A REVIEW OF BHAVAPRAKASHA: AN IMPORTANT AYURVEDIC TREATISE

Abstract

Bhavaprakasha is a 16th-century AD medicinal treatise authored by Acharya Bhavamishra. This is one of the best collections of medical information about the use of medicinal plants and the treatment of various diseases popular in the medieval period. This present work is an attempt to summarise the key features of Bhavapraksha to highlight its utility and contribution to the field of Ayurveda and Botany. A critical review of Bhavapraksha was done, and the collected information was compared with other available literature on Nigantu and treatises of that period. The puravardha bhaga (first part) contains the purava khanda of this treatise, which has a lot of information on the basic concepts and five purificatory methods (panchakarma) along with the nighantu (lexicon) portion. The Nighantu part clarifies many controversies on medicinal herbs and exemplifies many exotic plant species, making it highly respected among Ayurvedic scholars. The uttarardha bhaga (second part) consists of madhyam khanda and uttara khanda. Madhyam khanda deals with diagnosing and treating various diseases of the first six branches of Ayurveda, and uttara khanda has only two chapters related to Vrishya (Vajikarana) and Rasayana therapy. Bhavamishra also added some new herbs, formulations and treatment methods, enhancing this treatise's importance.