the Hindoos as sacred to the serpent, which is worshipped either alive or in effigy by every mistress of a family. For it is believed that leprosy, ophthalmia, and childlessness are the punishment of those who in former lives, or in the present one, may have killed a snake, and that it is only by serpent-worship that these penalties can be averted. Charaka, the son of Vishudha, a learned Muni, flourished during the Vedic period. Some believe him to have been born at Benares 320 years B.C. He was the greatest physician of his day, and his "Charaka Samhita" is still held to be a standard work on Medicine.
Sushruta, on the other hand, dilates more on Surgery than on Medicine. His work "Sushruta" is therefore held in high esteem by native Vaidyas as an authority on Surgery. Both the works are compendiums of the Ayur Veda. Sushruta was a son of Vishvamitra, a contemporary of Kama. With his father's permission, Sushruta and his seven brothers went to Devodasa, king of Benares, to study Medicine. As Charaka is believed to be an incarnation of the Serpent-god, so is Devodasa believed to be an incarnation of Dhanvantari, the divine physician, recovered from the ocean along with thirteen other Ratnas
