Ayurveda is that branch of human 'wisdom' where the various aspects of 'life' such as the definition of life, span of life, meaning of happy and unhappy life, concept of pleasure and pain in relation to one's life and the various factors that are conducive or non conducive to life are deliberated upon extensively and exhaustively.

A careful yet critical study of the Ayurveda treatises by Charaka and Sushruta (3000 to 500 BC) enables one to understand Ayurveda as the total multidimensional positive health care science conceived by the ancient sages of India addressing the physical, physiological, psychological, emotional, spiritual and environmental states of well being through the knowledge of Causation, Signs and symptoms and Management strategies including drugs, for the benefit of both the healthy and the sick.

Ayurveda, with its twin goals of preservation of health and alleviation of diseases, considers health as the primary requisite to enable everyone to actualize the four pursuits of life viz, righteousness, wealth, desire and detachment without bringing one in conflict with the other, which is the very purpose of meaningful life and views illness as an obstacle in the journey of an individual to achieve these pursuits.

Thus Ayurveda continues to be a popular and relevant health care system par excellence that has stood the test of time and can richly contribute and compliment the present scientific health management approaches to achieve the common goal of establishing a healthy disease free society worthy of living.

Definition of Ayu (Life): Life is defined as the inseparable and interdependent, coordinated state of body, senses, mind and self facilitating normal human activities. Hita/ahita ,sukha/dukha are the 2 pairs of adjectives used for qualifying 'ayu'. A careful examination of these terms reveals that the first pair refers to the individual's subjective pleasurable or painful experience during life. The second pair implies a broader meaning referring to the individual's lifestyle, influence on the harmony or otherwise of his surroundings.

This view is further clarified by Charaka while describing the similarities and the inseparable relationship between the purusha (man) and loka (universe). He observes that the constituents of both universe and man are one and the same viz, the 5 elements - Earth, Water, Fire, Air and Space but represented in different forms. He convincingly justifies this point in great detail implying that changes in the universe will have influence on individuals life and likewise an individual's positive or negative lifestyle or actions will have influence on the world around him. This is illustrated further while describing the cause of epidemic diseases. Thus, the individual's total wellness depends on the balanced or harmonious state of the ecosystem surrounding him. This makes Ayurveda to stand out as a unique healthcare system that considers both individual and the universe with equal importance for making human life meaningful and enjoyable, maintaining absolute balance between the entire creation and man.

Who is Healthy?

According to Sushruta that person is called swastha (healthy) in whom the 3 doshas (basic bio-functional entities) viz,Vata and its 5 moieties viz, prana, udana, vyana, samana and apana which are collectively responsible for motivation, respiration, psychomotor activities, ingestion, excretion, delivery, ejaculation, circulation, sensory activities, higher mental functions and Pitta and its 5 moieties viz, pachaka, ranjaka, sadhaka, alochaka, brhajaka which are collectively responsible for digestion and metabolism, body warmth or thermal balance, hunger, thirst, taste, intelligence, prowess, softness of body parts, vision, complexion, and texture etc. and Kapha and its 5 moities viz avalambaka, kledaka, bodhaka, tarpaka and sleshaka which are collectively responsible for stability, unctuousness, moisture of body parts, stamina, binding and smooth movement of joints, taste, nourishment brain matter and sensory organs are in a balanced state in terms of their quality, quantity and functions; [agni (digestive and metabolic principle)] and in whom the [7 dhatus (sustenance factors) viz, rasa (sap) responsible for general nourishment, rakta(blood) responsible for life, mamsa(muscle) for adhesion of tissues, meda (fat) for unctuousness, asthi (bone) for shape and stability, majja(marrow) for filling the skeletal tissue and shukra (reproductive element) for procreation and the 3 excretory principles viz, mala (fecal matter) responsible for gastro-intestinal tone and stability, mootra (urine) for conveying and discharging aqueous impurities and sweda (sweat) for maintaining fluid balance are in a balanced state in terms of their quality, quantity and functions; and whose atma (self), indria (senses) and mana (psyche) are in a poised state functioning in full coordination. In brief health is the balanced state of the above aspects and illness is their imbalanced state.

From the above, it can be concluded that the balanced coordinated state of 3 doshas, 7 dhatus, agni, atma, indria and mamsas are collectively reflected through the physical, physiological, psychosocial and spiritual aspects of a healthy individual.