EAP810/1/2/3

Titles in original script:

நூல் 1- அகத்தியர் பின் நூல்நூல் 2- சூலை நிதானம்நூல் 3- மருந்து வைக்க முறைநூல் 4- தலைப்பு இல்லை (நோய் நிதானம் மற்றும் மருந்துகள்);

The manuscript of composed of 85 palm leaves of the Corypha umbraculifera on which 4 texts are written in verses. The texts approach various subjects related to medical knowledge comprising mostly medicinal products and nosography. The manuscript is extremely damaged, infested by fungus and by egg strings of insects which have disintegrated the scripts at the extremity of leaves.

Text 1- The text, entitled Akattiyar Piṉ Nūl, is composed of palm leaves numbered from 1 to 12. The text describes formulation of medicines:

Medicated oils: Acuva kantāti tailam and Niṉpāti tailam.

Medicated ghī: Elāti kiṟutam and Nilappaṉai kiṟutam

Wax like medicine: Kōcala kuḻampu

Electuaries: Kaṇṭāti lēkiyam and Kāma kēcari lēkiyam; kukkil Racāyaṇam

Calcined white medicine prepared from metals and minerals: Tirilōka paṟpam and Aritāra paṟpam.

Calcined red medicine prepared from metals and minerals: Apiraka centūram, Aya centūram and Kānta centūram

Medicine prepared by sublimation: Cīṉappa pataṅkam

Dried plant powders: Kānta cūraṇam, Maṇṭūka cūraṇam, Kukkil cūraṇam and Kuṭavākiṉi cūraṇam.

Pills: Raca kuḷikai; Pāṇṭa kuru (based on mercury)

Medicated fumes (pukai) for reducing accumulation of water in body due to vāta imbalance and treating scanty menstruation (curōṇita kaṭṭu),

A medical product applied directly on the skin incision (kuṭōri).

A decoction (kaṣāyam) for treating scrotal swelling (aṇṭa vāyu).

Text 2- The text, entitled Cūlai Nitāṉam, is made of palm leaves numbered from 4 to 18. The text concerns the nosographical category of cūlai, colic pain, for which it mentions the types and describes the clinical characteristics. The types exposed in the text are: vāta cūlai, vāta nīr cūlai, pitta pāṇṭu cūlai, cileṟpaṉa pāṇṭu cūlai, caṉṉi pāṇṭu cūlai, cura cūlai, akki cūlai, attikāy cūlai, mūla pāṇṭu cūlai, piramēka cūlai, kiranti cūlai, caya cūlai, māṅkiṣa cūlai, nīr cūlai, viṣanīr cūlai, yōṉi cūlai, aṇṭa cūlai, aṇṭa vāyvu cūlai and tanta vāta cūlai.

Text 3- The text, entitled Maruntu Vaikkamuṟai, is formed by palm leaves numbered from 1 to 3. It approaches several medicine-related subjects: fatal diseases (tīrāta nōykaḷ); diagnosis using tongue examination (nā viparam); process to prepare medicines and the apparatus (karuvi) such the type of pestle and mortar used to grind material (kuḷi ammi viparam); required characteristics of a siddha practitioner (vaittiyar laṭcaṇam) and remuneration mode (kūli); and the appropriate order to consume food (each dish) (aṉṉa tāmpūla tattuvam).

Text 4- The text is composed of palm leaves numbered from 13 to 58. The text deals with diseases and their appropriate medicinal preparations.

The diseases which are mentioned concern, among other, those caused by vāta imbalance: vātam 80, vāta cey kuṟi, kapāla vātam, nētra vātam, karṉika vātam, alaku vātam, piṭari vātam, kaṇṭa vātam, neñcaṭai vātam, patīta vātam, viṣa vātam, kōra vātam, naṭukku vātam, piṟavīccu vātam, muka vātam, taṉu vātam, tanta vātam, itaḻ tuṭi vātam, ciṅkuvai vātam and muyalakaṉ vātam.

The medicinal formulations exposed in the text are:

Plant extract: Amirtu cakkarai

Decoctions: Tāpa cura kuṭinīr

Dried plant powders: Civaṉār vēmpu cūraṇam, Tippilāti cūraṇam and Tiruviṉai aṭaintāṉ cūraṇam.

Medicated oils: Kaṟpūrāti tailam

Medicated ghī: Mārkkaṇṭēya ney and Eraṇṭu kiṟutam.

Electuaries: Tēṅkāy lēkiyam, Tippilāti lēkiyam and Mataṉa kāmēsvari lēkiyam; Mati piracāyaṇam, Cañcīvi racāyaṇam and Kukkil racāyaṇam

Pills: Kaṟpūrāti kuḷikai and Pañca lōka kuḷikai.

Calcined white medicine prepared from metals and minerals: Vaṅka raca paṟpam and Tāmira paṟpam; Veṭiyuppu cuṇṇam

Calcined red medicine prepared from metals and minerals : Kānta centūram

A medicine for purgation: Rāja virēcaṇam

Wax-like medicine: Akattiyar kuḻampu

A medicine prepared by sublimation: Paṭṭai pataṅkam

A black paste used as eye liner: Nīlakaṇṭa mai

The text describes:

Decoctions (kuṭinīr, kaṣāyam) for treating anemia (pāṇṭu), ascities (nīrāmpal), convulsion (kutirai vali), muscle pull in the leg (keṇṭai), enlargement of lymph node in groin region (araiyāpu) and regurgitation of food (puḷitta eppam).

Dried plant powders (cūraṇam) for treating diseases caused by pitta imbalance.

A dried plant powder (poṭi) for treating eye disease (amaram).

Medicated oils (tailam, eṇṇey) for treating skin diseases (kuttam), eczema (karappāṉ), anemia (cōkai), jaundice (kāmālai) and convulsions (piraḷi).

A medicated ghī (ācci ney) for treating fistula (pavutiram).

An electuary (lēkiyam) for treating gastritis (kuṉmam).

A wax like medicine (kuḻampu) for healing carbuncle (piḷavai).

A calcined white medicine prepared from black variety of hen (Karuṅkōḻi paṟpam) for treating dysentery (kirāṇi).

Herbal pan cakes (aṭai) for stopping gangrene (tuṉmāṅkicam), cough (irumal) and bronchial asthma during monsoon season (mantāra kācam). A black paste (mai) for healing wounds (puṇ).

Medicated fumes (pukai) for treating colic pain (cūlai), and fumes from borax (cīṉa pukai) for reducing swelling of lymph nodes in groin (araiyāppu) and for treating fistula (pavuttiram).

Nasal drops (naciyam) for treating headache (kapāla vali) and sinusitis (pīṉicam).

Chemical cauterisation for opening carbuncle (piḷavaikku kāram)

A topical application (pūccu) for treating disease caused by vāta imbalance.

Medicines (non categorised, maruntu) for treating intestinal tuberculosis (uḷamāntai), tuberculosis in children (elumpurukki nōy), renal calculi (kallaṭaippu), piles (mūlam), fistula (pavutiram), oliguria (nīrkaṭupu), itchy scabies (coṟi, ciraṅku), leucoderma (veṇkuṭṭam), alopecia areata (talaiyil puḻuveṭṭu) and burns (tīpaṭṭa puṇ).

External medicines for treating all the body (tuvālai), eye diseases (kuntam) and rat bites (elikaṭi).

A medicated ghī made of castor seed (eraṇṭāti kiṟutam) for nourishing children (piḷḷai pēṟukku).

Size of the manuscript 26,0cm x 5,8cm. The 4 texts which form this manuscript are numbered in Tamil respectively: 1 to 12; 4 to 18; 1 to 3 and 13 to 55+ 6 leaves without number. They are 6 blank leaves. The manuscript is in extremely bad condition and is difficult to use due to its fragility. It was infested by egg strings of insects which have damaged the scripts at the extremity of the leaves. The leaves are very darken due to fungus infestation.