vaidyo nArAyaNo hariH !
There is a popular shloka in Samskrita which has been taught to children for a long time now. This is supposed to be recited just before taking any medicine. It goes as follows -
"sharIre jharjharIbhUte vyAdhigraste kalevare |
auShadhaM jAhnavItoyaM vaidyo nArAyaNo hariH ||"
"When the sharIra (body) is suffering and the body is beset with disease, medicine is like the sacred water of the Ganga and the doctor is nArAyaNa Himself".
Another reading would be to consider water of the gangA itself as medicine and nArAyaNa Himself as the doctor. The interesting word here is also "hariH" - hari means some one who destroys. In this case it would mean that nArAyaNa is destroying disease.
Also, the word "sharIra" comes from "shIryate iti sharIraM" - which means it is bound to be destroyed. That understanding is also implicitly conveyed in the shloka - even if one takes enough medicine, the body is eventually something that will decay and get destroyed. With this meaning, nArAyaNa would be apt as He is the protector in the Hindu Trinity - he is protecting the sharIra - something that will decay in the course of time.
"sharIre jharjharIbhUte vyAdhigraste kalevare |
auShadhaM jAhnavItoyaM vaidyo nArAyaNo hariH ||"
"When the sharIra (body) is suffering and the body is beset with disease, medicine is like the sacred water of the Ganga and the doctor is nArAyaNa Himself".
Another reading would be to consider water of the gangA itself as medicine and nArAyaNa Himself as the doctor. The interesting word here is also "hariH" - hari means some one who destroys. In this case it would mean that nArAyaNa is destroying disease.
Also, the word "sharIra" comes from "shIryate iti sharIraM" - which means it is bound to be destroyed. That understanding is also implicitly conveyed in the shloka - even if one takes enough medicine, the body is eventually something that will decay and get destroyed. With this meaning, nArAyaNa would be apt as He is the protector in the Hindu Trinity - he is protecting the sharIra - something that will decay in the course of time.
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