Archive for: March 2007

SPECIAL SALT TO BE USED IN DIET.
Siddhars in Tamilnadu do not recommend ordinary common salt (Sodium chloride) for use in diet. Yogis refrain from using this common salt in their diet. Should we use common salt, the Kaya Kalpa treatment would be a failure. This special kind of salt, prepared according to Siddhic method will also serve to conquer old age and diseases and help to prolong the life span. It is said that the art of consolidating the salt is the most difficult one and that it is not known to other sciences. This subject has been elaborately dealt with in a preceding chapter.
 

GENERAL PRECEUTIONS.
The diet, in the course of Kayakalpa treatment, is to be without common salt, sour things (tamarind), fish, meat and allied pungent things. Sexual enjoyment should be avoided.
The names of these drugs vary according to different authors who eliminate one or two from the list and substitute some other drugs instead. Should any one wish to undertake a comparative study and research on this subject, we may refer to the works of Bogar, Macchamuni, Konkanavar, Karuvoorar and others.
Bogar has included the roots of cynodon Dactylon (Arugu or Muthandam in Tamil) also in item (a). He says that the evil effects of the salts should be first eliminated from the system and for that he prescribes a special herb namely golden coloured Aloe barbadensis (Senkumari). Unfortunately such species are hardly available now. He also recommends certain herbs like Bacopamonnieri (Brahmi), Emblica officinalis (Nellikkai) Leucas aspera (Tumbai) in black colour to be included in the Kalpa treatment. The botanical names of the ordinary plants available at present are only given for the investigation of research workers; but a close study of Siddha’s Kalpa works reveals that there are different species in each family of herbs and Siddhars have chosen only very rare specimens which belongs either to that of a golden coloured flowers or black varieties in each group; for instance, take the Indian goose berry. It is one of the important ingredients used in indigenous medicine of India; but the Siddhar’s Kaya Kalpa treatment, a special type of goose berry, black in colour is required which is very rare and not easily procurable. Similarly almost all the herbs mentioned in Kaya Kalpa treatment by Siddhars are the specimens of rare kind in that particular species or group which are said to be found in certain parts of hills like Seven hills (Thiruppathi). Kolli hills (Salem) and Podigai Hills (Tirunelveli) in Southern India. Those who were in pursuit of Siddhar’s Kaya Kalpa treatment, were not able to identify and procure the right type of plants as indicated in their works and in the absence of these Kalpa plants, they employed only ordinary plants easily available in the market for their trials. As a result of these handicaps, the Kaya Kalpa treatment was not a success to them and they lost their faith in Kaya Kalpa methods. It is also said that Siddhars, in the course of Kaya Kalpa treatment, did not entirely depend on the rare kind of herbs but they had also used certain minerals and metals in their Kalpa drugs. It is traditionally believed that with the help of a rare single Kalpa plant, mercury, sulphur and other arsenics etc., may be consolidated so as to stand the test of fire. Such a drug is credited with the power of prolonging life.
Marvellous powers are attributed to this Kalpa medicine of mineral orgin, as it has also got the virtue of curing degenerated cancer, rheumatism, paraleysis, cardio-vascular diseases etc. Therefore it is futile to search for all the Kalpa plant mentioned in Siddha works and attention may be devoted to a few plants only.
We have found that is very difficult indeed to identify very rare specimens of plants-especially black species in each group. Siddhar Bogar suggests ways and means to solve this problem, He says that a small farm should be specially formed with a black soil for cultivation of certain Kalpa plants. This black soil should be fertilized four times with the nuts of Semecarpus anacardium (Senkottai) as its manure. He further adds that the plants thus cultivated may be tested by application of this juice to the white feathers of a stork when it will be converted into black like that of a crow. The Kalpa plant that stands this kind of test is capable of rejuvenating the system. An institution interested in this kind of research may undertake investigation on scientific lines to differentiate the ordinary plant with this kind of specially cultivated plant. However, it is said that Siddhars would always prefer original plants for obtaining satisfactory results in rejuvenating the system.

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