Is Siddha Is Only for Patients and Not for Some Siddha Private Practitioners
Dr JR Krishnamoorhty is a legend and one of the living first generation Siddha experts in India. He was awarded by Government India with one of the prestigious civilian awards - PADMASREE. His contributions to the field of Siddha research and promoting the system in different parts of the globe, even the Government of India has to envy at. In my opinion, even the Government of India or AYUSH or other Government agencies has not really put sufficient effort to promote and popularize the Siddha system like what Dr JR Krishnamoorthy has done.
Dr JR Krishanamoorthy when started a research organization - Dr JRK's Siddha Research and Pharmaceuticals Pvt., Ltd., in Chennai about two decades ago, he so insightfully and scientifically phrased the logo of his organization - €NATURES WEALTH RESTORES HEALTH€. It means, we can restores health and alleviate our sufferings by knowing, understanding and using the wealth of nature. He clearly and sophisticatedly anchored the Siddha system as health restoring system than curative one or medical science, as I interpret.
The word medicine should not be misunderstood from a substance having some medicinal effect. The sanitizers, antiseptic preparations, floor cleaners etc., are manufactured these days with germicide ingredients. It means, they have some medicinal value against certain pathogenic germs. Does it mean these products qualified to be called €medicines' or €drugs', asked Dr Abdul Abbas, MD - Siddha. Mere medicinal effect or activity alone will not and should not qualify any substance to be called drug or medicine.
For treating cholera, fluid replacement is the foremost treatment approach followed widely. Does it mean, the fluids used can be called drug/medicine? For treating Dengue, platelet supplementation is followed. But platelets are never called as medicines or drugs.
Similarly, the Siddha system is health and relief centric system and not system of medicine from the lexical and scientific sense, but some how it has been named, popularized and understood as medical system. To a small extent, Siddha preparations do offer treatment benefits but in strict sense, Siddha preparations can offer only relief and some health benefits.
In the prehistoric times, the system of medicines was always part of science and art and it was never defined scientifically. The skill of the physicians only has played a crucial role both in the diagnosis and treatment success. Even today, plastic surgery and other critical surgeries, only the skill of the surgeons play a pivotal role.
If we review the number of research articles appeared in peer reviewed, high impact biological journals, we can find the reporting of 1000 of plants having antimicrobial effects against all most all pathogenic bacteria, fungi, protozoa, virus etc. But today, how many antibiotics or antimicrobial preparations we have, strictly from the plants documented in Siddha system that can be used for treating even a single infective diseases is a billion dollar question.
Today the Ph.D degree holders are also called €doctor' or €doctorate' throughout the world. Does these €doctors' are clinicians and can treat patients as clinicians, as clinicians are called Doctors? asked Dr Abdul Abbas, MD-Siddha.
Even in allopathic curriculum, many specialized subjects like anatomy, microbiology, physiology, biochemistry, pathology etc., are taught but all these subjects are classified as €non-clinical' subjects. In fact those who have studied these non clinical MD degrees have done MBBS graduation. If the above MD degree holders want to practice, they can do so only based on their MBBS graduation and not based on MD-biochemistry or microbiology.
The division in allopathic system is clear and unambiguous. The classification in Siddha is vague. It is defined as system of medicine and the degrees are awarded as BSMS and MD. This modernization only has affected adversely the growth and development of Siddha system. Siddha system should not be equaled to allopathic system. Such comparison comes because of the wrong positioning of Siddha system as system of medicine. It has little to offer to treatment & cure and lot to offer to health and relief. The Siddha system is similar to physiotherapy, naturotherapy, dietetics, nutrition science, speech therapy, yoga etc.
When the system has little to offer to cure and treatment of human ailments why it is called as medical system, the people should ask to AYUSH, said Dr Abdul Abbas, MD - Siddha. The system could not grow only because of the above. People would naturally expect from Siddha preparations the definite treatment and curative benefits like what they expect from Allopathic system. The Siddha system cannot deliver and that is how it has become archaic. That is why some Siddha practitioners prescribe allopathic medicines despite lacking competency, said Dr Abdul Abbas, MD - Siddha. May be, by knowing fully well about the truth of Siddha medicines, AYUSH, NIS, CCRS and Government are not acting upon such illegal act. Unfortunately the above confusion progressively and systemically killing our ancient Tamil culture linked Siddha system.
We are requesting the Government of Tamil Nadu guided by our beloved Amman ad Union Government to re-classify the Siddha system as health and relief system and not as medical system as it stands today and rename the Siddha practitioners as health physicians and relief therapist.
Dr S Ranganathan
Dr JR Krishanamoorthy when started a research organization - Dr JRK's Siddha Research and Pharmaceuticals Pvt., Ltd., in Chennai about two decades ago, he so insightfully and scientifically phrased the logo of his organization - €NATURES WEALTH RESTORES HEALTH€. It means, we can restores health and alleviate our sufferings by knowing, understanding and using the wealth of nature. He clearly and sophisticatedly anchored the Siddha system as health restoring system than curative one or medical science, as I interpret.
The word medicine should not be misunderstood from a substance having some medicinal effect. The sanitizers, antiseptic preparations, floor cleaners etc., are manufactured these days with germicide ingredients. It means, they have some medicinal value against certain pathogenic germs. Does it mean these products qualified to be called €medicines' or €drugs', asked Dr Abdul Abbas, MD - Siddha. Mere medicinal effect or activity alone will not and should not qualify any substance to be called drug or medicine.
For treating cholera, fluid replacement is the foremost treatment approach followed widely. Does it mean, the fluids used can be called drug/medicine? For treating Dengue, platelet supplementation is followed. But platelets are never called as medicines or drugs.
Similarly, the Siddha system is health and relief centric system and not system of medicine from the lexical and scientific sense, but some how it has been named, popularized and understood as medical system. To a small extent, Siddha preparations do offer treatment benefits but in strict sense, Siddha preparations can offer only relief and some health benefits.
In the prehistoric times, the system of medicines was always part of science and art and it was never defined scientifically. The skill of the physicians only has played a crucial role both in the diagnosis and treatment success. Even today, plastic surgery and other critical surgeries, only the skill of the surgeons play a pivotal role.
If we review the number of research articles appeared in peer reviewed, high impact biological journals, we can find the reporting of 1000 of plants having antimicrobial effects against all most all pathogenic bacteria, fungi, protozoa, virus etc. But today, how many antibiotics or antimicrobial preparations we have, strictly from the plants documented in Siddha system that can be used for treating even a single infective diseases is a billion dollar question.
Today the Ph.D degree holders are also called €doctor' or €doctorate' throughout the world. Does these €doctors' are clinicians and can treat patients as clinicians, as clinicians are called Doctors? asked Dr Abdul Abbas, MD-Siddha.
Even in allopathic curriculum, many specialized subjects like anatomy, microbiology, physiology, biochemistry, pathology etc., are taught but all these subjects are classified as €non-clinical' subjects. In fact those who have studied these non clinical MD degrees have done MBBS graduation. If the above MD degree holders want to practice, they can do so only based on their MBBS graduation and not based on MD-biochemistry or microbiology.
The division in allopathic system is clear and unambiguous. The classification in Siddha is vague. It is defined as system of medicine and the degrees are awarded as BSMS and MD. This modernization only has affected adversely the growth and development of Siddha system. Siddha system should not be equaled to allopathic system. Such comparison comes because of the wrong positioning of Siddha system as system of medicine. It has little to offer to treatment & cure and lot to offer to health and relief. The Siddha system is similar to physiotherapy, naturotherapy, dietetics, nutrition science, speech therapy, yoga etc.
When the system has little to offer to cure and treatment of human ailments why it is called as medical system, the people should ask to AYUSH, said Dr Abdul Abbas, MD - Siddha. The system could not grow only because of the above. People would naturally expect from Siddha preparations the definite treatment and curative benefits like what they expect from Allopathic system. The Siddha system cannot deliver and that is how it has become archaic. That is why some Siddha practitioners prescribe allopathic medicines despite lacking competency, said Dr Abdul Abbas, MD - Siddha. May be, by knowing fully well about the truth of Siddha medicines, AYUSH, NIS, CCRS and Government are not acting upon such illegal act. Unfortunately the above confusion progressively and systemically killing our ancient Tamil culture linked Siddha system.
We are requesting the Government of Tamil Nadu guided by our beloved Amman ad Union Government to re-classify the Siddha system as health and relief system and not as medical system as it stands today and rename the Siddha practitioners as health physicians and relief therapist.
Dr S Ranganathan
