Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Siddha Medicine (Tamil Citta- or Tami-maruttuvam) According to the manikuttan, there were 22 principal
is a system of traditional medicine originating in Tamil siddhars. Of these 22, Agasthya is believed to be the
Nadu in South India.[1][2]
father of siddha medicine. Siddhars were of the conTraditionally, it is taught that the siddhars laid the foun- cept that a healthy soul can only be developed through
a healthy body. So they developed methods and medidation for this system of medication. Siddhars were spiritual adepts who possessed the ashta siddhis, or the eight cation that are believed to strengthen their physical body
and thereby their souls. Men and women who dedicated
supernatural powers. Agastya is considered the rst siddha and the guru of all siddhars; the siddha system is be- their lives into developing the system were called Sidlieved to have been handed over to him by Murugan, son dhars. They practiced intense yogic practices, including
years of periodic fasting and meditation, and were beof Shiva and Parvati.[3]
lieved to have achieved supernatural powers and gained
The Ministry of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, the supreme wisdom and overall immortality. Through
Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy of the Government of this spiritually attained supreme knowledge, they wrote
India coordinates and promotes research in the elds of scriptures on all aspects of life, from arts to science and
ayurveda and Siddha medicine.[4] The Central Council truth of life to miracle cure for diseases.[10]
of Indian Medicine (CCIM), a statutory body established
in 1971 under AYUSH, monitors higher education in ar- From the manuscripts, the siddha system of medicine deeas of Indian medicine, including siddha medicine.[5] To veloped into part of Indian medical science. Today there
ght bioprospecting and unethical patents, India set up are recognized siddha medical colleges, run under the
the Traditional Knowledge Digital Library in 2001 as a government universities, where siddha medicine is taught.
repository of 223,000 formulations of various systems of Most of the practicing Siddha medical practitioners are
medicine common in India, such as ayurveda, unani, sid- traditionally trained, usually in families and by gurus
dha medicine and homeopathy.[6][7]
(teachers). When the guru is a martial arts teacher, he
is also known as an ashan. They make a diagnosis after a
patients visit and set about to refer to their manuscripts
for the appropriate remedies, which a true blue physi1 History
cian compounds by himself or herself, from thousands of
herbal and herbo-mineral resources. The methodology of
The Siddha science is a traditional treatment system gen- siddha thought has helped decipher many causes of disorerated from Dravidian culture. The Siddha ourished ders and the formulation of curious remedies which may
in the period of Indus Valley civilization.[8] Palm leaf sometimes have more than 250 ingredients.
manuscripts say that the Siddha system was rst described by Lord Shiva to his wife Parvati. Parvati explained all this knowledge to her son Lord Muruga. He
taught all these knowledge to his disciple sage Agasthya. 2 Basics
Agasthya taught 18 Siddhars and they spread this knowledge to human beings.[9]
Generally the basic concepts of the Siddha medicine are
The word Siddha comes from the word Siddhi which similar to Ayurveda. The only dierence appears to
means an object to be attained perfection or heavenly be that the siddha medicine recognizes predominance
bliss. Siddha focused to Ashtamahasiddhi, the eight of Vaadham, Pitham and Kabam in childhood, adultsupernatural power. Those who attained or achieved hood and old age, respectively, whereas in Ayurveda,
the above said powers are known as Siddhars. There it is totally reversed: Kabam is dominant in childhood,
were 18 important Siddhars in olden days and they devel- Vaatham in old age and Pitham in adults.
According to the Siddha medicine, various psychological and physiological functions of the body are attributed
to the combination of seven elements: rst is ooneer
(plasma) responsible for growth, development and nourishment; second is cheneer (blood) responsible for nourishing muscles, imparting colour and improving intellect; the third is oon (muscle) responsible for shape of
the body; fourth is koluppu/Kozhuppu (fatty tissue) responsible for oil balance and lubricating joints; fth is
elumbu (bone) responsible for body structure and posture
and movement; sixth is elumbu majjai (bone marrow) responsible for formation of blood corpuscles; and the last
is sukkilam (semen) responsible for reproduction. Like
in Ayurveda, in Siddha medicine also, the physiological
components of the human beings are classied as Vaadham (air), Pitham (re) and Kabam(earth and water).
TREATMENT
alcoholism.
4. Kan (eyes): muddy conjunctiva, yellowish or red in
pitham, pale in kabam.
5. Thodal (touch): dry in Vaatham, warm in pitham,
chill in kapha, sweating in dierent parts of the
body.
6. Malam (stool): black stools indicate Vaatham, yellow pitham, pale in kabam, dark red in ulcer and
shiny in terminal illness.
Diagnosis
7 Treatment
3. Kural (voice): normal in Vaatham, high-pitched The treatment in siddha medicine is aimed at keeping the
in pitham, low-pitched in kabam, slurred in three humors in equilibrium and maintenance of seven
3
elements. So proper diet, medicine and a disciplined regimen of life are advised for a healthy living and to restore equilibrium of humors in diseased condition. Saint
Thiruvalluvar explains four requisites of successful treatment. These are the patient, the attendant, physician and
medicine. When the physician is well-qualied and the
other agents possess the necessary qualities, even severe
diseases can be cured easily, according to these concepts.
9 Siddha today
Varmam
Varmam is a holistic therapy on its own and tackles the Commercially, Siddha medicine is practiced by
body, mind and spirit. A varmam expert understands the
underlying links between the body, vital life-force and the
Siddha family doctors (traditional practitioners), ofmind. If one looks at the long list of things which varmam
ten referred in Tamil as vaithiyars, have transferred
can do, one will be totally mesmerised by the deep science
knowledge to their children, and
and the indisputable healing it brings about. The human
Medically certied Siddha doctors who have studied
body can get into lot of accidents, minor and major, in its
in government Siddha medical colleges.
lifetime. Very rarely people are lucky enough to escape
accidents in life.
Varmams have been classied based on the type of pressure needed to injure: (a) Paduvarmam (varmam due 10 Educational institutions
to injury), (b) Thodu varmam (by touch); Thattu varmam (by blows); (c) Thaduvu varmam (by massage); (d) Government of Tamil Nadu runs two Siddha medical colNakku varmam (by licking i.e. tongue massage); and (e) leges:
Nokku (by staring). The widely used and recognised ones
are the 12 Paduvarmams and 96 Thoduvarmams; there is
Government
Siddha
Medical
College,
less consistency with the other categories simply because
Palayamkottai, Tirunelveli district
of the way of application or the deeper knowledge needed
Government Siddha Medical College, Anna Hospito apply them. In these categories, the Nokku varmam is
tal Campus, Arumbakkam, Chennai - 600106
the most awe-generating and is rarely seen practiced, as
13
EXTERNAL LINKS
[3] Siddha. Department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homoeopathy, Govt. of India.
[4] About us. CCRAS.
[5] CCIM
Medical
College,
[7] Know Instances of Patenting on the UES of Medicinal Plants in India. PIB, Ministry of Environment and
Forests. May 6, 2010.
[8] Anupam Kapil (2001). Numerology Made Easy. Penguin
Books India. p. 221.
[9] Siddha - Origin. CCRAS, Department of AYUSH, Indian Government. Retrieved 10 November 2011.
[10] Ayurveda & Siddha (PDF). Department of Scientic
& Industrial Research, Indian Government. Retrieved 10
November 2011.
[11] World Siddha Day. The Hindu (Erode, India). 16 April
2009.
[12] Siddha Day to be observed on 14 April. News Today
(Chennai, India). 24 March 2010.
[13]
[14] Master Murugan, Chillayah (20 October 2012). Siddha
Therapy, Natural Remedies and Self-Treatment. Varma
Kalai. Retrieved 31 May 2013.
[15] Herbs used in Siddha medicine for arthritis - A review
(PDF). Indian Journal of Traditional Knowledge. October
2007. Retrieved 10 November 2011.
Government of Sri Lanka runs three Siddha medical col- [16] Deivanayagam C N (2000). Traditional Medicine: Siddha therapy in HIV Disease a South Indian Experileges oering BSMS degrees:
Department of Siddha Medicine, University of
Jana, Kaithady, Jana, Sri Lanka
Unit of Siddha Medicine, Trincomalee Campus,
Eastern University, Trincomalee, Sri Lanka
11
See also
Sowa Rigpa
12
References
[1] Recipes for Immortality : Healing, Religion, and Community in South India: Healing, Religion, and Community in
South India, p.93, Wellington Richard S Weiss, Oxford
University Press, 22-Jan-2009
[2] The Encyclopedia of Ayurvedic Massage, John Douillard,
p. 3, North Atlantic Books, 2004
13 External links
Research Database on Ayurveda, Siddha, Other
Traditional Medicines and Related Sciences
(CCRAS)
14
14.1
14.2
Images
14.3
Content license