हिताहितं सुखं दुःखमायुस्तस्य हिताहितम्। मानं च तच्च यत्रोक्तमायुर्वेदः स उच्यते॥
hitāhitaṃ sukhaṃ duḥkham āyus tasya hitāhitam । mānaṃ ca tac ca yatroktam āyurvedaḥ sa ucyate ॥
PM's MessageHeartfelt greetings to all fellow citizens on Ayurveda Day! Ayurveda is not merely a system of treatment, but a powerful means to a healthy and balanced way of life. Let us further strengthen our resolve to embrace this rich heritage of ours.
Meaning of Hitāhitaṃ Sukhaṃ Duḥkham Āyus
The science in which it is explained what kind of lifestyle is beneficial or harmful for human beings, what constitutes a happy or unhappy life, what distinguishes a healthy life from a diseased life and what should be adopted or avoided for a long and healthy life and in which the nature and measure of lifespan are also elaborately discussed, is called Ayurveda.
Word by word
- हिताहितम्hitāhitam
the beneficial and the harmful
हित + अहित
- सुखम्sukham
happy or pleasant
- दुःखम्duḥkham
unhappy or painful
- आयुःāyuḥ
life or lifespan
In continuous text, āyuḥ + tasya becomes āyus tasya.
- तस्यtasya
of it; of life
- हिताहितम्hitāhitam
what is wholesome and unwholesome for it
हित + अहित
- मानम्mānam
measure or extent
√मा
- चca
and
- तत् चtac ca
that also
Sandhi: tat + ca gives tac ca.
- यत्र उक्तम्yatroktam
where it is explained
Sandhi: yatra + uktam gives yatroktam.
- आयुर्वेदःāyurvedaḥ
Ayurveda, the knowledge of life
आयुस् + वेद
- सः उच्यतेsa ucyate
that is called
Commentary
The verse defines Ayurveda by the range of life it examines. The paired expressions hitāhita and sukha-duḥkha place what is beneficial beside what is harmful, and a happy life beside an unhappy one. It then adds what is wholesome or unwholesome for life itself and the māna, or measure, of life. Ayurveda is therefore presented as disciplined knowledge concerned with the quality, conditions and span of living, not only with remedies after illness appears. Its balanced pairs also suggest that sound judgment depends on understanding both what supports well-being and what undermines it. The accompanying post applies this broad definition to Ayurveda Day by describing Ayurveda as more than a treatment system and linking it with a healthy, balanced lifestyle. That modern emphasis follows the verse's concern with beneficial and harmful ways of living, while the verse itself remains a concise definition of the scope of Ayurveda.
Original Post
More from Charaka Samhita
View source pageसुखोपविष्टास्ते तत्र पुण्यां चक्रुः कथामिमाम्। धर्मार्थकाममोक्षाणामारोग्यं मूलमुत्तमम्॥
sukhopaviṣṭās te tatra puṇyāṃ cakruḥ kathām imām । dharmārthakāmamokṣāṇām ārogyaṃ mūlam uttamam ॥
Charaka Samhita presents good health as the foremost foundation for pursuing dharma, prosperity, desire and liberation.
विद्या वितर्को विज्ञानं स्मृतिस्तत्परता क्रिया। यस्यैते षड्गुणास्तस्य नासाध्यमतिवर्तते॥
vidyā vitarko vijñānaṃ smṛtis tatparatā kriyā । yasyaite ṣaḍguṇās tasya nāsādhyam ativartate ॥
Knowledge, reasoning, discernment, memory, readiness, and active effort together give a person the practical capability to accomplish difficult work.
More subhashitams on Health
View topic pageसुखोपविष्टास्ते तत्र पुण्यां चक्रुः कथामिमाम्। धर्मार्थकाममोक्षाणामारोग्यं मूलमुत्तमम्॥
sukhopaviṣṭās te tatra puṇyāṃ cakruḥ kathām imām । dharmārthakāmamokṣāṇām ārogyaṃ mūlam uttamam ॥
Charaka Samhita presents good health as the foremost foundation for pursuing dharma, prosperity, desire and liberation.
सुत्रामाणं पृथिवीं द्यामनेहसं सुशर्माणमदितिं सुप्रणीतिम् । दैवीं नावं स्वरित्रामनागसो अस्रवन्तीमा रुहेमा स्वस्तये॥
sutrāmāṇaṃ pṛthivīṃ dyām anehasaṃ suśarmāṇam aditiṃ supraṇītim । daivīṃ nāvaṃ svaritrām anāgaso asravantīm ā ruhemā svastaye ॥
An Atharvaveda mantra envisions earth, heaven and Aditi as a secure divine boat that carries people toward well-being.
स्वस्ति न इन्द्रो वृद्धश्रवाः स्वस्ति नः पूषा विश्ववेदाः। स्वस्ति नस्तार्क्ष्यो अरिष्टनेमिः स्वस्ति नो बृहस्पतिर्दधातु॥
svasti na indro vṛddhaśravāḥ svasti naḥ pūṣā viśvavedāḥ । svasti nas tārkṣyo ariṣṭanemiḥ svasti no bṛhaspatir dadhātu ॥
A Rigveda svasti mantra in which Indra, Pushan, Tarkshya and Brihaspati are each asked to bestow well-being upon us.