Agniveśa (Āyurveda scholars)

There are eight sects in Āyurveda i.e. Ātreya, Dhanvantari, Śālākya, Bhūtavidyā, Kaumārbhṛtya, Agadatantra, Rasāyanatāntrika and Vājīkaraṇatāntrika. The most important books in Āyurveda after Atharvaveda are Maharṣi Agniveśa compiled the advice of Ātreya to create Agniveśatantra which was farther reformed by Caraka to composed Caraka-Saṃhitā.

Agniveśa was the most intelligent disciple of Punarvasu Ātreya. He was one among the six disciples of Ātreya. The methodology of teachings of Punarvasu Ātreya shows the clarifications by Ātreya to the questions raised by Agniveśa which proves the priority of Agniveśa among the six disciples of Ātreya. His period maybe 1000 BC. Agniveśa was the son of Devadatta. He was also called Hutāsa, Hutāsaveśa, Vahniveśa. Bhāgavat Purāṇa mentions him as the incarnation of God Agni. Agniveśa was the first man who composed a treatise known as Agniveśa Tantra in twelve thousand verses, eight divisions, one hundred twenty chapters but the original Agniveśa Tantra is not available now. It was revised by Caraka divided by Dṛḍhavala and available as Caraka-Saṃhitā, a popular book of General medicine. In total forty-one chapters are seventeen from cikitsā sthāna, twelve Kalpa sthāna, twelve Siddhi sthāna. Forty-one chapters were lost from Agniveśa Tantra. Formulations attributed to Agniveśa–Caṅgeri ghṛta, Vasādya ghṛta, Śataphala ghṛta, Tiktaka ghṛta, Mahātiktaka ghṛta, Tṛṣṇādya ghṛta. Works of Agniveśa–Agniveśa Tantra, Añjana Nidāna, Nidāna Sthāna, Nādi Parīkṣā, Rāmāyaṇa Rahasya, Rāmāyaṇa Śataśloki^[1].