Dravyaguna Vijnana: Study of Medicinal Plants in Ayurveda (Volume 2)

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1. This is the first work published in English and written according to the CCIM syllabus for the subject- Dravyaguna.

2. This work discusses the 122 main herbs in detail, followed by 250 other herbs with introductory part.

3. The herbs are provided with the information right from the Vedic period to the latest, including the current research.

4. All the references about the properties of the herbs are provided as the foot note at the end of the each herb.

5. The controversy about the individual herb is provided as a separate entity, which gives the clarifications regarding botanical identity.

6. Equal emphasis is given to classical literature including Sanskrit references, botanical descriptions, therapeutic utility and scientific studies.

7. Dr. K. C. Chunekarji is kind enough to write the foreword for this work.

8. All the literature available at present is consulted while preparing this work making this more useful to both U.G. as well as P.G. students.

9. To make this work friendly to the students, five annexure are provided in the end. The index is arranged as per the botanical sources alphabets.

10. Students, teachers and practitioners will be benefitted by the exclusive information on several herbs provided in this work.

Dr. J.L.N. Sastry hails from a traditional Ayurvedic family. He is born at Narasapuram (W.G. Dist., Andhra Pradesh) on 06-07-1965).

He had School studies at Kakinada (E.G Dist., A.P.) and passed B.A.M.S. in 1989 from Dr. N.R.S. Govt. Ayu. College, Vijayawada (A.P.) in first class. He completed M.D. (Ay.) in Dravya Guna Speciality from Dr. B.R.K.R. Govt. Ayur. College, Hyderabad in 1998 October.

He stood first in A.P.P.S.C. selection (January 1990) and worked as Med. Officer (Ayu.) for Govt. of A.P. in the Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy Dept., (1992-99). Between 1998-99 he acted as Research Projects Coordinator at the Govt. Research Dept. of Ayurveda, Hyderabad. He stood first at the UPSC (1998) and joined as Medical Officer (Ay.) in CGHS, Chennai in June 1999.

The author is the recipient of two gold medals from Nagarjuna Univ. (A.P.) for the merit shown during B.A.M.S. (1988),

The author presented several clinical and scientific papers at Regional, National and International seminars.

He had more than 15 publications in standard journals and also published several articles in newspapers.

Author also had given Radio-talks and given guest lectures at various prestigious institutes (both Ayurvedic & Modern Medicine).

He published a book 40 Years of research in Ayurveda in A.P. (on behalf of grda, Hyderabad).

It is a great pleasure and honour to write the Foreword of the illustrated book entitled Dravyaguna Vijñāna Vol. II. in English by J.L.N. Sastry, a renowned physician and a versatile scholar of ayurveda.

Dravyaguna is the basic subject of Ayurveda though not enumerated in Aştanga Ayurveda i.e. having eight broad branches. Dravyaguņa may be called as the Materia Medica of Ayurveda which includes Pharmacology. Pharmacotherapeutics and Pharmacognosy. The subject was taught in Guru- Śişya Paramparā, totally as a practical one and hence it was not discussed as a separate subject in the prehistoric age. Later many books were written and the latest classical book is Bhāva Prakāśa Nighantu of 16th Cent. A.D. in Sanskrit. Many translations and commentaries of it are available in Hindi as well as in other Indian languages, some of which are of very high standard. But none fulfilled the essential subject which could be used as a syllabus based text-book, particularly when a compulsory uniform standard course of studies was layed for B.A.M.S. degree course by the governing body, CCIM for the whole country.

After discussing the Fundamental principles of pharmacotherapeutics in Ayurveda in the first volume of Dravyaguna Vijñāna, the author decided to furnish the next book of the same series (Vol. II) entitled- "Study of the essential medicinal plants in Ayurveda.