Āyurvedic aspects of Act I

Vijñāna (Śarmā) represents knowledge in the three vargas–dharma, artha and kāma. Jñāna (Śarmā) is knowledge and desire for mokṣa (liberation). To win over Rājayakṣmā, king of all diseases, trivargasādhana or Vijñāna is the prime requisite. Hence, the entry of Vijñāna Śarmā; and the time is early dawn.

Early dawn, is right time to wake up as it helps to get long life says a well-known adage:

brāhme muhūrtte uttiṣṭhet svastho rakṣārthamāyuṣaḥ |

Also Jīva has to be woken up with his faculties on the alert, Hence, Vijñāna Śarmā goes to wake up Jīva along with Buddhi, the queen. He says (I.17/18):

tadidānīṃ devyā prasannayā buddhyā saha rājā pratibuddhya nivaset |

Queen Buddhi's attendant is Dhāraṇā (retentiveness) who had been sent to spy on Rājayakṣmā. This power of the human intelligence, is quite necessary for scientific knowledge (Vijñāna).

Here, Dhāraṇā, the spy has gathered and retained information about the enemy side–Rājayakṣmā is very powerful and now is fully supported by his fearful team members who are–Jvara, Pāṇḍu, Prāmeha, Arśa, Śūla, Gulma, Bhagandara, Kāsa, Svāsa, Atīsāra, Sannipāta, Aśmarī and Vraṇas (I.26):

jvara-pāṇḍu-prameha-ārśaZ-śūla-gulma-bhagandarāḥ |
kāsa-śvāsa-ātīsāra-sannipāta-āśmarī-vraṇāḥ ||

Apart from these, there are one hundred head diseases, ninety four eye-diseases, eighteen nasal-diseases, eighteen ear-diseases, seventy four oral-diseases, and five types of heart-diseases (I.27):

rogā mūrdhni śataṃ caturnavatirevākṣṇostathā nāsikāṃ
  pratyaṣṭādaśa karṇayorapi tathā vaktre catussaptatiḥ |
paṣcaivaṃ hṛdi kiṃca santi bahavaḥ sarve'pyamī dustarāḥ
  prāptau kalkakaṣāyalehyavaṭakaprāyauṣadhānāmapi ||

As she exits after providing the information, the minister soliloquises (I.31/32) on the medicinal efficacy of Vāta, Pitta and Kapha, the serious faults. Many are the methods in treating the bad impacts of these according to the seriousness of their attacking level.

Most of the diseases, which are Vāta-oriented can be treated with various oils prepared with selected medicinal plants:

vātaḥ tu bahuvidhasnehaviśeṣaprayogeṇa vaśīkāryaḥ |

Pitta oriented diseases can be controlled by medicinal sweet drinks duly prepared:

pittasya madhuropacāreṇaiva sukaro vaśīkāraḥ |

For Kapha, the treatment of other two are not effective; only forcible means must be applied to control it.

ubhayaviruddho jaḍo yaḥ kaphaḥ tatretaropāyasya āprasarāt tīkṣṇaprayogeṇaiva sa vaśamānetavyaḥ |

When all these three are brought under absolute control, the other diseases basically born out of these three can also be totally treated (I.31/32):

evaṃ ca tattatsamucitairupāyaiḥ sarvāmayanidāneṣu vātādiṣu svādhīneṣu tajjanitā-nāmitareṣāmunmeṣa eva dūrato āpāstaḥ ||

Vijñāna also proclaims that to achieve all this, control of the mind is a must.

Mind which is fickle like the wind, can easily be guarded from the attacks of Yakṣmā and his group by diverting its attention upon practising Yoga (I.32):

sarvasmin viṣaye niraṅkuśatayā yaddurnirodhaṃ manaḥ
  prāyo vāyuriva prakṛṣṭabalavat sarvātmanā caṣcalam |
tat kāmādibhiruddhatairupahataṃ saṃpreritairyakṣmaṇā
  tatsauhārdamupetya yadyapi punarnaḥ prātikūlyaṃ caret ||
ātastadapi mahādhikāreṇa vaśīkṛtya mahati vyāpare^[1] viniyojya... |

Jīva being the king, the capital city is nothing but the body. Hence, the author has very intelligently made Prāṇa (life-breath) as the door-keeper, since Prāṇa activates the parts of the body, starting from the mouth.^[2]

Yakṣmā has declared that except the application of Rasa and Gandhaka none can conquer him (I.38/39):

rasagandhakaprayogamantareṇa saparivāro'ham ājayyaḥ |

Hence, the king is advised by Vijñāna Sarmā to pray to Śiva and Pārvatī to get from them, Rasa (the power of Śiva) and Gandhaka (the power of Devī) (I.39):

śambhorvīryaṃ raso nāma śarvāṇyā nāma gandhakaḥ |
tābhyāmeva prasannābhyāṃ tau grāhyāviti me matiḥ ||

Note: To obtain these, the king and queen are to go to Puṇḍarīkapura which is nothing but the heart and it is in the shape of a lotus bud. Jīva has to meditate in this hṛdpuṇḍarīka, on the divine couple. The Ayurvedic aspects get blended with Advaitic aspects here.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

The term mahati vyāpāra is explained by the commentator as the practice of Aṣṭāṅgayoga–(p.39): mahati vyāpāre–yamaniyamanididhyāsanādi-bāhyendriyanigraha karmaṇi |...

[2]:

Suśruta (Nidāna, I.13):
vāyuryo vaktrasaṣcārī sa prāṇo nāma dehadṛk |
so'nnaṃ praveśayatyantaḥ prāṇāṃścāpyavalambate ||