The roots of ayurveda

		Ayurveda,the oldest system of medicine in the world, traces its roots to the Vedic period in ancient India. The Vedas contain practical and scientific information on various subjects beneficial to the humanity like health, philosophy, engineering, astrology etc.Vedic Brahmans were not only priests performing religious rites and ceremonies, they also became the Vaidyas (Ayurvedic Physicians). The Sage- Physician- Surgeons of that time were the same sages or seers, deeply devoted holy people , who saw health as an integral part of spiritual life. It is said, that they received their training of Ayurveda through direct cognition during meditation. In other words, the knowledge of the use of various methods of healing, prevention, longevity and surgery came through Divine revelation . These revelations were transcribed from the oral tradition into book form, interspersed with the other aspects of life.
	Consequently Ayurveda grew into a respected and widely used system of healing in India. Around CA.1500 Before.Common era. Ayurveda was delineated into eight specific branches of medicine and there were two main schools - Atreya, the school of physicians, and Dhanvantari , the school of surgeons. These two schools made Ayurveda a more scientifically verifiable and classifiable medical system.   People from numerous countries came to Indian Ayurvedic schools to learn this medical science. They came from China, Tibet, Greece, Rome, Egypt ,Afghanistan, Persia etc. to learn the complete wisdom and bring it back to their own countries. Ayurvedic texts were translated in Arabic and  physicians such as Avicenna and Razi Sempion, who both quoted Ayurvedic texts , established Islamic Medicine.  This medicine became popular in Europe and helped to form the foundation of the European tradition in medicine. In the 16th Century Europe , Paracelsus , who is known as the father of modern Western medicine, practiced and propagated a system of medicine which borrowed heavily from Ayurveda..