Page:A Short History of Aryan Medical Science.djvu/73

efficacious in promoting hepatic functions. A service of zinc improves the intelligence and appetite. Food served in brass utensils promotes wind and heat, but cures phlegmatic disorders and expels worms. The use of steel or glass vessels cures chlorosis, jaundice and intumescence. A stone or clay service brings on poverty. Wooden plates are good appetisers, but help the secretion of phlegmatic humour. The use of certain leaves as plates acts as an antidote against poison. When at dinner, a water jug with a cup should be placed on the right hand. A copper vessel is the best for the purpose. The next best is an earthen pot. Vessels made of crystal and lapis lazuli are also pure and cooling. It is good to take a little rock-salt and fresh ginger before entering the dining-room, as this is supposed to whet the appetite and clear the throat. Charaka says that one should not sit to dinner facing the north. Manu's dictum on this point is somewhat different. He says that one desiring longevity should face the east while having his meal ; one desirous of fame must face to the south ; of wealth, towards the west ; and one desiring true knowledge should sit looking towards the north (ii. 52). Should one happen to pass flatus during