Critical Appraisal of Embryological Concepts (Garbhasharir) Delineated in Ayurveda

Background: Ayurveda mainly accords with healthy and diseased conditions of human being starting from conception till death. The foremost objective of Garbhasharir (embryology) described by Ayurvedic compendia is Suprajanan (Healthy Progeny). Modern embryology describes the aspect about formation of embryo, development of foetus & structural teratogenesity of bodily organs in detail, whereas Ayurveda affirrms about structural, physical and mental status of the foetus. There are numerous references of Garbhasharir which are quoted in Brihattrayee (Three major compendia of Ayurved) and their commentaries that need to be construed in an appropriate way so as to make them applicable for current era. Aims: The present critical appraisal is based on concepts of Grabhasharir described in Ayurvedic lexicons with relation to embryological concepts, to interpret the processes related to genesis of progeny and analyse them with the help of current scientific knowledge. Materials Methods: Brihattrayee and other relevant literature were critically reviewed to find out the hidden core of embryology described in chapters related to Garbhasharir. Results: The concepts of Ayurvedic embryology are truly based on its fundamentals i.e. 'Tridosha' (three bodily humours), 'Triguna' (three psychological humours) & 'Panchamahabhoota' (five basic elements of life) etc. Ayurvedic compendia roughly shows two types of processes (dependent & independent) related to genesis of progeny. Dependent processes are those that can be modified & independent are those which cannot be modified by the endeavor of the parents. Conclusions: Even though the concepts of embryology described in Ayurveda dates back to centuries, they are still relevant in the current scientific world provided proper insight is applied to interpret them.