live to be a hundred years old. The answer: formerly,
they practiced temperance based on understanding the tao and con-
ducted themselves in accord with yin and yang.
There was temperance in eating and drinking. Their hours of rising and
retiring were regular and not disorderly and wild. By these means the
ancients kept their bodies united with their souls, so as to fulfil their al-
lotted span completely, measuring unto a hundred years before they
passed away.^82The Caraka-samhitÓ a— ̄ along with its extensive presentation of theory and
procedures for prevention, diagnosis, and treatment by pharmacological,
surgical, and other means—conveys many points of hygiene, such as rec-
ommendations for diet, exercise, seasonal regimen, grooming, massage,
and maintaining the physique. Cakrap ̄aÓnidatta’s commentary, Åyurveda
D ̄ıpika, ̄ states that “of all the factors for the maintenance of positive
health, food taken in proper quantity occupies the most important posi-
tion” [AD 1:5.1]. Several verses are devoted to instruction on the taking
and healthful utilization of nourishment. For instance, it is recommended
that one note the relative heaviness of food, and leave about one-third of
one’s stomach capacity unfilled, to assist the power of digestion [CS
1:5.7]. In the humble matter of consuming food, Åyurveda reveals a seri-
ous implication of the ancient medical systems’ emphasis on ‘knowledge
of life’: the individual’s self-responsibility and power to maintain his or
her own health. Åyurveda emphasizes:
- The individual’s particular type of constitution—physical and psy-
chological. - A holistic theory of the environment, focusing on the individual’s
body and philosophies of healing 41