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Ayurveda (Sanskrit: आयुर्वेद , "life-knowledge"; English pronunciation ) or Ayurvedic medicine is a system of medicine with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. Globalized and modernized practices derived from Ayurvedic traditions are a type of alternative medicine.〔 In medieval taxonomies of the Sanskrit knowledge systems, Ayurveda is assigned a place as a subsidiary Veda (upaveda). Some medicinal plant names from the ''Atharvaveda'' and other Vedas can be found in subsequent Ayurveda literature. The earliest recorded theoretical statements about the canonical models of disease in Ayurveda occur in the earliest Buddhist Canon. The main classical Ayurvedic treatises begin with legendary accounts of the transmission of medical knowledge from the gods to sages, and thence to human physicians. Thus, the Sushruta Samhita narrates how Dhanvantari, "greatest of the mighty celestials," incarnated himself as Divodāsa, a mythical king of Varanasi, who then taught medicine to a group of wise physicians, including Sushruta himself.〔Dhanvantari. (2010). In Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 4 August 2010, from Encyclopædia Britannica Online: http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/160641/Dhanvantari〕 Ayurvedic therapies have varied and evolved over more than two millennia.〔 Therapies are typically based on complex herbal compounds, while treatises written after about 1000 CE introduced mineral and metal substances (perhaps under the influence of early Indian alchemy or ''rasaśāstra''). Ancient Ayurvedic treatises also taught surgical techniques, including rhinoplasty, perineal lithotomy, the suturing of wounds, and the extraction of foreign objects. Some scholars assert that Ayurveda originated in prehistoric times, and that some of the concepts of Ayurveda have been discovered since the times of Indus Valley Civilization and earlier. Ayurveda significantly developed during the Vedic period and later some of the non-Vedic systems such as Buddhism and Jainism also developed medical concepts and practices that appear in the classical Ayurvedic treatises.〔 Humoral balance is emphasized, and suppressing natural urges is considered unhealthy and claimed to lead to illness.〔 Ayurveda names three elemental substances, the ''dosha''s (called Vata, Pitta and Kapha), and states that a balance of the doshas results in health, while imbalance results in disease. Ayurveda has eight canonical components, which are derived from classical Sanskrit literature. Some of the oldest known Ayurvedic texts include the ''Suśrutha Saṃhitā'' and ''Charaka Saṃhitā'', which are written in Sanskrit. Ayurvedic practitioners had developed various medicinal preparations and surgical procedures by the medieval period. Although laboratory experiments suggest it is possible that some substances in Ayurveda might be developed into effective treatments, there is no evidence that any are effective as currently proffered.〔 Modern ayurvedic medicine is considered pseudoscientific.〔 Other researchers consider it a proto-science, an unscientific, or trans-science system instead.〔〔〔 Concerns were raised when 20% of Ayurvedic U.S. and Indian-manufactured patent medicines sold through the Internet were found to contain toxic levels of heavy metals such as lead, mercury, and arsenic. == Eight components == The earliest classical Sanskrit works on Ayurveda describe medical science as being divided into eight components (Skt. ''aṅga''). This characterization of the physicians' art as the teaching found in "the medicine that has eight components" (Skt. ''cikitsāyām aṣṭāṅgāyāṃ'' चिकित्सायामष्टाङ्गायाम्) is first found in the Sanskrit epic, the ''Mahābhārata''. The components are:, *''Kāyacikitsā'': general medicine, medicine of the body *''Kaumāra-bhṛtya'': the treatment of children, paediatrics *Ś''alyatantra'': surgical techniques and the extraction of foreign objects *''Śālākyatantra:'' treatment of ailments affecting ears, eyes, nose, mouth, etc. ("ENT") *''Bhūtavidyā'': pacification of possessing spirits, and the people whose minds are affected by such possession *''Agadatantra'': toxicology *''Rasāyanatantra'': rejuvenation and tonics for increasing lifespan, intellect and strength *''Vājīkaraṇatantra'': aphrodisiacs and treatments for increasing the volume and viability of semen and sexual pleasure. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Ayurveda」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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