Marma Chikitsa In Ayurveda
Introduction:
The wordMarmaliterally means a Tender full vital point, which is a conjugation of muscle, nerve, joint, bone, tendon , artery and vein either in combination of two, three etc., or all the above structures,
The father of Surgery-Sushruthacharya, defines Marma as“Marayanthi ithi marma”– which means, that certain vital anatomical locations in the body, when injured shall become painful and cause malfunctioning of the local organs or even cause sudden death (marayanthi) of the individual.
The actions of Marma are controlled by the Pranic Vayu (cosmic energy principle in human body).This Prana Vayu is essential to maintain the life or longevity of a person. Sushruthacharya in his treatise Sushrutha Samhita, in the 6th chapter of Shareera sthana, says that “a person with a surgical amputation of limb will survive, but a person injured at the base of the toe, may not, since the base of toe is a marma point. Post surgically, after amputation, the channels of the body near the area of amputation get closed, thereby preventing the loss of pranic energy from the body. But where as in case of an injury to the toe, the person loses his life, due to the gradual loss of Prana Vayu or the Vital force.
There are 108 Marmas in the human body. The Marmas are classified based on the anatomical structures involved or based on the action potential caused in the body when it is injured. It is classified into the following 5 varieties based on the vulnerability it causes after the injury, namely-
1)SADHYA PRANAHARA MARMA :When a marma falling in this category gets injured, due to the spontaneous loss of the Prana vayu , death is imminent to occur.
2)KALANTHARA PRANAHARA MARMA :These Marmas result in kalanthara (gradual) loss of life( pranahara), after a lapse of time.
3)VISHALYAGHNA: The word shalya refers to a foreign body. When a foreign body pierces these varieties of Marma, the injured person survives as long as the foreign body remains in the place of injury. But instead if removed, it results in the death of that individual.
4)VAIKALYAKARA: These varieties of Marma when subjected to injury caused deformity of those organs which are dependent on that particular Marma for their energy distribution. The word Vikalya or Vaikalya means deformity.
5)RUJAKARA MARMA: These Marmas neither result in deformity nor cause death, but results in excruciating pain (ruja) when injured.
A Gist of Certain Individual Marmas used in treating diseases
KSHIPRA MARMA: It is pronounced as ‘Xipra’.It is totally 4 in number (2 in the hands &2 in the legs). In hands it can be easily felt between the index and the thumb fingers, where as in foot it lies between the big toe and the 2nd toe. The width of this marma is said to be is 1 centimeter, by Acharya Sushrutha. On analysis, the structures present beneath this Ksipra Marma are supposed to be, a branch of Radial nerve in the hand.
MANIBANDHA MARMA: it s 2 in number, representing 1 for each upper limb. It falls under the category of Sandhi (Joint) marma. It can be easily located on the ventral aspect of the wrist joint. Beneath this 2 to 3 centimeter wide, Manibandha Marma, lie the Inter-carpal ligaments and nerves.
KATIKATHARUNA MARMA: Being an Asthi (Bone) Marma, with 1 centimeter width, the Katikataruna lies on either side of the Spine in the waist region lying adjacent to the sacro-iliac joint. The structures beneath it are analysed to be iliac bone, iliac artery & ligaments of the Sacro-Iliac joint.
SHRINGATAKA MARMA: Shringataka marma comes under the category of Dhamani (Arterial) marma according toAcharya Vagbhata, whose width is approximately 4 to 6 centimeters.
Its location is attributed to a spot above the surfaces of Maxillary sinuses on either side of the nostrils. This Marma plays a vital role in Nasya Karma, in bringing out the vitiated or deranged Tridoshas, from the areas of Nose, Ears, Mouth and Eyes. It is being stated that all the above 4 structures are nourished by the Shringataka marma with the Vital energy to maintain the physiology of those structures.
DISEASES CURABLE & MANAGEABLE BY MARMA CHIKITSA
To name a few diseases in which Marma chikitsa is highly appreciative in giving cure are high listed.
Paralysis,
Sciatic pain,
Brachialgia,
Migraine,
Tremors,
Diabetic neuropathy,
Muscular twitching & cramps,
Trigeminal Neuralgia,
Facial or Bell’s palsy,
Urinary incontinence,
Lumbar Spondilitis,
Lumbar Spondilolisthesis (Disc bulge or prolapse)
Cervical Spondilitis,
Cervical Spondilolisthesis (Disc bulge or prolapse),
Frozen Shoulder (peri arthritis),
Carpal tunnel Syndrome etc.,
