ASTHMA
LEUCODERMA (WHITE LEPROSY)
NOCTURNAL EMISSION
FEMALE DISEASES


ASTHMA

official source: Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies

cross-references: none

this version: is the printed Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies, 3rd edition, 
	3rd printing, version (spelling mistakes only may have been corrected). 
	I.e., this is the most up-to-date version as of the present Electronic 
	Edition.

	Symptoms: Difficulty in breathing, caused partly by kapha and partly by Va'yu, is the symptom of this disease. The attack is usually felt towards the end of the night.

	Causes: When the fine bronchial tubes through which air flows to the lungs become full of phlegm or mucus due to weakness of the glands connected to the Ana'hata Cakra,* the passage of air becomes obstructed. Due to contraction of the weak bronchial tubes, the carbon dioxide of the body cannot come out as it should, and that poisonous gas, trapped in the body, is to a large extent responsible for the breeding of disease germs.

	The weakening of the glands connected to the Ana'hata Cakra cannot alone be responsible for permanent respiratory trouble. When weakness of the glands related to the Man'ipura Cakra* -- as a primary cause -- and of those related to the Vishuddha Cakra* -- as a secondary cause -- is added to the weakness of the glands of the Ana'hata Cakra, then only does a respiratory disease express itself. If, due to weakness of the digestive fluids, the blood gets contaminated by acids, or if one is suffering from constipation, then different organs of the body also become weak. In such a condition, due to weakness of the lungs, the nervous system controlling the lungs also suffers from debility and finally the bronchial tubes as well become weak. That is the time when asthma becomes fully manifest.

	* Psychic-energy centres located at the mid-point of the chest, the navel an the throat, respectively.

	Treatment:

	Morning-Utks'epa Mudra', Naoka'sana, Padahasta'sana, Matsyendra'sana and Va'yavii Mudra'. Vya'paka Sna'na should be taken at morning and noon.

	Evening-Sarva'unga'sana, Pashcimotta'na'sana, Yogamudra', Bhastrika'sana and Ud'd'ayana Mudra'.

	Diet: For breakfast patients should eat local sweet or sour fruits, or meoya' fruits soaked in water for a few hours. A little lemon juice should be consumed a number of times during the day. The patient should never completely fill the stomach. The bowels should be cleared carefully, because constipation aggravates asthma. As for food, a small quantity of hot boiled rice or rut'i, together with sufficient leafy-vegetable soup, milk, curd (yogurt) or curd-water should be used. In fact all alkaline foods are beneficial in this disease. Ghee, oil, rice, pulses, rut'is, and all non-vegetarian foods are acidic, therefore the less these are taken the better.

	Do's and don't's: Milk should be the main drink for asthma patients. It is better for them to finish the evening meal as early as possible, certainly by an hour and a half after sunset, that is, by 7:30 or 8 PM, because it will keep the stomach light, having digested the food well before dawn. Then acute asthmatic spasms cannot occur. Remember that asthmatic spasms cannot occur when one's stomach hungers for food, so in a severe attack of asthma, the more
one fasts, the better.

	Asthma patients should strictly abstain from all sorts of intoxicants. Anyone who drinks less than three-fourths seer of milk a day should not drink even one cup of tea. Also, all non-vegetarian types of food are to rejected.

	For a person who cannot avoid eating non-vegetarian food, a little soup of small and freshly-caught fish is permissible. In those countries where it is almost impossible to obtain vegetarian types of food, patients should use myrobalan or some other laxative agent after meals in order to save themselves from constipation. Sweet and fried foods are also harmful for asthma patients. In summer, winter and in all seasons, patients should take a long walk in the open air.

	Some remedies:

	1. Excellent results can be achieved if the patient takes one tola of the branch roots of white punarnava' ground together in river water with 2 1/2 pieces of black pepper. Do this on an empty stomach while sitting facing north, on any Monday, after bathing.

	2. Boil 5 tolas of cow's ghee in a ka'nsa' pot. In another pot heat 2-1/2 tolas of ginger extract, and mix it into the boiled ghee and cover with a Ka'nsa' plate. When the mixture has stopped simmering, take about 2 tolas and pour it into 1/8 seer of hot milk and give it to the asthma patient to drink when his/her suffering is acute. Plenty of mucus and phlegm will immediately be brought up, and the patient will feel relieved. If the mixture can be taken continuously for fifteen days, the disease will be completely cured.

	3. Catch a frog and take out its heart. Cut the heart into four parts. For four consecutive mornings, after having a bath, eat one piece together with a banana on a completely empty stomach. It will bring good results.

	4. Catch 6 or 7 cockroaches and boil them in half a seer of water. When the water has boiled down to 1/8 seer (10 tolas), strain it carefully and drink it hot twice a day, 5 tolas each time. This relieves asthma. 5. Burn a peacock feather to ashes and take 1/16 tola of the ashes by slowly licking with honey. This will relieve the suffering of asthma within a short time. 6. Aged raw cane sugar and pure mustard oil mixed in equal quantities (preferably one tola each), if taken by licking them each day early in the morning for twenty-one days continuously on an empty stomach, will give excellent results in asthma.


LEUCODERMA (WHITE LEPROSY)

official source: Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies

cross-references: none

this version: is the printed Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies, 3rd edition, 
	3rd printing, version (spelling mistakes only may have been corrected). 
	I.e., this is the most up-to-date version as of the present Electronic 
	Edition.

	Symptoms: Leucoderma, though identified as a disease of the leprosy group, is not as fatal as leprosy, nor are secretions of fluid present; and that is why leucoderma is not a contagious disease. Leprosy attacks due to the disturbance of all seven elements of the body, and severely affects the entire body and mind within a very short time; but with leucoderma, usually only three elements--blood, flesh and fat--become disturbed.

	At first, reddish-coloured spots appear on different parts of the body, such as the chest, face, heels, toes, fingers and lips. It appears as if the skin of those parts has become pale, and later those red spots become white. It has already been said that leucoderma is not a contagious disease, but those white patches look so ugly that people are frightened and look at leucoderma patients hatefully, as if they were sinners or criminals.

	Causes: Contamination of the blood is the root cause of leucoderma. Where the skin has suddenly become weak due to excessive acidity of the blood, there the disease appears. We usually notice that if a person is suffering from chronic constipation, or if one has been treated with astringent medicines which keep the poison of dysentery inside the body, then that person may suffer from an attack of leucoderma as an after-effect of or reaction to the previous disease. That is why I previously felt obliged to express my opinion against using injections to stop dysentery.

	Treatment:

	Morning-Utks'epa Mudra', Karma'sana, Ud'd'ayana Mudra', Agnisa'ra Mudra', Diirgha Pran'a'ma, Yogamudra', Bhu'jaunga'sana, and A'gneyii Mudra' or A'gneyii Pra'n'a'ya'ma.

	Evening-Sarva'unga'sana, Matsyamudra', Naoka'sana, Pashcimotta'na'sana, Ud'd'ayana Mudra', Agnisa'ra Mudra' and Matsyendra'sana.

	At both times, after performing the a'sanas, patients should do shiitalii kumbhaka and should give the affected areas a good massage.

	Diet: Constipating foods should be strictly avoided. Foods which increase the amount of pitta should also be rejected. Fish, meat, eggs, ghee and large quantities of spices usually weaken the liver and bring about constipation, which is one of the causes of leucoderma. In this disease fish and other non-vegetarian foods are very harmful, hence they are to be avoided like poison. No matter how great is the desire for non-vegetarian dishes, patients shall have to control that desire. Leafy vegetables such as heleinca', gima', a'marula, bra'hmii, etc., are most beneficial for leucoderma patients.

	Do's and don't's: Leucoderma and dysentery are related diseases. Therefore, the do's and don't's stipulated for dysentery should generally be observed for leucoderma also. It is desirable for patients to drink at least four-and-a-half seers of water a day--a small quantity at a time, many times during the day. Both sweet and sour fruit juices are very beneficial. It is also very desirable to fast on Eka'dashii, Pu'rn'ima' and Ama'vasya' days. In summer and winter at the proper time, patients should take a sun-bath for ten to fifteen minutes and thereafter should sponge the whole body with a wet towel. This process should be repeated a few times. After the last sun-bath, instead of using a wet towel, patients should massage their bodies with olive oil, or, if this is not available, with mahuya' oil. One has to remember that sunshine is essential if one is to maintain the health of the skin and therefore sun-bathing is very beneficial for any disease produced by weakness of the skin.

It is not at all impossible to recover from leucoderma if the a'sanas and other prescriptions given above are followed with patience.

Because three elements of the body are disturbed in this disease, care must be taken to control one's diet and other habits. Sleeping during the day, staying awake at night, sexual intercourse, overeating, etc., have to avoided at all costs.

	Some remedies:

	1. Mix extract of a'mra' bark in goat's milk and drink the mixture every morning early; or

2. Take the juice of a'marula sha'k with sugar; or

3. Take a ripe banana fried in ghee, together with a spoonful of dugdhaks'iira juice, every day in the morning.

4. Prepare a paste of buckiida'na' by grinding it in water, and apply it to the affected skin; or

5. Procure a piece of cow's bone and grind it in the juice of ka'la kesenda', and apply the mixture as an ointment on the affected area. This will yield good results.

6. To cure leucoderma away within a very short time, grind 1/16 tola of white jayanti in cow's milk, and drink that mixture on a Sunday.

1958


NOCTURNAL EMISSION

official source: Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies

cross-references: none

this version: is the printed Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies, 3rd edition, 
	3rd printing, version (spelling mistakes only may have been corrected). 
	I.e., this is the most up-to-date version as of the present Electronic 
	Edition.

	Symptoms: Occurrence of nocturnal emission more than four times a month; weakness on awakening, especially weakness of the knees; voice becoming rasping for one's age, or cracking; swelling of cheeks and neck; frequent colds; etc., are symptoms of this disease.

Generally a portion of the semen produced in the body is surplus. In single men, this surplus semen is expelled with the urine or during three or four nocturnal emissions per month. In married men it is discharged during intercourse. This discharge is harmful neither physically nor mentally. But if the discharge becomes greater than this, or if one does not enjoy any nervous pleasure during the discharge or if the semen becomes watery, or if one does not wake up after a wet dream, then it must be taken as a serious disease.

	Causes: Generally nocturnal emission is a disease of adolescence and early youth. It can have various causes-

1. If due to the bad habit of masturbation a large amount of semen is wasted or the semen becomes thin, one will contract this disease.

2. If the genital organ is not kept clean, a particular kind of microbe can start breeding and cause nocturnal emission.

3. The disease may occur if, due to lack of knowledge about sex or due to any other reason, personal hygiene is not maintained properly; or

4. If, at a young age, a boy does not take part in sports, perform a'sanas or enjoy the outdoors, and instead studies excessively; or

5. If the nerves of adolescents or youths are stimulated by reading erotic literature or seeing erotic pictures and films.

6. The disease can occur when one lacks control over his thoughts or lacks concentration on the Supreme and lets his vrttis (mental propensities) run towards sensual experience.

7. Eating too much spicy food, non-vegetarian food or rich food, or eating late at night, can make the stomach hot. In such cases, or if one suffers from constipation due to a defect of the liver, the shukra cannot ascend from the lower to the upper part of the body. Instead, it flows out of the body and causes this disease.

	Treatment:

	Morning-Utks'epa Mudra', Mayura'sana, Sarva'unga'sana, Matsyamudra', Naoka'sana, Pashcimotta'na'sana, A'mbhasii Mudra' and A'mbhasii Pra'n'a'ya'ma.

	Evening-Matsyendra'sana, Agnisa'ra Mudra', Ud'd'ayana Mudra', Bandhatraya Yoga Mudra', Gomukha'sana, and Vajra'sana.

	Diet: All nutritious food that will keep the bowels clear can be taken.

Patients will have to stop eating non-vegetarian food at night and reduce the amount they eat during the day. A suitable quantity of fruits, roots and milk can be taken. All kinds of intoxicants should be avoided. Squash (Lagenaria vulgaris Seringe), green pumpkin (Benincasa cerifera Savi), kalamii sha'k and sha'nka'lu are good in this disease.

	Do's and don't's: Taking vya'paka sna'na now and then is good for patients. If health permits, patients should bathe at least twice a day. Patients should also drink four to five seers of water a day. Doing ample physical labour and walking or running in the open air in the morning and evening is a must in this disease.

To keep the disease hidden from others out of shame is very harmful. Therefore, as soon as the symptoms become apparent, the advice of appropriate persons should be sought and acted on.

Patients should observe the rules of fasting on Eka'dashii, Pu'rn'ima' and Ama'vasya', and should live as far as possible in natural surroundings.

Nature's rules should be observed in all respects, whether in food, in behaviour or in one's daily life. At the beginning of adolescence and youth, one has to acquire a correct knowledge about the arrangements that nature has made to meet the demands of human bodies and minds, because through such knowledge one can protect oneself from the onslaught of disease.

Due to the quick development of physical energy at this age, nature has provided necessary hair at the joints of the body to keep the body heat balanced and, because of the possibility of rubbing, to keep the skin healthy. So when people remove this hair owing to lack of proper knowledge, they harm themselves both physically and mentally.

Dinner should be finished by 8:30 or 9 P.M., and one should not retire to bed within one-and-a-half hours after dinner. After a meal the breath should flow freely through the right nostril for some time.

Excessive mixing of the sexes, reading or seeing pornographic books, pictures and films, are to be strictly avoided. Water should be used after urination, and the genital organ should be kept clean, keeping the foreskin pulled back. When bathing, the joints, especially the groin and the armpits, should be properly cleaned. It is very important to take vya'paka shaoca before and after every meal, before and after study, and before going to bed. Remember not to take the disease lightly, because nocturnal emission effects a pervasive waste of shukra, the most essential element of the body, and causes all the organs of the body to become weak. It is shukra that nourishes all the brain cells and nerves. Therefore, too much loss of shukra makes the brain weak; the memory becomes short; in adolescence one becomes mentally old; one suffers from palpitation in the chest for no reason; and courage and spiritedness are lost.

	Some remedies:

1. Eating an inch of basil (Ocimum sanctum Linn.) root with betel (Piper betle Linn.) every morning for 10 to 15 days, chewing carefully, will cure the disease.

2. Taking 1 tola of basil-leaf juice on an empty stomach every day in the morning for 10 to 15 days will also cure the disease.

3. The disease will be cured if one regularly chews a piece of myrobalan after one's principal meal.

1958


FEMALE DISEASES

official source: Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies

cross-references: none

this version: is the printed Yogic Treatments and Natural Remedies, 3rd edition, 
	3rd printing, version (spelling mistakes only may have been corrected). 
	I.e., this is the most up-to-date version as of the present Electronic 
	Edition. Words in square brackets [   ] are corrections that did not 
	appear in the printed version.

			A. ABNORMAL MENSTRUATION 

	Symptoms: Normally menstruation occurs once in a lunar month. Though as a rule, it occurs every twenty-eight days, the interval may be twenty-nine or thirty days for some and twenty-six or twenty-seven days for others, according to the woman's physical condition. Usually menstruation lasts for three to five days. If the menstruation does [not] follow the above pattern according to the lunar month or if it lasts for a week or two; or if it sometimes occurs and sometimes does not; or if sometimes there is excessive bleeding and sometimes very little; then it may be termed 'irregular menstruation.'

In a healthy woman the menstrual discharge is usually about one-fourth seer. If for any reason the quantity is less than normal, it is called 'hypomenorrhoea.'

If there is no menstrual discharge on the fixed date, or if the menstruation stops for two or three months in spite of the woman not being pregnant, then the condition is termed 'amenorrhoea.'

	Causes: In tropical countries a woman's fertility lasts from the age of twelve or fourteen up to the age of forty-five or fifty-five, and in cold countries it lasts from fourteen or sixteen up to fifty or sixty. A regular interval of monthly menstruation and a regular amount of discharge throughout these years is a sign of good health. Every month in a fertile woman the uterus prepares its endometrium (uterine lining) to be the first home for a possible embryo. All of the glands that maintain the youth of the body help directly or indirectly in this work of forming the embryo. These glands also co-operate in providing blood to the uterus to develop the embryo. When the sperm comes into contact with the ovum and an embryo gets an opportunity to form, that blood supply is used in building the body of the embryo. But if, for any reason, no embryo is formed, then the uterus, now full of blood, breaks up the endometrium, and the accumulated blood, not being of any other use to the body, is expelled with the remains of the endometrium. This unnecessary blood is called 'menstrual discharge.'

	Anaemia is the main cause behind all types of abnormal menstruation - menorrhagia (excessive flow), hypomenorrhoea, and irregular menstruation. When women suffer from anaemia, the glands that help maintain youth also suffer from debilities and as a result the endometrium cannot develop. And in the case of anaemia, sufficient blood cannot be stored in the uterus to form an embryo. This condition brings about hypomenorrhoea. When, owing to the meagre blood supply or to any defect in the organs of the body (conditions which may be found in both thin and fat women), very little blood is stored in the uterus; and the woman also suffers from upward-moving va'yu; then her menstrual flow may stop completely, and this is called 'amenorrhoea.' In such a situation, the accumulation of impure blood may create many disorders in the body which can lead to premature death. This type of woman with a weak constitution often also suffers from tuberculosis, asthma and similar chronic diseases. Amenorrhoea can cause hysteria or even temporary insanity. A woman may also become irritable in disposition due to the disease.

	The reasons behind irregular menstruation are liver defects, constipation and excessive sex.

	When the blood becomes over-acidic and weakens the liver and other blood-purifying organs, the poisons of the body are thoroughly flushed out along with the menstrual discharge. This state is called 'menorrhagia.'

	Treatment:

	Morning-Utks'epa Mudra', Padahasta'sana, Bandhatraya Yoga Mudra', and A'mbhasii Mudra' or A'mbhasii Pra'n'a'ya'ma.

	Evening-Yogamudra', Diirgha Pran'a'ma, Bhu'jaunga'sana, Karma'sana and Ka'kacaincu Mudra'.

	See restrictions given under 'Treatment', Section C of this chapter.

	Diet: During the menstrual period only easily-digestible and nutritious food should be eaten. All types of fruit juice, milk, leafy vegetables and vegetable soups are excellent foods during this period. Non-vegetarian food, too much fried or parched food, and too much ghee, oil or spicy food are to be rejected. Of spices, asafoetida (Ferula foetida Regel) and clove are very useful, but they should not be taken in large amounts.

	Do's and don't's: During the menstrual period sleeping during the day, staying awake at night and hard physical labour should be avoided. Bending forward to lift heavy loads is forbidden, because such pressure may displace the blood-filled uterus. Warming oneself by the fire is also forbidden, because staying too long in the heat of the fire may excite the body and mind. Women who have no one to assist them in cooking may cook meals outside the kitchen in the open air, using a portable stove. As much as possible they should keep away from the food; otherwise there is a high possibility that the menstrual discharge will come in contact with the food and contaminate it.(*) To keep the body completely free of excitement, menstruating women must not touch adult males. In order to save their husbands and children from any harmful effect from their menstrual discharge, they should sleep on separate beds. And those beds should be kept dry, warm and comfortable.

	* This passage refers especially to problems that arise when cooking on a wood or coal stove, and when preparing food on the floor.

	Women should keep away from strenuous acts such as singing, dancing and blowing conch-shells during their menstrual period, and for the sake of their minds and bodies should keep engaged in light, restful chores or amusing conversation. Finally, they should utilize as much of the day as possible in Iishvara Pran'idha'na (meditation) as taught by an A'ca'rya.

	In so many cases at present we see that the above do's and don't's are not being followed, and this is leading women in greater numbers to suffer from menstrual problems.

	There is no objection to bathing during the menstrual period, but bathing in very cold water is to be avoided. On the first day of menstruation one may bathe in normally-cool water unless it is uncomfortable. On the second and third day one should bathe in sun-warmed water

	During menstruation, using tampons of cotton or linen which block the vagina is harmful. Instead, women should wear shorts over a Kaopiina (a tight-fitting kind of underwear) or a cotton pad.

	A woman with a healthy liver may consume butter or ghee with rice. A menstruating woman should drink sufficient water, say four or five seers a day, but not much at a time. Those who are suffering from menorrhagia should, during a time of excessive bleeding, lie in bed with the legs raised and the head slightly lowered.

	Some remedies:

	1. If due to excessive bleeding a woman becomes too weak, she should drink 2 tolas of kuksiima' juice or durba' juice along with a little honey every day during her menstrual period.

	2. Take 3 or 4 pomegranate (Punica granatum Linn.) flowers ground in raw milk twice a day during the period.

	3. Take the root of ka'nt'a'nat'e with honey; or

4. The juice of va'saka leaves with sugar; every day during the menstrual period.

	B. DYSMENORRHOEA (CRAMPS)

	Symptoms: Unbearable pain in the abdominal region, which begins before the commencement of the menstrual discharge and subsides as soon as the menstruation is over; and irregular menstruation -- too little or too much discharge -- are the main symptoms of this disease.

	Causes: Women who are adverse to physical labour, and who generally are from rich or upper middle-class families, are found suffering from this disease. Due to lack of physical labour, or due to physical debility for any reason, the uterus and the ovaries become weak and cannot stand the pressure of blood during the menstrual period. As soon as the blood starts entering the uterus, both the uterus and the ovaries start reacting adversely and that adverse reaction expresses itself as pain in the abdomen.

Women doing adequate physical labour seldom suffer from this disease. If mental dissatisfaction is added to the lack of physical labour, then the disease is aggravated. When women in upper-class society are compelled to lead dissatisfied sex lives on account of various social restrictions, they also suffer from this disease. This disease is one of the reasons for infertility.

	Treatment: Same as for abnormal menstruation.

Diet: Special attention should be paid to see that the food is alkaline. All types of fruits, and vegetable soups, are good in this disease. Fried, parched and non-vegetarian food, too much oil, ghee, garlic and onions, and too-spicy foods are to be avoided. Even after recovering from the disease, a woman should not have intercourse with her husband for at least four months.

	Do's and don't's: During the painful stage of the disease, the patient should apply a hot compress to her abdomen. And during menstruation she should not eat anything except milk and other liquid food.

	Some remedies:

1. 10 to 12 ashoka flowers without stems should be boiled in a mixture of 4 seers of water and 1/2 seer milk, until the mixture boils down to 3/8 seer. This preparation is called 'ashokaks'iira', and it should be taken for three continuous days, 1/8 seer per day.

2. Tying the root of a bel sapling around the waist will relieve the pain of this disease.

3. Remove the bark of a ghor'a'nim root and boil 3 or 4 tolas of the root in water. Drink that preparation during the menstrual period every morning and it will clear up menstrual troubles.

	C. LEUCORRHOEA

	Symptoms: If one suffers from a discharge without any reason or provocation, it is called 'leuccorrheoa.' If the discharge is yellowish, reddish, blackish or foamy; or if it resembles the water in which meat has just been washed, it is called 'bloody leucorrhoea.' And if the discharge is whitish, it is called 'white leucorrhoea.' White leucorrhoea is very common.

	Causes:

1. Abortion or miscarriage;
2. Constipation;
3. Too many medicines or injections;
4. Excessive sexual intercourse; and
5. Anaemia.

	If a woman suffers from anaemia for whatever reason, the organs of the body become incapable of supplying an adequate amount of blood to the uterus. In such a case, the inadequate supply of blood get mixed with other fluids of the body, turns whitish, and is flushed out of the uterus--and the woman suffers from white leucorrhoea.

Abortions and miscarriages also make women anaemic and cause leucorrhoea. Similarly, too much administration of medicines and injections weakens the blood, and leucorrheoa is the result.

Excessive sexual intercourse invites constipation, which pollutes the blood and brings on acidity, and this causes leucorrhoea. Virgins with the unnatural habit of masturbation invite a similar reaction, and leucorrhoea may occur.

When both the liver and pancreas become weak, the blood will show an increase in acidity, and generally blood leucorrhoea occurs. In bloody leucorrhoea, unlike white leucorrhoea the patient may not be suffering from anaemia, but her blood will be more polluted.

If due to ignorance adolescent girls and unmarried women leave the vagina unclean, they suffer from a certain type of discharge. This discharge is not actually leucorrhoea; it should be considered an ordinary discharge. However, if care is not taken in good time, it may turn into incurable leucorrhoea later on.

Treatment:

	For adolescent discharge

	Morning-Utks'epa Mudra', Karma'sana, Bandhatraya Yoga Mudra' and A'mbhasii Pra'n'a'ya'ma.

	Evening-Yogamudra', Diirgha Pran'a'ma, Bhu'jaunga'sana, Karma'sana, and Ka'kacaincu Mudra'.

	For leucorrhoea

	Morning-Utks'epa Mudra', Karma'sana, Gomukha'sana, Yogamudra', Diirgha Pran'a'ma, Bhu'jaunga'sana, A'mbhasii Mudra', or A'mbhasii Pra'n'a'ya'ma, Agnisa'ra Mudra', and Upavis't'a Ud'd'ayana Mudra'.

	Evening-Karma'sana, Gomukha'sana, Yogamudra', Diirgha Pran'a'ma, Bhu'jaunga'sana, Ud'd'ayana Mudra', Ka'kacaincu Mudra'.

	In all types of menstrual trouble--dysmenorrhea, leucorrhoea or any other female disease--a woman should not practise a'sanas or mudra's during her menstrual period. Instead, she should perform pra'n'a'ya'ma only.

	Diet: Same as for abnormal menstruation.

	Do's and don't's: Of the many causes of this disease, the main cause is unrestricted sexual activity. So for those who want to be cured, control over sexual activity -- by both husband and wife -- is necessary. Anaemia is the root cause of white leucorrhea, so the patient should make a special point of taking easily-digestible and nutritious food. If the patient cannot tolerate milk, she should take curd-water or coconut milk, instead.

	For adolescent girls suffering from abnormal discharges, attention should be given to the maintenance of their personal hygiene, together with the practice of a'sanas and mudra's. Leucorrhoea occurs if contaminated matter gets a chance to accumulate inside the genital organ. So both males and females should use water after urinating. Adolescent girls suffering from this disease should wash internally either with soap and water or with water which has been boiled with neem (Azadirachta indica A. Juss) leaves. The fingernails should be cut short, otherwise women may injure themselves internally.

	Unmarried women should strictly avoid the habit of masturbation.

	Some remedies:

	1. Grind 4 red China-roses (Tamarix aphylla Karst.) in the water in which rice has been cooked. If taken in 1/2 tola quantity every day during the menstrual period, this will cure all kinds of menstrual troubles.

	2. Ashokaks'iira [see Remedy 1 for dysmenorrhoea (cramps) above] gives good results with all menstrual troubles.

	3. Take the root of white a'kanda and grind it in the raw milk of a black cow on a Sunday. The patient should drink 1/4 tola of the preparation every day during menstruation. This will give good results.

			D. DISPLACED UTERUS

	Symptoms: Heavy feeling in the abdomen, difficulty in defecating and urinating, anaemia, white leucorrhoea, pain in the back and waist, pain like the pain of cramps, etc., are the symptoms of this disease.

	Causes: The uterus lies in a suspended position supported by a few ligaments behind the navel region. So it is not at all unusual for the uterus to get displaced or to change sides. since the uterus is situated in between the urinary bladder and the rectum, any displacement of it may hinder defecation or urination. The uterus has an elastic quality and can shrink and expand. This is why a positional change of the uterus may cause great disorder in the lower trunk.

	Though constipation is not the only cause of this disease, it is the main one. Because, due to accumulation of stool, the colon gets swollen, putting pressure on the uterus, and causing it to change its position. Again, though there are many reasons for constipation, excessive sexual activity is the main one.

	During menstruation, when the uterus remains full of blood, bending forward to do any heavy chore, or lifting heavy pots from the stove, may also lead to the displacement of the uterus.

	Due to excessive sexual intercourse, the nervous system of the lower portion of the body may suffer from all-round debility. Consequently, those few ligaments that keep the uterus suspended also become weak, and thereby become a factor in the displacement of the uterus.

	Too much use of medicines and injections also weakens the blood and nerve-cells, due to which dislodgement of the uterus may occur. Anaemia and nervous debilities caused in this way are two of the many causes of displacement of the uterus.

	Repeated induced child-births, short-cutting the body's normal child-bearing forces, may also weaken the nerves of the lower body. This enhances the chance of displacement of the uterus.

	Treatment:

	Morning-Utks'epa Mudra', Padahasta'sana, Shalabha'sana, Ud'd'ayana Mudra', Bandhatraya Yoga Mudra', and A'mbhasii Mudra' or A'mbhasii Pra'n'a'ya'ma.

	Evening-Padahasta'sana, Pashcimotta'na'sana, Sarva'unga'sana, Matsyamudra', and Ka'kacaincu Mudra'.

	Taking vya'paka sna'na is very beneficial with this disease. See restriction on a'sanas given under 'Treatment,' Section C of this chapter.

	Diet: Same as for abnormal menstruation.

	Do's and don't's: With this disease patients should be allowed to rest as much as possible. Sexual intercourse should be completely stopped. If the uterus is found to be totally displaced; or if there is acute burning; or if the displacement arises from a tumor in the uterus or in the abdomen; then adopting the above steps will bring good results.

But some women in this situation undergo surgery to remove the uterus or ovaries. Obviously, such surgery cannot bring about a cure. Rather, this is like trying to cure a headache by cutting off the head. The loss of these important glands makes a woman sexually neuter and brings about great changes in body and mind. Different mental disorders appear, and often the woman goes mad. So as soon as a woman realizes that she has a displaced uterus, she should be especially careful to avoid constipation and to see that her urination remains normal.

	E. STERILITY AND INFERTILITY

	Symptoms: If a woman between the ages of sixteen or seventeen and thirty or thirty-five is unable to conceive in spite of having sexual intercourse, this may be considered a case of sterility or infertility. However, the sterility may or may not be that of the woman. Often it is due to sterility of the male partner that society considers a woman sterile.

	Causes: Behind sterility or infertility there can be a number of causes.

	1. The ova, produced in the ovaries, pass through the Fallopian tubes to reach the uterus. When the Fallopian tubes are weak, diseased, or blocked by contaminated matter,the ova either fail to reach the uterus or die on the way. Consequently, conception cannot take place even if living spermatozoa are present in the uterus.

2. The ovaries, the ova-producing organs, are situated a little above the groin on either side. Due to lack of physical labour, anaemia, physical debility or any other physical defect, or any congenital defect, the ovaries may not be able to produce ova, or only overly-weak ones. When this takes place, women will be sterile or give birth to still-born babies.

3. In the case of women who are very bad-tempered, that is, dominated by the va'yu or pitta factor a little of the pitta can enter the uterus and be stored there. This poisonous pitta kills the sperm and destroys the chance of conception.

4. Excess body fat can cause the female genitals to become somewhat misshapen. As a result, the sperm cannot reach their destination and conception cannot take place. To such women intercourse becomes frustrating, and their sexual dissatisfaction makes them both over-desirous and quarrelsome, and destroys the peace of their domestic life.

5. Excessive intercourse makes the nervous system of the lower portion of the body weak and insensitive, and conception cannot take place. For just this reason, prostitutes are generally infertile.

6. Excessive acidity of the body, many a time, does not allow the foetus to draw the fluids or blood necessary for its development, so the foetus dies a premature death; that is, the woman tends to have still-births. Women who are excessively fond of eating non-vegetarian food but do not undertake adequate physical labour suffer from over-acidity of the blood.

7. Those males who develop the unnatural habit of wasting their semen excessively before they attain the age of twenty-five or twenty-six tend to lose their capacity to produce healthy sperm. The sperm of such persons cannot produce an embryo.

8. In the case of males who, even after attaining adulthood, live intemperately, the testes cannot produce healthy sperm; in this case also conception cannot take place.

9. If a male suffers from excessive pitta secretion, that pitta destroys the ova in the uterus and does not allow any embryo to be formed.

10. If the spermatic duct becomes diseased, weak, hardened or full of impurities, then a person becomes infertile, and conception cannot take place.

	Treatment: The causes behind sterility and infertility are many. Therefore one particular remedy cannot be applied in all cases. The original defect in the male or female which has caused the sterility should be treated properly. Removing the defect or defects will bring good results with the sterility.

	Inability to bear a second child, after bearing one, should be treated in just the same manner.

	Many people think that infertility can occur due to leucorrhoea or displacement of the uterus. But this impression is not entirely correct. Because even during such conditions the link between the ovaries and the uterus through the Fallopian tubes remains unaffected. But it is true that, if these diseases are present, the chance of still-births is greater.

	If the testes of the male or the ovaries of the female are underdeveloped for congenital reasons, that type of sterility if very difficult to cure.

	Very often the opening of the vagina becomes flaccid or stretched, and the vagina almost protrudes. In such cases, for good results in a short time, patients should take Vya'paka Sna'na regularly and perform Utks'epa Mudra', Yogamudra', Diirgha Pran'a'ma and Bhu'jaunga'sana.

	Whatever the reason for sterility or infertility, taking Vya'paka Shaoca is very beneficial.

	Diets and do's and don't's: The diet and the do's and don't's are the same as for abnormal menstruation.

	A remedy:

	1. A pregnant woman can avoid miscarriage if an entire root of white apa'ma'rga plant or a root of white apara'jita' plant is worn around the patient's waist.

			F. STILL BIRTHS

	Symptoms: Many women give birth to still-born children; some children die a few minutes before or after delivery.

	A remedy: In case of this tendency (when it is apparent that the child in the womb is alive), for a few days before the delivery the would-be mother should keep her hair untied and loose, and should tie a root of white jayanti plant in her hair and keep it there continuously till the child is born. In this way she can avoid a still-birth.

	CONCLUSION

	At present a large number of women in society suffer from one female disease or other. The main reasons are:

	1. Lack of nutritious diet and consequent anaemia;

2. Unnatural way of life;

3. Lack of proper observation of the do's and don't's during menstruation; 

4. Lack of sexual restraint by males and females;

5. Ignorance regarding sexual matters.

	Though female diseases may not be obviously fatal, they slowly sap the vitality of the individual, and children, who are the hope of society, are born with mental and physical defects which remain throughout their lives. What a terrible situation this is for society can easily be imagined. On account of female diseases women often die prematurely. In most cases, if not all, lack of self-control by the male is one of the causes of female disease. It is certainly not desirable for women to go to their graves prematurely due to the intemperance of men. Sexual over-indulgence is also harmful to the men, because it causes excessive wastage of shukra, which in the lymph stage nourishes the brain. Remember that self-control is the greatest thing in life.

1958