Rasa Jala Nidhi, vol 3: Metals, Gems and other substances
by Bhudeb Mookerjee | 1938 | 47,185 words | ISBN-10: 8170305829 | ISBN-13: 9788170305828
This third volume of the Rasa-jala-nidhi deals with purification techniques of the Seven Metals (sapta-dhatu) and various Gems (ratna). It also deals with substances such as Alkalis (kshara), Salts (lavana), Poisions (visha) and Semi-poisions (upavisha) as well as various alcholic liquors. The Rasa-jala-nidhi (“the ocean of Iatrochemistry, or, che...
Part 12 - Fermented non-alcoholics (1-2): Asava and Arista
Asava is a fermented liquid prepared from several drugs immersed for a sufficiently long time in water, which does not require any heating and boiling.
Arista is also a fermented liquid, prepared from several drugs, immersed, for a sufficiently long time, in decoction of prescribed drugs.
The dose of both of these is one pala or four tolas (to be taken twice a day).
(The difference between arista and asava is that the former is to be fermented in a decoction of drugs prescribed differently in different cases, whereas the latter is a fermentation in cold water of drugs, prescribed differently in different cases. Both asavas and aristas form a class of important medicines.)
Proportion of materials in am Arista.
Where there is no specific mention of the quantities of the materials to be used in a certain arista, they are to be taken as follows:—The quantity of the decoction (of the materials to be mentioned in each case) is one drona (16 prasthas or 16 x 64 tolas) j that of gurh is four hundred tolas (or 6½ prasthas); and of honey 200 tolas (or 3⅕ prasthas); and that of the materials to be kept immersed is one tenth of the gurh (molasses).
Conclusion:
This concludes ‘Fermented non-alcoholics (1-2): Asava and Arista’ included in Bhudeb Mookerjee Rasa Jala Nidhi, vol 3: Initiation, Mercury and Laboratory. The text includes treatments, recipes and remedies and is categorised as Rasa Shastra: an important branch of Ayurveda that specialises in medicinal/ herbal chemistry, alchemy and mineralogy, for the purpose of prolonging and preserving life.