Ashtanga Hridaya is the third major treatise on
ayurveda, compiled by Vagbhatta, around AD 500. It contains information regarding the two schools of ayurveda, namely the school of surgery and the school of physicians.
The book contains about 7120 poetic verses. Mainly focussing on
kayachikitsa, Ashtanga Hridaya also discusses in detail about various surgical treatments. The kapha subtypes are first listed and described in this samhita, with exhaustive explanation of vata, pitta, and kapha along with their five subtypes. This treatise attaches importance to the physiological rather than the spiritual aspects of the patient. Ashtanga Hridaya has a detailed description on the famous Panchakarma, classification of medicines, the causes of illness and personal hygiene.
This text is considered as a combined form of both the Atreya and Dhanwanthari schools. Many of the ayurvedic medicines are prepared through the methods described in Ashtanga Hridaya.
