Shloka 32
Aśva–Gaja Āyurveda: Marks, Defects, Wounds, Doṣa-Therapy, and Protective Rites
हरीतकी गवां मूत्रैस्तैलेन लवणान्विता / आदौ पञ्च ततः पञ्च वृद्ध्या पूर्णशतावधि / उत्तमा च शतं मात्रास्त्वशीतिः षष्टिरेव वा
harītakī gavāṃ mūtraistailena lavaṇānvitā / ādau pañca tataḥ pañca vṛddhyā pūrṇaśatāvadhi / uttamā ca śataṃ mātrāstvaśītiḥ ṣaṣṭireva vā
Harītakī (chebulic myrobalan) should be administered mixed with cow’s urine, oil, and salt. One should begin with five measures, then increase by five each time, continuing up to a full hundred. The finest dose is a hundred measures, though eighty or sixty may also be used.
Lord Vishnu (in instruction to Garuda/Vinata-putra)
Concept: Right measure (mātrā) and gradual increase (vṛddhi) in treatment; discipline in application.
Vedantic Theme: Yukti (skillful means) and niyama (regulated conduct) as supports for well-being.
Application: Use titration: start low, increase stepwise; respect maximum and alternative doses according to strength and need.
Primary Rasa: shanta
Related Themes: Garuda Purana 1.201.33-36 (gajāyurveda context; mantric/ritual adjuncts)
FAQs
This verse gives a precise traditional formulation—harītakī combined with cow’s urine, oil, and salt—and specifies a graduated dosing method, indicating its use as a purificatory/therapeutic measure within Garuda Purana’s remedial framework.
In the Preta Kanda context, such instructions function as practical remedies and purification measures that support ritual fitness and relief from conditions discussed alongside post-death rites and preta-related topics.
It highlights disciplined, gradual dosing and careful formulation rather than impulsive use; if applied today, it should be approached through qualified traditional/Ayurvedic guidance, respecting purity and measured practice.