Āyurveda

Āyurveda ('knowledge of life') is the classical Indian medical tradition and one of the Upavedas. Its foundational texts are the Caraka Saṃhitā and Suśruta Saṃhitā, with Vāgbhaṭa's Aṣṭāṅga Hṛdaya as a later synthesis, and its theory rests on the three doṣas, the seven dhātus (tissues) and agni (digestive fire). Its eight branches (aṣṭāṅga) range from internal medicine to surgery; this reference presents its concepts as textual study only, not as health guidance.