Page:A Short History of Aryan Medical Science.djvu/89

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Chap. V.]
AS UNDERSTOOD BY THE HINDOOS.
81


In Shishira, when the climate is cold and dry, the morning meal should never be neglected, and pungent, acrid and salt things should be particularly used. The body should be smeared with oil ; before bath, physical exercise is particularly recommended in this season. Wheat, jaggery, rice, Masha (Phaseolus radiatus), meat, new grain, sesamum and massage are highly agreeable. Saffron and musk may be applied to the body. The clothing should be warm.

Vasanta promotes phlegmatic diseases, so emetics may be taken with advantage in this season. Bodily exercise is also beneficial. Dry, pungent, light and heating substances are to be selected for food, and sleep in the day-time should be avoided. The season is generally unhealthy, and in it the physicians drive a roaring trade. Tepid baths are advantageous. Wheat and rice used for food should be a year old. The hottest part of the day may be spent with profit in a garden abounding in flowers and verdure, which obstruct the direct rays of the sun.

In Greeshma the sun absorbs the phlegm secreted in the body. It is therefore advisable to eat such articles as may make up for the loss of the phlegm. Sweet, oily, cooling, light and