Pain and Tumour that gives guidelines on causative factors, pathogenesis, prognosis & treatment

Ayurveda for a healthy life ! – 40/2024 on 16.11.2024

3.     Pain     

Pain indicates dysfunction of a particular organ, forces the patient to see his physician, who otherwise is likely to ignore other minor symptoms. As pain is a late symptom of prachayatmak disease, the diagnosis of cancer is often missed for a long time and by the time the patient suffers from pain, the disease has already disseminated and advanced to the incurable stage. Site of the pain indicates the organ affected and character of pain indicates dosha respon­sible for the pain example acute splitting or pricking unbearable pain is always due to increased or vitiated vata example the pain of angina pectoris is due to spasm of coronary vessels due to increased vata in the heart. The burning pain indicates increased pitta, whereas the sense of heaviness indicates increased kapha. The time of aggravation of pain, its relation to food and activity and relieving factors give important clues to the physician.

4.     Tumour

Tumour occurs as a result of collection of molecules or the abnormal & exce­ssive growth of cells. Tumour represents an attempt of the body to localise abnormal molecules or cells so that they do not derange the function. If the same abnormal molecules or cells had disseminated all over the body, the disease would have become incurable, progressed fast and diminished the life span of the individual, example Lympho-sarcoma, a malignant disease can be treated effectively by surgical removal and irradiation. The same lymphosarcoma, when disseminated gives rise to leukemia, which is much more difficult to control and erradicate as the malignant cells are disseminated throughout the body.

The site, character, consistency etc. of tumour gives guidelines to the physician about the causative factors, pathogenesis, prognosis & treatment, so that he can treat the patient appropriately. Every individual symptom gives guidelines to the physician about the etiology.

A.     Muscle cramps : This indicate increased vata as a result of excessive exertion or eating diet which is dominant in vata molecules. If dietetic factors are the root cause of cramps, no amount of rest, massage etc. can help the patient fully. The general treatment of muscle cramps will be directed towards
1. rest 2. oil massage and wet fomentation, which will neutralise the local vata. 3. The diet predominant in ghee, oil, sour, salty and sweet food items. 4. muscle tonics like Kharik, Ashwagandha, Vidarikanda.

B.    Sarvangadaha – Burning sensation all over the body : This indicates increased molecules of pitta all over the body, which are affecting blood as well as the nervous tissue (majja dhatu). The treatment consists of correcting the root cause, which may be working in the Sun, kitchen or mines for a long time and consuming regularly pungent, sour and salty food items, or psychological factors like anger (increase in raja molecules, which in turn increase pitta molecules). The treatment consists of

1. cooling measures like remaining in air-conditioned rooms and application of cooling paste of sandalwood 2. avoiding pungent, sour and salty food items and consumption of sweet and bitter food items 3. cooling tonics for blood like dried black grapes, dates, amalaka, chandana etc. 4. cooling measures (diet and tonics) for majja dhatu example Kushmanda, Ghee, Coconut, Brahmi, Praval etc.

  C.     Sense of heaviness in the body : Heaviness is caused by

1.  increase in the weight that is fat 2. oedema 3. laziness and inactivity 4. eating excess of sweet, sour and salty items which will increase kapha molecules. Treatment consists of 1. correcting the root cause 2. advising exercises 3. advising diet dominant in pungent and bitter food items avoiding excess of sweet, sour, salty and fatty food items. 4. medicines and tonics which decrease the fatty tissue in the body like Haritaki, Ginger, garlic, Horse-gram, Yava. etc. Even a minor symptom indicates disturbance in the balanced state of vata, pitta, kapha, tissues or waste products, which is the beginning of the disease process. If every symptom is scanned and treated appropriately as mentioned above majority of the diseases can be cured. Even in established diseases like rajayakhsma that is tuber­culosis, grahani that is malabsorption, madhumeha that is diabetes mellitus, the individual symptoms of every patient suffering from the same disease differ. Each individual symptom give us guidelines to the dosha, dhatu and mala affected & hence the physician should treat all the cases suffering from the same disease in individual manner considering the state of his doshas, dhatus and malas.

Rogapaharakshamata (Defence mechanisms of the body)

Every living organism has to adapt and struggle continuously to maintain its structural and functional integrity.

At birth, the organism is thrown into an infinite universe and its chance of survival can be compared only to a certain extent with that of a small boat sailing singly in an ocean. Every living creature is continuously attacked by the five basic elements namely space, wind, energy, water and earth. On the other hand, this little creature tries not only to adapt continuously to the changing environment, but utilises, digests, absorbs and assimilates the same elements and grows and survives on them. In this struggle between the individual & the environment if the individual wins that is controls & utilises the environment in a masterly manner, he enjoys sound health. If the individual cannot face the environment in an effective manner, but continues to struggle and survive, he suffers from a disease. On the other hand if environment wins, death ensues. Thus, health or disease is the result of interplay of resistance of the individual and environment.

Man has to constantly adjust to continuously changing environment example temperature, humidity, breeze etc. which vary from time to time, from day to day and from season to season. Man has developed some control over environment example by using air-conditioners and heating devices he can still maintain comfortable ambient temperature. Ayurveda has outlined daily & seasonal regimen so that one can withstand daily and seasonal changes in the environment easily and one doesn’t become a prey to the disease.

Every individual is born with a specific constitution, which he inherits from his parents. A person with healthy genes has an ideal constitution, which can resist various stresses & strains in life easily. More the defective genes, worse is the constitution. Such a person suffers from severe diseases & dies a premature death. The constitution that is resistance is constantly modified by diet, rest, activity, happiness, sorrow and environmental factors.

In Ayurveda, defence mechanism that is resistance at various levels is described in Particular way – Contd.