Vedic Microbiology-The oldest Science

VEDIC MICROBIOLOGY

              The oldest Science

                  By Harpreet Kaur

Microbiology,  am sure after the Coronavirus pandemic situation, now everyone is very much aware of this term. It is the science that deals with study of invisible microscopic organisms that can not be seen with naked eyes!  It includes Bacteria, viruses, fungi, helminthes, protozoa and even algae. You might also have read or heard about various fields of Microbiology like Aeromicrobiology, water Microbiology, Medical Microbiology, pharmaceutical Microbiology or Agriculture Microbiology.

 But do you know the latest trend of the Microbiology? No! Don't worry guys you are at the right place because today I will introduce you to a new field known as Vedic Microbiology……..

  Ironically, it is the newest field regarding the oldest facts alive about Microbiology and Microorganisms in India in the form of  religious texts called as Vedas.

INTRODUCTION

Let us just dive into a brief introduction of Vedas, for those who don't know what vedas actually signify in an Indian Community. Being the oldest written scriptures the language used to write this information was Sanskrit often known vedic sanskrit. In Sanskrit , the term Veda means "knowledge" or  "to know".

There are four important vedas in Hinduism written by different Rishis over time.Rishis acquired the knowledge by worshipping god over a long period of time and to keep this knowledge and wisdom alive for the sake of humanity they wrote it down in the form of Vedas.  These four vedas include:-

• The Rigveda

• The Yajur veda

• The Samveda

• The Atharvaveda

Some believe that vedas are affiliated by god themselves, out of the four Vedas three -Rigveda, Yajur veda and sama veda were given affiliation by Lord Brahma and Atharvaveda was given affiliation by Lord Shiva himself.

The oldest part of Rigveda written in around 1500-1200 BCE in north-western parts of India mainly Punjab and Book 10 of Rigveda along with the Yajur veda, the Samaveda and the Atharvaveda were written in 1200-900 BCE( the time of kuru kingdom) in eastern parts between the Yamuna and the Ganges. These vedas constitute knowledge about Mantras and benedictions, text on rituals, ceremonies, sacrifices and symbolic-sacrifices, Commentaries on rituals, ceremonies and sacrifices and text discussing meditation, philosophy and spiritual knowledge.

VEDIC MICROBIOLOGY

The connection between Microbiology and the vedas is known as Vedic Microbiology. Vedic Microbiology can be defined as the study of microorganism or microscopic objects applied with the knowledge of oldest written scriptures ,the Vedas is called as Vedic Microbiology.

The first ever description of Microorganisms can be found in Rigveda as well as in Mahabharata where lord Krishna himself suggest the idea of invisible organisms that cannot be seen but are present .

He also introduced the divine Microscope to Arjuna in the battlefield of Kurukshetra where he showed Arjuna the things that are not visible through eyes but were there always in front of everyone.

He said" Na Tu Maa Shakayse ,Drashtomanenev savachakashusha,,   Divya damami te chakshu ,pashya me yogmeshvaram,,!"

Which means that Arjuna there are things that you cannot see with your naked eyes so , here I give you a divine sight that will help you see the unhorizoned abilities of the real world and me.

Germ theory of diseases

We know that Germ theory of diseases was established by Robert koch, Henle, Louise pasteur and De bary. Thus,  occurred beginning of The Golden era of Microbiology (1860-1910) in the western hemisphere.

But what if I tell you that this information was first introduced in 1200-900 BCE. Yes, thats what Dr.Chakradhar frend of Vedic Microbiology Virtual University, Surat of India wrote in one of his paper, that later got published in Vedic Science Journal of India. The title of his paper was " Microbiology in the Veda( A Revived History)".  He cited information that Vedas are the first text in the world to record nexus between microbes and diseases. 

Rigveda, Yajur Veda and Atharvaveda followed by Ayurveda provide rich insight into microbial sciences that existed in Bharat ( India)  many thousands of years ago. There are many facts in Vedas that suggests that Germ theory of Diseases was first established by Vedic Rishis in ancient India.

For instance, Rishi Agastya was the first person to state that invisible creatures are also toxin producers. He described it in Rigveda that there are two types of toxin producers :-

• either visible venomous one like snakes /scorpions or invisible one .

Atharvaveda also describes that whenever there is accumulation of toxins within the body a disease result.

Many Atharvavedic suktas namely Krimijambhanam, kriminasanam, Krimighnam and Rakshoghnam gives ample information about Microorganisms, its shape and size ,its organs/organelles, sexual differentiation, family, ecological niche ,its disease producing ability, contamination and its transmission.

Atharvaveda also describes these microorganism to be vulture-like (conveys saprophytic microbe) and wolf-like (conveys pathogenic microbes) in nature.

Related to ecological niche ,Atharvaveda highlights that these microbes are present in the earth, in waters and in the upper strata of the atmosphere, in the Forests ,in the Mountains. Not only this, they are also present in plants ,in the cattles and in the humans too.The motility of these microbes is mentioned too ,which in western hemisphere was discovered by Antony van leeuwenhoek around 1677.

But not only this, Atharvaveda and Yajur Veda proclaims Man to maintain hygienic conditions to avoid contamination and transmission of diseases.

 Yes ,The things we are learning nowadays because of Coronavirus pandemic! 

Atharvaveda warns that upon Contamination, disease-causing microbes enter into food, water and milk, which when consumed causes illness in Man.Yajur veda also suggests that microbes adheres to the container from which food or drink has been taken.when another person uses the same container without washing he suffers from illness too.

So, clearly there was already a lot of information written in the vedas for mankind to follow and learn however, we being dependent on others was never actually able to discover it until peoples started learning the knowledge of Vedas.

Diseases discovered in Ancient Vedas

Many diseases were reported in kings and Queens which were then analysed and cited in Atharva Veda and Ayurveda. 

Ayurveda has two parts that involves knowledge about Medical Microbiology .It includes Charaka samhita and Sushruta samhita and Atharvaveda constitute suktas to describe diseases and methods of cure.

According to Chander chakraborty, 'The diseases that are produced by the tyranny of God, through curses (phobia),sorceries of the Atharvaveda (infectious diseases) and through contagion (like syphilis) are daiva-vala (god sent).

Like in Sakandpuran, there is description of diseases like Mumps and Smallpox.

Galgandgraha roga ye chanye daruna niranam/ Tavdanudhyanmatren sheetle yanti sayam//

Here Galgandgraha roga means Mumps, a disease caused by Rubula virus (RNA containing virus) and cause inflammation and swelling in the mouth and throat of a person . In this disease a human is unable to eat or drink any thing ,the situation may get worse and death occur.

In Atharvaveda this disease is described with method of its cure , it says:

Apchinta lohnina krishna mateti shushrutam/ Mune devrvasaya mulen sarva vidhyami ta aham//

                          (Atharvaveda 7.74.1)

Here the second line actually provides a method of cure for the mumps ,it says the roots of Butea monosperma can be crushed and turned into a paste that can applied directly on throat region to relieve the patient from this disease.

The other disease being described in Sakandpuran is smallpox being caused by smallpox virus which is a DNA  containing virus.It says:

Ashtak shetladevya tho narr prapthetsada/

Which means that smallpox is a transmissible disease so one should avoid meeting peoples or making contact with them.Sufferers should practice social distancing during this time period.

Many other diseases are described in charaka samhita written by Atiputra.

He describes that kings got diseases related to excess sex like Yakshma( e.g.lord Moon) and Rajakshma (e.g. Vichitravirya).

Even a great social philosopher Vatsyayana in his work Kamasutra wrote that a woman should find a man who is free from diseases like leprosy and tuberculosis and firm addiction to alcohol also.

CONCLUSION

It can be concluded after studying all the facts that the origin of Microbiology actually occurred here in India thousands of years ago. The fathers of Microbiology were the Vedic Rishis who shared their knowledge with the world through Vedas. This knowledge is based on scientific analysis interwoven with the ambrosia of philosophy.

Instead of giving more emphasis on germ theory of diseases , Vedas directs us to maintain a toxin free life. It also describes various methods of prevention and cure of the diseases. Not only this but various vedic principles , that were used by the ancient peoples include sun bath to maintain a germ free and healthy life , washing hands before eating, washing clothes and used utensils before use and putting copper coins in fresh water lakes or rivers to clean it ( copper helps in settling down of dust particles and pollutants.) are a part of it.

So it is worth mentioning that vedas are one step ahead of today's scientists and microbiologists in terms of stating that maintain a toxin free life as well as germ free life. Hence, we should use this knowledge of Vedas and combining it with Modern concepts of Microbiology should try to cure miseries of this society caused by microorganisms.

REFERENCES

1. Vedic Science Journal 2006 

2. Wikipedia .com/vedas

3. Webinar organised by Kurukshetra university, haryana on topic Vedic Microbiology 2020

4. Dr. R.C. Dubey( Msc., Phd., F.B.S, F.P.S.I, F.N.R.S.) professor of kangri University, Haridwar who delivered the online webinar .

5. A textbook of Microbiology by Dr. R.C. Dubey and Maheshwari.

From crude herbals to Biopharmaceuticals

From Crude Herbal Drugs to Biopharmaceuticals

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By Harpreet kaur

INTRODUCTION

Mother Nature has endowed us all with immense resources for a happy living on this planet. Man is an important component in the Biosphere. Food and health for all is prime need of humanity. Due to unplanned and unmanaged exploitation of natural resources, life forms are getting threatened day by day. Increasing population is posing a pressure for expansion of arable land which is already squeezing due to reckless human activities. India is biodiversity rich country. Here Herbal drugs have served human beings since time immemorial.

Ancient Man is forefather and inventor of crude herbal drugs. He identified some plants/ plant parts on the basis of certain characteristic visual traits, flavors etc. For curing ailments. With repetitive use certain therapeutic values were tagged to these plants. Continous use and trials led to highlight side effects if any. As certain plant parts such as flowers and fruits were season specific, so the flora was further explored by them for alternate source of herbal substitutes. This fragmented knowledge was conserved and percolated generation after generation. 

How early man would have evaluated plants for curing ailments still remains an unsolved query? 

Even today strictly isolated tribal population with no connection to the outer developed world are using plants for food, shelter and medication. With the evolution of civilization early man progressed towards preservation pf crude herbals for future needs. Formulation preparation was a step further invented by early man for preservation and bio-efficacy of drug constituents.

Ayurveda is an ancient medical system over 5000 years old of folk healing in India. It restores a balance between the body and mind in disease prevention and treatment through diet and herbals. In yesteryears herbals were consumed for symptomatic treatment for short duration but now in developed nations they are disease prevention options as currently used in Coronavirus pandemic situations and these are also consumed for prophylactic or nutraceuticals benefits. Herbals are very popular in many countries. Globalization and international trading is pointing towards harmonization of universal uniform quality check parameters. Countries like India, China and Japan signifying safety and bio-efficacy  of herbal products have a different basis of assessment and screening herbals. In an era of patents, herbal products with therapeutic claims need to be distinguished for marketing and consumption. They are regulated as drugs if claimed for therapeutics, while herbals without such claims are grouped as food or cosmetics. Attempts are being made now world over to define clear cut regulatory guidelines on herbals and botanicals.

Herbal medicines

Herbal medicines have gained their popularity for both historical and cultural significance. Such products have become more widely available commercially, especially in developed countries. In some countries such as Germany , herbal products are sold as phytomedicines and are regulated for safety and efficacy as drug products while in USA herbal products are regulated as dietary supplements. Presently in developed countries concept of holistic or integrative medication system is gaining impetus whereby herbals are incorporated as alternative or complementary  options along with allopathy in patient care.

  WHO in 1993 invited experts to frame criteria as well as scientific principles for evaluation and authentication of herbal medicines . Experts recognized that some herbals qualified scientific parameters while others were used for traditional reasons only. All herbals need to be evaluated scientifically for safety and patenting issues. However, their traditional use over years should not be ignored and their time authentication can be used for drug development in future. Over the past five decades, Biotechnology has contributed immensely to the healthcare system. Molecular drugs are paving their way and Biopharmaceuticals have contributed immensely in transforming public health issues, increasing longevity and improving quality of life. Since a lot of top selling Biopharmaceuticals are on the verge of patent expiry, many generic drug makers are entering the market with similar products known as Biosimilars or follow -on- biologics.

Generally ,all the  bioBiopharmaceuticals have short half-lives in the body . Several approaches have been adopted to improve the half-life and thereby improving bioavailability by modifying the the biopharmaceuticals resulting in new formulation known as biobetter drugs. The interdisciplinary research collaboration between pharmacy and biotechnology has enormously boosted the pharma sector with more number of pharmaceutical companies now developing keen interest towards development of potential biomolecules. Biopharmaceuticals are large complex therapeutic drug molecules composed of amino acids,nucleotides and proteins obtained by extraction from non-conventional sources. The biopharmaceutical products inude:-

• Cytokines

• Interleukins

• Enzymes

• Hormones

• Monoclonal antibodies

• Clotting factors etc.

  

These biopharmaceuticals are characterized using standard mentioned in the Q5C and Q6B guidelines established by the International Council of Harmonization(ICH) and are analyzed for physicochemical, biological and immunological properties.

           India is a biodiversity rich country.Plant wealth and herbals can give India a lead in challenging areas of therapeutics. Traditional knowledge conserved mostly in rural areas will help boost rural economy along with advanced industrial boom. From crude herbals to biopharmaceuticals will generate ample of employment opportunities for youth of our country thus strengthening Indian economy at large.

"Fresh herbs belong to anywhere you put them"