INTRODUCTION TO AGADA TANTRA( ONE AMONG ASHTANGA'S OF AYURVEDA)

AGADA TANTRA
The foundation of ayurveda is based on eight branches (Astanga Ayurveda) and in those one of the divisions is Agada Tantra (Toxicology). The earliest reference of Agada tantra are Atharva veda, Adi parva of Mahabharata, Ramayana.
The word “Agada tantra” is derived from the combination of the two words – agada & tantra. The word 'agada' is again formed of अ+गद. Gada means disease, discomfort, pain, poison, or morbid conditions produced by any type of the poison inhaled, absorbed, applied, injected or developed within the body. Agada means the medicaments which are used to combat these morbid conditions.
                              'गदम्  नाम  विषगरादिवैरोधिक  वस्तुजातं
                              तत् निर्हरण समर्थे अगदं '
The science through which the positive health of an individual is preserved. “त्रायते शरीरमनेनेति तन्त्रम्”.






                            “अगदतन्त्रं नाम सर्पकीटलूतामूषिकादिदष्टविष
                             व्यञ्जनार्थं विविधविषसंयोगोपशमनार्थञ्च"
                                                            (ref: Su.Su.1/15)
Agada tantra deals with the signs & symptoms & also with the management of poisoning, resulting from the bites of snakes, insects and worms, spiders, rodents etc and various other poisons produced by improper combination of substances or drugs.
Hence, Toxicology (agada tantra) is a science dealing with properties, actions, toxicity, fatal dose, detection, estimation and interpretation of the result of toxicological analysis and treatment of poisons. As the field of the agada tantra is very vast, there is need to understand it in different aspects like divisions & subdivisions, its merits, demerits, qualities, properties, signs & symptoms etc of 'visa' for concluding the diagnosis and the treatment principles.