All about Siddha

Siddha medicine is an ancient Indian medicinal system. It was largely refined in South India, particularly in Tamil Nadu’s Palani hills, which have been rich in Siddha medicine’s greatest prominent solutions. The discipline was created by a group of specialists known as Siddhars. There were 18 notable Siddhars, with Agasthiyar being regarded as the founder of Siddha medicine.

Siddha – food is medicine, and medicine is food. Siddha medicine is a traditional medicine originating in South India. It is one of the oldest systems of medicine in India.

To become local “healers,” siddhars in rural India have historically studied ways through master-disciple partnerships. Siddhars are among India’s estimated 400,000 traditional healers, accounting for around 57 percent of rural medical treatment. Food, “humours” of the human body, and herbal, animal, or inorganic chemical substances such as sulphur and mercury employed as treatments for curing ailments, according to Siddha practitioners, are made up of five fundamental elements: earth, water, fire, air, and sky.

The fundamental idea of Siddha medicine may be summarised as “food is medicine, and medicine is food.” According to Siddha, there are seven primary factors that manage people’s bodily and psychological well-being. Plasma, blood, muscle, fat, bone, nerve, and semen are the seven elements. These are governed by the interplay of three factors. Air, fire, and water are the three elements. For health and welfare, Siddha medicine believes that these three aspects must be balanced. So, if you have a sickness, you must reestablish this equilibrium. To keep the three elements in balance, Siddha medicine employs a variety of metals and minerals. It also makes behavioural changes to keep people healthy.

The word siddha comes from the word siddham, which means “Supreme Knowledge.” The origin of Siddha medicine is credited to Lord Shiva, according to the Central Council for Research in Ayurveda and Siddha CCRAS website. He was the first siddha, according to legend. He preached to his spouse Parvathi, who in turn transmitted the knowledge on to Nandhi, who in turn passed it on to the Siddhas. He was a teacher of Sage Agasthiya. Initially, there were 18 siddhars. Not only were they spiritually advanced, but they also researched the qualities of numerous minerals, metals, and plants and employed them to treat ailments.

Even though Shiva is regarded the first siddha Sage, Agasthiya is considered the father of this school of medicine, according to the CCRAS website. The Eleventh Element According to Siddha medicine, the cosmos and everything in it are made up of five elements: earth, water, fire, air, and space, which they refer to as the pancha bhootas. The true aim of human birth, according to Siddhars, is to achieve salvation, which necessitates a healthy body and long life. Everything is viewed and comprehended from a spiritual standpoint. This method is divided into four sections: vatham (chemistry), vaidhyam (therapy), yogam (the path to wisdom), and jnanam (supreme knowledge).

Human beings are made up of 96 essential principles, according to Siddhars. These are constructed from various combinations of the five components. They called the immune system of the body vanmai. Vanmai has three types of immunity: innate bodily immunity, immunity obtained with age and season, and immunity established as a result of external circumstances. The concepts of vata, pitta, and kapha are also present in siddha medicine, as they are in ayurveda. In siddha medicine, however, these doshas have a distinct role than in ayurveda. Vata is a productive energy in the body. The operating force is pitta, whereas the destructive force is kapha. These essential forces are in charge of all of the body’s actions and functions.

The Tamil Siddhas’ exact date is unknown. They might have lived a few centuries before or after the Common Era, yet mythology and geography ascribe everlasting antiquity to them. Traditional accounts place the number of Tamil Siddhas who founded the Siddha medical system at 18, although there were many more whose work has been passed down to us. The Siddhas were radical realists with a scientific worldview. While mainstream Vedic and Vedantic traditions viewed the human body as inessential, the Siddhas believed that the body and its health were crucial for human growth. Thirumoolar, who is regarded as the earliest of the Siddhas, believed that the body sustains the soul. The spirit cannot remain in a weak and diseased body if the body is ill. According to Thirumoolar, anyone who protects his body also protects his soul. The Siddhas hold a strong belief in the physical immortality of the body. They believe that enlightenment is not only psychological. Psychological liberty from thinking formations isn’t the only sort of liberation.