Talk:Dhanvantari
By Swami Harshananda
Āyurveda is an ancient science of health and longevity. Dhanvantari is said to be the inventor of this science.
Dhanvantari Origin[edit]
Dhanvantari is considered as a partial manifestation of Viṣṇu and the physician of the gods. During the churning of ocean of milk, he rose with the amṛta-kalaśa or pot of ambrosia in his hands.
Rebirth as Divodāsa[edit]
Dhanvantari was reborn as Divodāsa, the king of Kāśī and composed a standard and basic work on the Āyurveda, comprising of eight sections.
Dhanvantari, The Title[edit]
Eventually, ‘Dhanvantari’ became a title for the best physician. The reference parameters were decided as per expertise. It is mentioned below:
- Dhanvantari - expert of 300 medicines.
- Bhiṣak - expert of 200 medicines
- Vaidya - expert of 100 medicines
Iconographic Representation[edit]
Dhanvantari icons are shown in various postures. It can be represented as:
- A two-armed figure holding the amrtakalaśa or the pot of ambrosia is the most common.
- He is shown with four or even six arms, holding the emblems of Viṣṇu like śaṅkha and cakra, apart from the amrtakalaśa.
- Sometimes he is shown as bathing himself with the amṛta or nectar, pouring it from the pot.
- In one of the more curious forms he is shown holding a leach in one of his hands, suggesting blood-letting or surgery.
Works by Dhanvantari[edit]
Nineteen works authored by Dhanvantari have found mention in other standard works. Some of them are:
- Cikitsā-dipikā
- Bālacikitsā
- Dhanvantari-nighantu
- Vaidya-bhāskarodaya
- Āyurveda- sārāvali
The Dhanvantari-nighantu is considered as the most ancient of these works.
Textual References[edit]
Dhanvantari has been mentioned in several works such as Rāmāyana, Harivamśa and Bhāgavata.
References[edit]
- The Concise Encyclopedia of Hinduism, Swami Harshananda, Ram Krishna Math, Bangalore