Light bearer: Physician in Sanskrit etymology

Etymological research of the word "physician" in Sanskrit language.

Etymology can sometimes shed light on those parts of our history, on which we have no other sources. The older the language is, the deeper into the past it can get its researchers. One of the oldest documented languages is Sanskrit, the ancient lingua franca of South East Asia. The study of the etymology of Sanskrit words for medical profession can reveal details on the ways physicians were perceived by ancient people. This topic didn't get deserved attention in the History of Medicine, which makes it important and relevant. The aim of the study. The aim of the study is to reveal wider etymological understanding of the words for physician in Sanskrit. Materials and methods. The study is based on the works of renown scholars of Sanskrit etymology and is conducted using basic etymological methods. Results. Sanskrit has three words, that are relevant to the English word physician: oshadhipati, cikitsaka and vaidya. These words can be further deconstructed into separate root-words, which can lead to deeper meanings. The word oshadhipati means lord of herbs or a physician. It is formed with two root-words: osha (shining) and pati (lord). Closely related words in Sankrit are: oshadhi (light-containing, medicinal herb, remedy); oshadhigarbha (producer of herbs, living among herbs as snake). The latter one is particularly interesting, since snake is the most ancient symbol of medicine. The word cikitsaka has only one meaning in Sanskrit (physician), but its root-word (cikit) has multiple meanings (knowing, experienced, shining) and involved in many word formations, like: cikitsana (curing); cikitsa (practice or science of medicine); cikitsita (cured); cikitsu (wise, treating medically); cikitsya (curable); cikitu (understanding); cikitvan (attentive); cikitvas (observing, knowing, understanding, experienced, shining) and many others. The word vaidya has a wide array of meanings: versed in science, learned, medical, medicinal, relating to medicine, an expert (especially in medicine), skilled in the art of healing, a physician, etc. This word comes from the root-word veda, which forms many words related to knowledge, science and philosophy. One of this words is vedati (to call, cry out, curse, swear), which has similar spelling as the Proto-Slavic vedati (to know) and similar meaning to the Proto-Slavic vrat (to swear, to curse), from which comes one of the Proto-Slavic word for physician (vratch). Conclusion. The three Sanskrit words, which stand for the same phenomenon as English word physician, have a very interesting etymology. Two of them (oshadhipati and cikitsaka) have similar meanings and can be understood as “containing light”, “shining” or “an expert of herbs”. The latter one (cikitsaka) has similarities with the third word (vaidya) in that they both are related to the state of being experienced, wise and observing. All of the studied words lead us to the understanding of an ancient East Asian physician as an educated person, well versed in the healing properties of herbs.