Introduction To Siddha Medicine System
Siddha came from the word Siddhi, which means perfection or heavenly bliss. Siddha system is popular in South India especially in Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, and Kerala. Siddha medicine is one of the traditional Indian systems of medicine. It is explained in Siddha that in normal equilibrium the three vital life factors that are, Vaadham, Pittham, and Kabam are in the ratio of 4:2:1 respectively. Disturbance in this equilibrium results in diseases. In diseased conditions, the three vital life factors are known as humor. The factors which affect this equilibrium are environment, climatic conditions, diet, physical activities, and stress. According to the Siddha system, diet and lifestyle play a major role in maintaining physical, mental, and social health.
The key siddhar that play role in Varma arts is Siddhar Agasthiar, he has written a detailed description of Varma in the Tamil language 5000 years ago. Later many copies his work and add a name like marma in Sanskrit and it also becomes acupuncture, pressure point when Siddhar Bogar and Bodhidharma brought this art to china. Since then this art developed significantly to various forms.
The original Varma art was actually a full fledged martial art and almost all the work in ancient times was using this art in hand on combat and it was deadly art too. As the turn of this century using the art for healing become prominent and detailed research was done on using this art “ the art that kills also heals” concept.
The development of this art basically focused on a section of the art which deals with the retrieval method. This aspect of art deal with what treatment can be given if certain Varma point had to be struck and cause the damage to the body, nowhere we need to know Varma strike on various point in the body can cause damage to the nerve, vein, internal organs, and can cause instant death, permanent disabilities. What was done in the healing aspect was how quickly can reverse this damage and save the body. The whole recent generation of Varma experts starts to focus on using the knowledge on retrieval to start the healings. There are many books written about it..so the question is what I am contributing to the Varma therapy and how it will be different.
I have written the book on using Varma for autism, making most simple way of using varma to help autism children, also I been using varma for treatment, what was interested me, all the method in varma therapy just becomes external therapy and we have mix result when applying for therapy, many time I found something is missing. I found out later most of the Varma assan (assan mean teacher or master) are not spiritually trained, they are heavily dependent on Varma scripture to do therapy. There are some aspect seems very mystical in Varma and because lack of insight none bothered to explore that. My adventure was on the ignored part of the Varma which so-called “mystical” which actually pure advance medical science. I decided to bring this out to the world and the key aspect of this part call energy. So this book will look at the old methods and discussion on the Varma points and also the advanced concept of Varma and energy.
We will discuss what was the Varma currently used in therapy. There are many aspects of the therapy but basically, it focuses on the Varma point and the manipulation as a single or combined point to get the result in the therapy. There is also an herbals aspect, massage aspect to this therapy. The know Varma we need to know the whole concept of Siddha medicine, without knowing the Siddha medicine the understanding of Varma becomes incomplete.
Introduction to Siddha System
Siddha Medicine
Siddha medicine brings you a promise, a promise of the resurgence of an age-old pure medical science that is more focused on wellness, service, and above all built upon the fundamental nature of man. It is the first completely documented medical science mankind has ever known and yet to know. Siddha Vaidya packs the power of cosmic, the surety of divinity, and the wholesomeness of nature, everything delivered with utmost ethics and humanness.
Siddha medicine when properly practiced,
(1) Can cure anything.
(2)Provide an alternative solution to surgical procedures through herbal preparations.
(3) Revolutionize health care by integrating the body, mind, and spirit.
(4) Give you insights from thousands of years of careful study and observation.
(5)Blessings and guidance of an immortal super force, the lineage of the 18 Siddhars in every decision you make, and every drug you administer.
Fundamentals of Siddha
The simple ethics that guide a Siddha Vaidhya
Use what is natural and God-given to remove
the unnatural and bring harmony and balance to the nervous system all these done in a holistic way to teach and support the body to heal not from external help but on ways of its own.
For what is within is outside too.
Siddha Vaidya has been serving humanity for more than 17,000 years and every moment its waits for a true practitioner to be born, who could be taught and trained in its ways. Today you have been chosen to begin a journey of a lifetime and much more. May the Siddhas bless you and always keep you in readiness to learn science that has transcended the tests of time that will wait for you to grow up to it.
History of Siddha Medicine
Siddha means an adept and the word Siddha evolved from the word ‘siddhi’ which means perfection. In India, especially south India, people who had mastery of siddhi or many siddhi’s were called Siddhars. It was these ancient mystics, siddhars, who spread this system of medicine to the world in a form and practice that’s still unmatched by any other system of medicine. The blend of spiritual wisdom and complete knowledge of the human body and the material medica to the utmost detail made this system of medicine one of the most potent systems the world has ever seen.
The evolution of Siddha system of medicine dates back to the time when humans started appearing on earth. The history of man starts with that of the Siddha as well; Siddha is the oldest yet, most relevant medical system available to mankind. It existed very well in India for many centuries which we could call the golden age of the Siddha. This medical system has its own well-developed chemistry and was molded by the tireless efforts of the Siddhas that resulted in the creation of thousands of mineral and metallic preparations, the signature of Siddha system.
Siddha Vaidyam originated in south India and is deeply rooted in the culture there. Siddha Vaidyam is understood to have been taught first by Lord Siva to his wife Goddess Parvathy. Parvathy in turn taught it to her son Lord Muruga who then transferred this wisdom to his disciple Agasthya, who spread it amongst humans.
The knowledge in its real form, when transferred to Agasthya was in a form that could be understood only by Gods and has been referred to as Mun Nool or the first texts. Agatshya and his 18 disciples have been the most prominent clan of ancient time Siddhars, who perfected this art in this world. They converted the Mun Nool into elaborate slokas or poems that could be assimilated by humans and these poems expounded in great detail the wisdom of Lord Shiva. Later the disciples of the 18 Siddhars noted these poems into palm-leaf manuscripts which form the basis of the Siddha system we know now. This vast knowledge later came to be called the Siddha system, which included medicine as well. The teachings were taught in Tamil, (a south Indian language) the language of the Siddhas.
The Siddha slokams of Mun Nool (the first scripture) goes like this:
Mangala ulakam pottum vaidyanathan thanpal Sankari ketta saram Shanmughan thelinthu pinpal Thanka Agathyarkku othacharthulla cheedar thannal Ingithamake chonnar epparum Aadi Noolae
This Tamil slokam or verse unequivocally proclaims that Siddha wisdom had originated from Lord Siva himself. Siddha Vaidyam or the Siddha medical sciences is the first documented complete medical system known to the human race. Strongly steeped in spirituality, Siddha Vaidya takes its the power of healing from nature itself.
Traditionally, medical approaches have been classified into three gana’s or classes viz. the Deva Vaidyam or the Medicine of the Gods, the Manusha vaidyam, or the medicine of the humans, and the Asura vaidyam or medicine of the demons. As these classes indicate, the scope of these approaches also varies. The only system that employs Deva Vaidyam to such efficacy is Siddha Vaidyam. A good example where asura vaidyam is predominantly used is modern surgical medicine.
The Siddha tackles the body, mind, and spirit at the same time hence was known to cure any kind of diseases, and techniques in Deva Vaidyam were known to replace surgeries. Siddha has a strong foundation of tens of thousands of years of clinical practice and collective wisdom of several generations of Siddhars, who dedicated their lives for research and acquisition of knowledge. Today’s Siddha physician is guided by these years of experience handed down through centuries and hence makes Siddha the most potent medical system available to mankind.
Origin of Siddha and Agasthya Muni
In Dravidian mythologies, the birth of diseases has been attributed to a misunderstanding between the two primal forces, creation, and sustenance. The force of creation (Brahma) and the force of sustenance (Vishnu) went into a clash that resulted in an aberration of the creative force which resulted in the creation of diseases. A solution could only be then mediated by the force of destruction (Shiva) who was not involved in this quarrel. Lord Shiva enclosed his sperm inside a ceramic pot and created the first test-tube baby, who matured as a great sage, Agasthya. Agasthya was born with tremendous knowledge and wisdom. Agasthya further developed this knowledge base with his father’s help and time witnessed the maturation of Agasthya into a great sage and scientist. Sage Agasthya never grew physically, attaining the height of only three hand spans. He developed Siddha Vaidya into the great medical science we see today.
It is said that when the first leaf of the first plant (It was a grass named karuka) sprouted on earth, Agatshya was there to witness it. Henceforth each plant, each animal, each element, each mineral, and each non-living thing that were created thereafter appeared to Agathya muni and explained its innate properties and medicinal values to him. This vast knowledge forms the foundation of drugs preparation in Siddha Vaidyam.
Agsthya muni is an immortal saint who achieved the light body and is known to still live in the Western Ghats especially near to courtallam and agastya malai. It was sage agasthya who originally taught and transmitted to several of his disciples over the ages the Kriya yoga techniques of divinizing the cells of the body and to achieve the body of light.
Siddha medicine is an ancient medical science, is has a strong history in ancient civilizations, spirituality, and mythology regarding its origin. The historical explanation is based on observations from archeology, oral history, and philological findings. Oral and written histories—as evident in the Vedas, the earliest of Indian writings that are decipherable—allude to earlier civilizations.
In ancient India, people of knowledge, science and wisdom were known generally as sages, and they were respected and played a pivotal role in modifying society. They were the generators and custodians of philosophy and the knowledge base. Archeological excavation in India on many ancient civilizations reveals how developed past civilization was, advanced enough to match with our modern day’s amenities. This is the Dravdian civilization, the most ancient and the cradle of humanity. Dravidians were advanced in many fronts of knowledge, especially spirituality. This civilization was cosmopolitan in outlook, welcoming different races and people into their culture, allowing them to live in peace. A society of communal living, equality and based on love and peace. The strong spiritual backbone of the society has provided the necessary cement that bonded the humanity in this civilization. Archaeological findings show statues of people in meditative and yogic postures which was never seen in other excavation sites of other civilisations around the globe.
It was into this civilsation, the Siddhars were born into. Their ageless wisdom in form of 64 arts, including medicine, became the foundation of the Dravidian civilsation and many other civilisations in the world. During the Aryan invasion of India, the dravidians were pushed to the south of India, now th modern states of Tamilnadu and Kerala.
The earlier writings of Siddha medicine still lay untranslated, as there are no keys to the Dravidian script that can link it to more modern languages like Sanskrit. From the place of origin in the Western part of India, Siddha Vaidya traveled with the Dravidian people as they moved south and established a home base in southern India.
When we reach back in time to reveal the gift of the Dravidian culture’s stunning medical system of healing, we are also reaching back into our own conception and healing the fundamental actuality and idea of disease in our body/mind/heart/spirit at the atomic level of its origin.
Today, many theories have been put forward by scholars to explain the origins of Siddha system of medicine including the theory of the Lemurian origin where Siddha originated from a landmass called the kumari kandam. Kumari kandam is considered the cradle of man, which was slowly lost under the sea over a period of 3500 years. The lanka of Ravana is also supposed to be located in this Kumari kandam. Sage Agasthya and his disciples then led civilizations out into Java and ambodia and Central and South America, during the inundation of the kumara kandam, and spread into different areas world later popularly known as legends of the Incas, Mayans, and Aztecs of South America.
There is also a theory of indigenous origin where the origin of the Siddha system is thought to have occurred in south India, especially in Tamil Nadu. Tamil is the language of the Siddhas. There is also a theory of Mediterranean origin where the Dravidians came to India and were then later forced into south India during Aryan invasion.