Home

Charaka

Charaka is traditionally regarded as one of the principal early figures in Ayurveda, the ancient Indian system of medicine. He is credited with composing the Charaka Samhita, a foundational medical treatise that became one of the core texts of Ayurvedic doctrine. Historical details about Charaka’s life are sparse and surrounded by legend; most scholars place his activity in the early centuries CE, with some dating possibilities extending from late classical to post-Gupta periods. The figure of Charaka appears in traditional biographies and in later commentaries that preserve the authority of his work within the medical tradition.

The Charaka Samhita is a comprehensive compendium on medical theory, diagnosis, treatment, and pharmacology. It covers

Charaka’s influence on Indian medicine has been profound. The Samhita shaped classical Ayurvedic education and practice,

the
causes
and
progression
of
disease,
methods
of
patient
examination,
prognosis,
and
the
classification
of
ailments.
A
central
aspect
of
the
text
is
the
theory
of
the
three
doshas—Vata,
Pitta,
and
Kapha—which
are
thought
to
govern
physiological
processes
and
disease.
The
work
also
emphasizes
preventive
care,
daily
and
seasonal
routines,
diet,
and
lifestyle
as
essential
elements
of
health.
In
pharmacology,
it
catalogues
numerous
herbs
and
formulations,
detailing
their
indications
and
usage.
guiding
physicians
for
centuries
and
informing
later
treatises
and
commentaries.
Modern
scholarship
treats
Charaka
as
a
pivotal,
perhaps
partially
composite,
figure
in
the
early
Ayurvedic
tradition,
with
the
surviving
text
representing
a
synthesis
of
earlier
oral
knowledge
and
later
editorial
work.
The
Charaka
Samhita
remains
a
key
source
for
understanding
ancient
medical
theory,
clinical
reasoning,
and
the
long-standing
emphasis
on
holistic
health.