ROLE OF Saraca asoca Linn. IN MENTAL HYGIENE-AN LITERARY REVIEW Vd

1. Final Year PG Student, Y.M.T. Ayurvedic Medical College & Hospital, Kharghar, Navi Mumbai. 2. Associate Professor, Y.M.T. Ayurvedic Medical College & Hospital, Kharghar, Navi Mumbai. ...................................................................................................................... Manuscript Info Abstract ......................... ........................................................................ Manuscript History Received: 28 May 2020 Final Accepted: 30 June 2020 Published: July 2020

It is mental well-being in which an individual realizes his/ her abilities, can cope with normal stresses of life, can work productively & can make a contribution to his/ her society & country in a broader arena. Hence, mental health is a foundation for well-being of an individual & the effective functioning of the community. [1] Mental health & mental illness are two continuous concepts.
Mental health is a positive concept related to the social & emotional wellbeing of individuals & communities.
Mental illness refers collectively to all diagnosable mental disorder's conditions characterized by alteration in thinking, mood & behaviour associated with distress or impaired functioning.
Psychological Factors contributing to mental illness are severe psychological trauma suffered as a child, such as emotional, physical, or sexual abuse, an important early loss, such as the loss of a parent, neglect, poor ability to relate to others.
Environmental factors contributing to mental illness in a person susceptible are certain stressors that can be a triggering factor such as death or divorce, dysfunctional family life, feelings of inadequacy, low self-esteem, anxiety, anger or loneliness, changing jobs or institutions, social or cultural expectations, substance abuse by a person or his/ her family or closed ones.
Mental hygiene is "the art of preserving the mind against all incidents & influences calculated to deteriorate its qualities, impair its energies, or derange its movements". It refers to all the activities & techniques which encourage as well as maintain mental health. [2] The critical review of few medical journals suggested that the proportionate contribution of mental disorders to the total disease burden has almost doubles since 1990, which amounts to 19.73 crore population of country reeling under one or other mental disorder. Initially, a handful of people in society were vocal about mental health as a major concern irrespective of gender but seems to have failed to think about mental hygiene. Description of this concept in Ayurveda was already done by ancient scholars which we have tried to explore in various angles.

Material & Methodology:-
Critical review of ayurvedic compendia especially charak samhita alongwith ashtang hriday & bharprakash nighantu were mainly referred for this study. Supportive texts & references from conventional medicine, jouranls & internet source were also studied to comprehend the ancient literature.
In process of this review it was noted that there is some ambiguity related to concept of manas vikara & its probable modes of treatment. Hence this study was done to clarify the correlation of colour psychology, aroma therapy in relation to mana & its vikara alongwith aspects of cultivation.

Concept of mana & mental health:
The concept of mana has been given immense importance in ayurveda. The high prevalence of manas vikara in today's era is a major subject of concern which can be correlated to mental disorders in conventional medicine.

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Mana means the one which does manana, bodhana & through which knowledge is perceived. [3] The gunas of mana are anutva & ekatva. [4] Acharya charak has defined life (ayu ) is the combined state of sharira ( body ), indiryas (senses ) & sattva ( psyche / mind ). The teaming of all three has one responsible common factor which is Mana . [5] A human body is said to be healthy when there is balance & harmony among doshas & dhatus alongwith normal digestion, uninterrupted excretion of waste products in addition to tranquility & clarity of soul, mind & senses. [6] According to Ayurveda hriday ( heart ) & mastishka ( brain ) are well recognized as two separate vital organs as well as mentioned to be adhishthana of mana. Uppermost chief organ of all sense organs is brain whereas heart is considered to be seat of buddhi & sadhak pitta regulates its proper functioning. [7] The relation of shira ( head ) with indriya ( cognitive organs ) & pranavaha strotas ( vital centres & their connected path ) ; the relation of hriday ( heart ) with the mana ( psyche ), buddhi ( intellect ), chetana ( consciousness ) & mahabhutas ( proto elements ) has been well mentioned by Acharya charak in charak samhita.
The buddhi vyapara ( accomplishment of intellect ) occurs after mano vyapara ( psychic action ) for attaining the deterministic knowledge. Hereby mana & buddhi are reciprocally related to each other i.e.gyan utpatti karma ( gaining the knowledge ).
The sadhak pitta is essentially responsible for higher mental faculties & emotional states.it is also responsible for various psychological functions such as shourya ( courage ),bhaya ( fear ),krodha ( anger ),harsha, etc. [8] The emotions are shown to be deeply related to & dependant on heart. The pathogenesis of mental diseases depicts the association of heart with them.

Manas vikara
The similar concepts regarding mana have also been told by Acharya sushruta & Acharya vaghbhata.

Reproductive & mental health in women:
The Hence, reproductive health factors & gynecological symptoms may actually be somatic equivalents of common mental disorders in Asian women. [9] The critical review of few medical journals suggested that the proportionate contribution of mental disorders to the total disease burden has almost doubles since 1990, which amounts to 19.73 crore population of country reeling under one or other mental disorder. [10] Hereby, statistical data by WHO states that women are more affected by mental health. [11] The scenario may seem to be troublesome on global platform whereas the solution seems simple as suggested by Ayurveda acharyas i.e. the stripriya ashoka Literature Review:-

Family -Caesalpinionaceae
According to Sanskrit literature, अशोकः = नास्ति शोको यतमाि ् । [12] Adenotes absence ; SHOKAdenotes grief or sorrow Absence of grief or sorrow = Ashoka The Ashoka tree is considered sacred throughout the indian subcontinent. It is highly valued for its handsome appearance due to its abundance & colour pallette of flowers alongwith its mild aroma. [13] This tree was abundantly found in many temples, gardens & royal palaces.
Mythological history of ashoka. [14] : 1. Queen Maya gave birth to lord Gautam Buddha under ashoka trees in beautiful garden of lumbini park, Nepal, where she stepped down from her palanqum to have walk while she was returning back to her own home for birth. She reached for the ashoka branch to take rest as she was elated by the park. 2. Yakshis underashoka tree were considered to be decorative element of hindu / indian sculpture & was integrated into the indian temple architecture as salabanjika 3. Goddess sita was captivated in ashoka vatika in lanka by lord ravana in lanka as mentioned in indian epic Ramayana as well as in Vishnu purana.

Geographical Distribution:
Geographically it is majorly distributed in indian subcontinent ( central area of deccan plateau, as well as middle section of the western ghats in the western coastal zone ) alongwith adjacent areas like Nepal, Sri lanka, central & eastern Himalayas, northern plains of india & west coast of the subcontinent near Mumbai. [

6) चित्र
This plant is very wonderful & bright. It has an extra ordinary appearance.

7) कर्ा पू रक
It is used as an ornament worn around the ear.

8) सु भग
It has a beautiful look & its sight is considered to be very auspicious.

9) तमराचधिास
It is considered to be abode of remembrance & love.

10) दोषहारर
It alleviates the doshas that causes the health problems in the body.

Gunalaghu, ruksha
According to colour psychology, colours affect human behavior which have psychological properties relating to body, mind, emotions & essential balance among all of three.
Every single colour have their properties which exert some effect but combination of colours alongwith aroma & music exert even more better effect on humans. [18] वपत्ितय सवपा षः पानं तिादु शीिै विा रे िनम ् । Flowers of ashoka have rich colour pallete that grabs attention. Predominantly color yellow followed by colour orange & eventually colour red on full maturation, alongwith colour green of leaves of the tree.
Hence, also it was suggested to be cultivated in gardens & in vicinity of houses. [19] अर्ोद्याने ििक्ष्यालम िशतिान्यादपाद्विज ।

Characteristic Features of Colours
Being the longest wavelength, red is a powerful colour.
Although not technically the most visible, it has the property of appearing to be nearer than it is & therefore it grabs our attention first. Hence its effectiveness in traffic lights the world over. Its effect is physical; it stimulates us & raises the pulse rate, giving the impression that time is passing faster than it is.

Yellow:
The yellow wavelength is relatively long & essentially stimulating.
In this case the stimulus is emotional, therefore yellow is the strongest colour, psychologically.
The right yellow will lift our spirits & our self-esteem; it is the colour of confidence & optimism. Too much of it, or the wrong tone in relation to the other tones in a colour scheme, can cause self-esteem to plummet, giving rise to fear & anxiety.

Orange:
Since it is a combination of red & yellow, orange is stimulating & reaction to it is a combination of the physical & the emotional.
It focuses our minds on issues of physical comfort -food, warmth, shelter etc. -& sensuality. It is a 'fun' colour.

Green:
Green strikes the eye in such a way as to require no adjustment whatever & is, therefore, restful. Being in the center of the spectrum, it is the colour of balance -a more important concept than many people realise.
When the world about us contains plenty of green, this indicates the presence of water, & little danger of famine, so we are reassured by green, on a primitive level.
Tradiotional history of ashoka [21] : Today's era has witnessed massive deforestation & degradation of the environment. The disastrous consequences of this in form of global warming & unavailability of the precious medicinal herbs have been cited many a times in many research studies but go ignored until a major supply is demanded for its use.
Historically the protection of nature & wildlife was an ardent article of faith, reflected in the daily lives of people, enriched in myths, folklore, religion, arts & culture.
Such traditional cultural attitudes though based on religious faith have made significant contribution in protection & propagation of various species of trees & plants in india. Environmental conservation is no new concept for Indians. It was substantially was ingrained in the thought processes of Indians as evident from teachings of vedas. Provision of such profound variety of cultural practices & ecologically sound relationship with nature is not described in any other culture.
Mythological stories have been useful in cultivating certain plants at an extent that socio-culturally valued species & sacred ones found their places in homes, gardens & courtyards because of their medicinal/ aesthetic/ natural qualities as well as their proximity to particular deity.
In India, married hindu women eat the flower buds of saraca asoca on the 'Ashok shashthi day' to guard their children against grief & sorrow by invoking deities.
The individuals suffering from mental disorder are advised to take bath under the shade of ashoka tree. They are also advised to put powdered seeds inside the beetle leaf (pan) & eat it empty stomach.
For mental peace, the natives prepare special herbal maala (necklace) using pieces of roots of sita ashoka & give it to patients.
It is widely used medicinal herb in ayurveda to cure various gyanaecological disorders as well as it is mentioned to possess varnya properties.