Journal articles on the topic 'Yagua Indians'

Understanding Indian cultural and ritual perspective of India has been important aspect of the sociologists and culturists. Perspective on Indian culture can be availed through understanding of Yagya as it is the basis of Indian culture. Survey by Nielsen Corporation has shown the proud feeling of Indians towards their culture while Wiber J Scott indicated that Indian students studying in America had gone to a level of ‘difficult situation’ towards understanding their culture and spirituality. Hence, the present study aimed to find understanding-level of youth (18-40 years) towards contemporary scenario of Yagya. The survey-questionnaire (self-prepared, Google form) was circulated through digital platforms. 566 participants had responded from the different disciplines and professions. 96.99% participants were aware of the term ‘Yagya’ or ‘Hawan’ and indicated it as important for health, environment, and spiritual development and for attaining peace of mind too, while 86.21% believed to have Yagya as part of daily life. The study has shown that youth were aware with the general and basic understanding of Yagya used in ceremonial purposes and surprisingly they (58.83%) also felt that it does not belong to one specific community or religion. However, there is also a category of youth (35.86%) that did not agree nor did that know about it (5.3%). It is also important to note that the questionnaire was circulated through social-media platforms and sharing of link was of personal interest, the majority of participants were familiar with Yagya, hence, such cross sectional study with wider population would justify the present research attempt.

The Philosophy and Science of Yagya (Yajóa) lies at the core of the great values, vast expanse, and universal importance of the Indian Culture and the Vedic Science of holistic wellbeing. Yagya was an integral part of the spiritual teachings and research experiments in the Gurukuls in ancient India. It was also prominent in the cultural activities and ethno practices (for the maintenance of good health, and purity and protection of the environment) in the Indian Society till the Medieval Age. Despite substantial cultural devolution and loss of original texts of wisdom in the medieval times of destructive foreign invasions, substantial information on Yagya may still be found in the Indian scriptures available today. Though in distorted form, it is also practiced as an important sacrament (as “fire-ritual”/havan) in many sections of the Indian society till date. However, the wisdom and science of Yagya is completely missing from the streams of science and education. In concordance with the noble objectives of the Dev Sanskriti Vishwavidalaya (DSVV), the “Yagyavalkya Center for Yagya Research” of this university has initiated thorough interdisciplinary research and scientific experiments on Yagya for past three years. Towards advancement and expansion of this research, the centre had organized a one-day national symposium for a brain storming session and interaction among distinguished experts and researchers in different fields of medical, biological, chemical, and mathematical sciences, and engineering/technology. The symposium was held in the DSVV campus at Haridwar on December4, 2021. The present consensus paper outlines the background, purpose, and outcome of the symposium with a focus on the promising scope of advanced research on Yagya for holistic Health and a pure Environment.

Every time through our Journal we try to present a collection of research papers and studies that bring to the light a new ambit of Yagya research. With a similar aim, another attempt has been made to bring an assortment of some interesting works in this 4th Volume 2nd Issue of the Dev Sanskriti Interdisciplinary Journal of Yagya Research (IJYR). This issue caters to a wide spectrum of Yagya research which includes application of Yagya in tourism, scientific evaluation of the ancient practice of Balivaishva Yagya, importance and use of herbal fumes. All of these try to integrate science and spirituality at their level. The first research article of this issue deals with the study of Balivaishva Yagya its significance and importance in daily life. The author Harsika Jaiswal, investigated the meaning, philosophy, procedure, and utility of Balivaishva Yagya in the present time. She concluded that the five inspirations and messages are hidden in Balivaishva Yagya which can create a spiritual environment in the family as well as solve all the problems of the individual and the world – opening door to all-rounded progress by uprising divine culture in society. The second research paper explores the applications of Yagya in tourism. The author Prachi Agarwal, Arunesh Parashar investigated the Development of Holistic Religious Tourism through the Ancient Indian Technique of Yagya. In their study, they concluded that the Ashwamedha Yagya can act as an important component of religious tourism and gives a newer dimension to religious tourism by providing holistic development of the participants at religious sites through Ashwamedha for national unity, peace, and harmony. The third research article explores the importance and uses of herbal fumes. The author Lalima Batham has investigated the Indian scriptures and Veda in the context of Yagya and reported that herbal fumes produced in the process of Yagya hold high medicinal properties and can be included in Ayurvedic therapy. The next research article states about the cosmic Yagya which implies that human life is sacrificial life (Yagyamay Jeevan - यज्ञमय जीवन). The author Akanksha Prajapati concluded that Yagya is not just a physical process but a lifestyle to live. Lastly, under the guidance of Honorable Dr. Chinmay Pandya, Pro Vice Chancellor, DSVV has organized a symposium on “Advancement of Research on Yagya” in which renowned scientists from various research institutes like IITs (Indian Institute of Technology), National Environmental Engineering Research Institute (NEERI)-Nagpur, National Physical Laboratory-CSIR, and many others. They presented their study and view on the same. The discussion has been manuscript and presented in the last paper as Consensus of the symposium. We hope this issue will inspire and generate interest among researchers, educators, tour planners, and professionals to understand the significance of the indigenous knowledge of Yagya in the present era. We would also like to thank all our readers and request them to send us their valuable feedback to make this journal a more effective vehicle of indigenous knowledge in the future.

Yagya (known as a fire-ritual) is an ancient Vedic Indian method of herbal inhalation therapy. It is also described as an excellent mode of environmental purification. Here, a comparative study of antimicrobial activity of smoke extract of Yagya and non-Yagya has been performed. ‘Yagya’ in this text, refers to the burning of wood, specific types of dried medicinal plant materials (hawan samagri) along with ghee with the citation of mantras, whereas the term Non-Yagya implies burning of wood, hawan samagri, along with ghee. In non-Yagya the mantra citation has not been done. An apparatus was designed to simulate the burning process, and the smoke fraction was captured for antimicrobial activity on human pathogens i.e Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Bacillus subtilis, and Salmonella typh. Antimicrobial activity was performed using disc diffusion method. Antimicrobial data revealed that the ‘smoke-extract’ obtained from Yagya experiments with mantra chanting had higher zone of inhibition values compared to that of same experiment conditions except presence of mantra chanting suggesting an important role of the mantra chanting in Yagya for medicinal applications

Yagya or sacrifice has been an integral part of Indian history and culture. More particularly in ancient India, Yagya appears as the backbone of entire social and political structure. Thus, most of the Vedic literature revolves around the sacrificial ritual in different forms for numerous purposes. In contemporary world, when the scientific temperament dominates almost all spheres of life, masses seek to comprehend everything pertaining to human lives in a rational way. However, the recognized truth is that human society exists in a dilemmatic situation where on one hand they are not ready to discard their cultural heritage, customs and traditions and on the other hand they aspire to abide with scientific logic and reason. Therefore, it is essential to trace the philosophy and common logic of one of the most consistent sacrificial practice of Indian culture, i.e. Yagya. And since the Yagya tradition traces its antiquity from the ancient India, there is a requirement to illustrate the historical existence of yagya in abundance. Thus, this paper attempts to comprehensively deal with historical and philosophical aspects of Yagya to understand its relevance in present scenario. For this study historical methodology has been used premised on the analysis of primary and secondary sources, and the content is descriptive. Since the time of oldest Indus valley civilization, we find archeological evidences of fire altars from sites such as Kalibagan(Rajasthan), Lothal(Gujrat) etc. which indicate the practice of sacrificial rituals. In entire Vedic literature, plethora of textual references elaborate the philosophy, ritual practice, benefits, norms, the hosts of yagyas, and the various types of sacrifices such as Shraut Yagya (public and royal sacrifices) and Pak Yagya (domestic sacrifices). Furthermore, both literary and archeological evidences enchant the practice and effects of distinct type of sacrifices in later Vedic age, pre-Mauryan period (6th century B.C.), age of empires (Mauryan, Shunga, Satavahana, Kanva, Kushana etc.) and Gupta period. This reveals the historical existence of our cultural tradition. Moreover the philosophical relevance of yagya (to sacrifice) is exponent as an idea through which Vedic Rishis facilitated the harmony between ecological system and human life, the peaceful co-existence of all the creatures of the universe and their interdependence. Though it overtly seems that Yagya has been a part of religious life of Vedic Aryans, but after the philosophical and historical analysis, it appears that Yagya crucially contributed to social harmony, constructing political hegemony, and facilitating public welfare in its most intense as well as external procedures. Hence, for dwindling the cultural, environmental and social quos in today’s times yagya needs to be practiced in a modified logical manner.

Svāhā is the word generally used in the Yagya when an offering is made to the fire. Generally in Yagya offering is made to the deity with deity Mantra; in this procedure, after the mantra is chanted, it is followed by word ‘Svāhā’ and ‘Idam-Na-Mama’. The offering is particularly put in the fire with the word ‘Svāhā’. The present study explored the meaning of Svāhā through Indian Scripture. Description of Svāhā is present in the all types of Indian literature i.e. Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas, Brahmana and well commented by Scholarly works. The study summarized the 3 types of implications of Svāhā i.e. 1) Svāhā is inseparable from Yagya Agni as it is depicted as wife of Agni, 2) Svāhā is essential portion of ritual i.e. Yagya is considered incomplete while offerings made without chanting of Svāhā; as Agni can not avail the offerings to deities, 3) Svāhā teaches how one should made offerings i.e. offerings shall be made with complete surrender, humility and sweetness full of emotions, after establishing oneself in wisdom, without ego, and attachment, and thus, only such offerings through Svāhā can be taken by Agni to the deities for welfare of the individual and society.

आज समाज में अनेकों भौतिक साधन उपलब्ध हैं, परन्तु उसके उपरांत भी हर तरफ उद्विग्नता, अशांति और असंतोष का अन्धकार ही व्याप्त है। यह आवश्यक हो गया है कि मनुष्य जीवन में यज्ञ के महत्व को समझकर अपने जीवन जीने की विधि में उसका समावेश करे अन्यथा वह कितने भी साधन उपार्जित कर ले, उसे सुख और संतोष नहीं मिल सकेगा और समाज में अनाचार ऐसे ही पनपता रहेगा। यज्ञ हमारी संस्कृति का आराध्य इष्ट रहा है तथा यज्ञ के बिना हमारे दैनिक जीवन की कल्पना भी नहीं की जा सकती। यज्ञ की महिमा का वेदों में, उपनिषदों में, गीता में, रामायण में, श्रीमद्भागवत आदि में प्रमाण सहित विस्तार से बताया गया है। परन्तु यज्ञ शब्द मात्र मंत्रों के माध्यम से आहुति देना ही नहीं है, अपितु यज्ञ जीवन जीने की एक श्रेष्ठतम विज्ञानसम्मत पद्धति है। जीवन रुपी समाधि को समाज रुपी कुंड में होम करना ही वास्तविक आहुति है। अर्थात जीवन को यज्ञमय बनाने की विधा ही वास्तविक यज्ञ है। यज्ञमय जीवन वास्तव में क्या होता है? यह जानने के लिये निम्न बातें समझना आवश्यक है- यज्ञ क्या है? यज्ञ का वस्तविक स्वरूप कैसा होता है? यज्ञ की क्या आवश्यकता है? यज्ञ के महत्व क्या हैं? यज्ञ वास्तव में कर्मकांड तक ही सीमित नहीं है, अपितु यज्ञ का विस्तार जीवन दर्शन तक है। यदि यज्ञ को इसके व्यापक अर्थों में समझ लिय जाए, तो जीवन की सभी कलाएँ और विज्ञान इसके अन्तर्गत आ जाते हैं। यज्ञ का व्यापक अर्थ मनुष्य के जीवन का ही रूप हैI यदि दूसरे शब्दों में कहा जाए, तो मनुष्य का सम्पूर्ण जीवन एक यज्ञ है, और प्रत्येक श्वास उसकी आहुती। जहाँ कोई व्यक्ति अपनी विशेषताओं का उपयोग करके अनेक व्यक्तियों को ऊँचा उठा रहा हो, वहीँ यज्ञ हुआ समझना चाहिए। इस शोध पत्र के माध्यम से विस्मृत हुई यज्ञमय जीवन पद्धति के प्रत्येक महत्वपूर्ण पहलु का विवेचन करके, उसके सभी तथ्यों पर प्रकाश डालने का प्रयास किया जा रहा है। There are many material resources available in society today, but even after that, the darkness of anxiety, unrest, and dissatisfaction prevails everywhere. It has become necessary that a person should understand the importance of Yagya in life and include it in the method of living life; otherwise, no matter how many means one acquires, there won’t be happiness and contentment. Yagya has been a core of Indian culture and daily routine in Indian life cannot be imagined without Yagya. The glory of Yagya has been described in detail in the Vedas, Upanishads, Gita, Ramayana, Parana etc. The word Yagya is not only to offer sacrifices through mantras, but Yagya is the best scientific method of living life. What exactly is a sacrificial life? To know this it is necessary to understand the following things- What is Yagya? What is the actual form of Yagya? What is the need of Yagya? What is the importance of Yagya? In fact, Yagya is not limited to rituals, but the extension of Yagya extends to philosophy of life. If Yagya is understood in its broadest sense, then all the arts and sciences of life come under it. The broad meaning of Yagya is the form of man's life. Where a person is elevating many people by using his specialties, there should be considered a sacrifice, a Yagya. Through this research paper, an attempt is being made to shed light on all the facts by discussing every important aspect of the forgotten Yagya life method.

The fundamental principle of human life, nature or the universe is to give or to serve others. This whole mechanism of sharing is the core takeaway of the process of Yagya – an ancient rite of fire oblations. Yagya therapy is an ancient Indian therapy which is a holistic health management. It provides the therapeutic approach in mental disorders and state of mind. The present study evaluated effect of Yagya on the mental health. A study was conducted on 4 subjects for 30 days and levels of stress and anxiety were evaluated. Biofeedback Galvanic Skin Response (GSR) and Sinha’s Comprehensive Anxiety Test (SCAT) were used for measuring stress and anxiety levels respectively. The result showed improvement in both the conditions of the participants. Their stress (p=0.11; Student’s two tail test) and anxiety (p=0.08; Student’s two tail test) levels showed trend of reduction with 30 days of treatment. This study indicated the utility of Yagya in daily life for combating mental conditions of stress and anxiety.

Religious tourism is one of the oldest forms of tourism and a rapidly expanding economy. Religious tourism to pilgrimage sites has existed since the dawn of time in every part of the world. People frequently went on pilgrimages despite journey inconveniences. Hence, it begs the question of the purpose of their visit and what makes their visit most efficient? The present study examined the purposes of religious tourism in the present times vs. Vedic times and proposed considerations for holistic religious tourism. For different purposes, tourists visit religious sites to obtain benefits i.e. 1) religious, 2) spiritual, 3) academic, and 4) pleasure purposes. However, this model of religious tourism is not holistic. In the Vedic model, pilgrimage sites should have religious-pious personalities and a spiritual environment for effectively guiding tourists for new resolutions in life holistic model. In addition, the pilgrimage should result in nation-building and social-cultural benefits besides building the economy. For the same purpose, spiritual practices like Yagyas and Ashwamedha were performed in Vedic times at pilgrimage sites resulting in a holistic model of religious tourism i.e. 1) pilgrimage site has Rishi like personalities, 2) tourists, locals aid in preserving natural resources, 3) culture and social upliftment resulted in nation-building. The core of keeping a holistic pilgrimage site was Yagya. Yagya is a core practice keeping Teerth alive. The Cultural campaign of Ashwamedha and live Teerth is capable of reversing the maladies that have entered public minds. The current study presents that the Ashwamedha Yagya can act as an important component of religious tourism and gives a newer dimension to religious tourism by providing holistic development of the participants at religious sites through Ashwamedha for national unity, peace, and harmony.

Yagya kund construction is the outcome of great research of ancient India. Indian scripture has given very sophisticated Vedic mathematical formulations for construction of Yagya kund. There are different types of shapes described for Yagya kund; Circular & Lotus, Semi-circular, Vulvar, Trigonal, Square, Pentagonal, Hexagonal, Heptagonal, Octagonal. Irrespective of shapes,all these Yagya kunds have same surface area. Based on the fact given in the literature, 1000 offerings (ahutis) require construction of BhuHastatmakaKund (1 hand or 24 angul long). In addition, height of the all one-hand long kunds are same. Hence, the present research tests the hypothesis that the volume should be same for all different shaped kunds. In the present study, the volume of 1 hast Yagya kund (24 angul) for all these shapes is calculated using the dimensions given in the scripture using available simple available mathematical formulas. Volume of all these kunds is compared with circular shape kund. The difference in the volume of different shapes is foundbelow 0.3% in all the kunds except for vulvar, pentagonal and octagonal shapes which is observed to be 7.48%, 1.76% and 2.83% respectively. The difference isdueto inappropriate mathematical formula for these complex structures having different angles in the slants and multiple sides of the bases.

Mythologist and author Devdutt Pattanaik uses his deep domain knowledge and corporate experience to address the topic: Implementing Indian Culture. First, he reveals how changing corporate culture through workshops and training programmes is based on the idea of evangelism and religious conversion, which is alien to caste-based Indian society where aggregation of new ideas is preferred over replacement of old ideas. Then, using mythology as a toolkit, he elaborates what is common and what is different between Indian, Chinese and Western cultures. He argues that China and Japan’s success is not the result of ‘Westernisation’ but by their grounding in home-grown Confucian and Taoist myths. India’s progress needs a similar grounding in ideas that have originated, and continue to thrive, in India, hence the need to appreciate the Indian model of yagna (exchange), which is neither policy based and contractual, as in the West, nor authority based, as in the Far East. However, as it is relationship based, it demands maturity and empathy of the leader who functions as the head of the family business ( karta). It demands the karta’s personal transformation from self-indulgent to self-expansive as he gradually delegates and nurtures talent to create an ecosystem of success ( mangalya). Growth then is not just material (what you have) but also psychological/spiritual (who you are).

Effect of traditional metal pots made up of copper and brass along with clay pot are used for water storage in India in routine use as well as in rituals and Yagya. During Yagya herbal fumes are exposed to water stored in copper and clay pot. To understand the utility of the copper and clay container during Yagya, in the present study, the pH of water in copper, brass, clay and glass containers were recorded in the presence and absence of herbal fumes exposure. The study used only mango wood fumes in one set of experiments and in other set of experiment herbal mixture plus mango wood fumes in Gayatri Yagya was used. The herbal fumes plus mango wood fumes and mango wood fumes both significantly made water pH alkaline in nature. Specifically, herbal fumes during Gayatri Yagya caused significant increase in water pH in copper (mean difference 0.42; n=3; p= 0.0032) and clay pot (mean difference 0.46; n=3; p=0.0013) compared to control. Interestingly, poring of water in brass pot (7.44 + 0.06; n=6; p<0.0001), clay pot (7.24+0.02; n=6; p=0.0013) and copper pot (7.26+0.06<0.0001) significantly increased water pH instantly it was added compared to control glass pot (7.13+0.04; n=6). Alkaline water utility has been well documented for human health and this study supports the scientific reasons behind traditional knowledge of Indian culture about storing drinking water in brass and copper vessels in daily routine as well during rituals.

In today’s lifestyle it is unthinkable to have a day without coming into contact with electronic devices such as cell phones, laptops, tablets, Televisions and now LEDs. In the whole world people are relying heavily on these technological tools for entertainment and for communication with friends, family, and at school and work. All these devices emit Electro-Magnetic Radiations (EMR) which are harmful for human beings as they cause many harmful effects including Cancer. Data gathered from 13 participating countries was pooled and analyzed by the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), to determine whether there were any links between use of mobile phones and head and neck cancers in adults. Based largely on these data, IARC has now classified electromagnetic radiofrequency fields as possibly carcinogenic to humans (Group 2B), a category in which harmful pesticide like DDT has been kept. Thus, we need a solution which can be imbibed in our day to day lives to reduce EMR level at our residences and workplace. Yagya is a non-conventional solution suggested in Indian scriptures to save from harmful cosmic waves. Hence, in the present study, Yagya was conducted as an intervention to find its impact on the indoor EMR flux. Five case studies were performed in NCR Delhi. It was observed that after the performance of Yagya there was a significant decrease in the indoor EMR level indicating a utility of Yagya as non-conventional solution for reducing indoor EMR level.

In pandemic, the economic crises and health issues have brought the whole human race in unprecedented situation. Pandemic is not a single reason of health crisis, poor air quality is also a great threat for increasing mortality rate in the world. In Nation Capital Region (NCR), India and nearby areas, the time period of months of September to Decemberis very much crucial every year as due to many social, cultural, ecological and known-unknown reasons, the quality of air is degraded below threshold level causing threats to human health and lives. Present manuscript is a trial for analysis of air quality of Indian capital region amidst global pandemic and effect of Ancient Yagya and Homa science on curbing the pollution. It also indicates multiple benefits of Yagya science as well as improvements in result section where mainly pollution analysis is focused. IoT and sensor based instruments were used to collect the data and LSTN and adam optimization were applied to study the effect. It was found a reduction in pollutant particles and improvement in air quality after a week.

Ayurveda always recommended the holistic approach for the prevention of diseases, health promotion and curing the ailments. Agnihotra/Yagya/ homa is a part of Indian rituals, and one of the ancient therapy of healing recommended by Ayurveda. An agnihotra is a simple form of homa. Various materials are used in this therapy like cow dung cake, rice, ghee and medicinal plants either as a firewood or Samidha, which are helpful for purification of the atmosphere resulting in prevention and control of various communicable diseases. In Ayurveda epidemic or pandemic has been described as Janapadodhwansa Rogas. And causative factors mentioned that vitiation of Vayu (air), Jala (water), Desh (area), and Kala (season). Abhishyangaja (effects of pathogens, evil forces and unhygienic condition) is also one of the causes of epidemic/ pandemic. For this reason, Ayurveda advocated sterilization of water, air, soil and atmosphere with the help of Agnihotra, i.e. Homa, Yagya, Dhupana. As Agnihotra is applied in Ayurveda for therapeutic purpose is also known as Homa therapy. Many studies showed the antimicrobial activity of smoke raises from Agnihotra. When the whole world is facing the pandemic Coronavirus disease (COVID-19), need to think about this therapy. According to world meter, there are 1,853,155 cases, 114,247 deaths till 13 April 2020. Hence it is the right time to think about the control and preventive measures of the infectious agent (SARS-Cov-2) of COVID-19 disease with the help of Agnihotra/Homa therapy.

Lighting the lamp is an ancient tradition of Indian culture. Various cultures such as Indian, Chinese, Tibetan, Japanese, etc. widely use ghee for religious purposes. In India, Ghee is an essential component of most of the rituals. Ayurveda suggests different types of vegetative oils and ghee (clarified butter) for Ayurvedic preparations. Both ghee and peanut oil are commonly used in food preparations. Besides for eating, both ghee and peanut oil lamps are also commonly used for lighting lamps in India. Hence, evaluating the emissions from these lamps is of interest. In the present comparative study we have evaluated the emission of air pollutants: Particular Matter (PM1, PM2.5, PM10), Sulphur Dioxide (SO2), Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Ozone, Carbon Monoxide (CO), and Carbon Dioxide (CO2) from peanut oil and ghee lamps. We found that there was no significant difference between oil and ghee lamps for all emissions except for CO, where there was a significant reduction (15.93%, p= 0.0183) in ghee lamps compared to peanut oil lamps. Lower CO from ghee lamps than that from peanut oil lamps might be due to differences in the combustion efficiency resulting from chemical structure differences. Thus, the present finding of reduced CO emission from ghee lamps supports its wide use as a component in Indian religious purposes, Vedic-rituals of Yagya or Havan and meals.

Earth's atmosphere is mainly made up of two gases, nitrogen and oxygen, which together comprise 99% of gases therein. The other gases include the remaining 1% of the atmosphere. Amongst these are the five major air pollutants (e.g., ground-level ozone, airborne particles or aerosols, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide). Excess of these pollutants in the atmosphere is risky to human health. They are the main ingredients of smog. Air quality is measured with the air quality index. An AQI under 50 is considered as good air quality; however, as the AQI number increases, it becomes a concern for human health. To find a non-conventional solution to air pollution problem, it has been proposed to do Yagya, a fire process with three different samidhas, namely mango wood, bargad wood, and dry cow dung sticks and study their relative emissions and ability to reduce the aerosols PM 2.5 and PM 10. In this paper, the researcher has measured the PM levels (PM 2.5 and PM 10) and carbon dioxide CO2 along with AQI, temperature, and humidity.

Background: Osteoarthritis (OA) of the knee is a major cause of mobility impairment. Therapeutic interventions conventionally employed for OA include the use of physiotherapy, patient education and weight control, drug therapy that includes non-opioid analgesics, topical analgesics, opioid analgesics and intra articular steroid injection. At times, cases of OA also extend on to knee arthroplasty (knee- replacement) surgery too. However, side-effect free, long-term management of this disease still remains a challenge. Purpose: Classical Ayurveda locks in the symptoms of Osteoarthritis as Janu Sandhigata Vata, where Janu refers to knee, sandhi is joint and Vata is the air element permeating the knee joint – in this case,.With advancing age, the influence of Vata Dosha increases, resulting in the gradual degeneration of the body. Sandhigata Vata can be defined as a disease of sandhi (articulation) with symptoms of - sandhi shool(shola- pain) (joint pain), sandhi shotha (shotha - inflammation) (inflamation in joints), etc. Hence, the medicinal herbs that balance the Vata Dosha, as well as provide nourishment to the body tissues, are used in the Ayurvedic treatment of OA of the knee. A number of medicinal herbs have been found to be effective in this regard. Yagya Therapy provides pulmonary inhalation of medicinal smoke of multiple herbs (generated through oblation in fire along with chanting of Vedic hymns), which have the potential for the treatment of OA of the knee, and associated difficulties. Methodology: A case report about a male patient, who was suffering from Osteoarthritis (OA) in the right knee, as well as other associated difficulties, has been presented in this article. The patient was prescribed an integrated approach pivoting onYagya Therapy (using an appropriate herbal formulation - hawan-samagri), and some other Ayurvedic treatments like decoction (kwath) of medicinal herbs, Ayurvedic medicines, dietary restrictions, etc. Discussion: Before taking up the integrated approach pivoting on Yagya Therapy (prescribed in the present study), the patient suffered from excruciating knee-pain that resulted in a limping gait. Post-initiation of the prescribed treatment the pain issue accompanied by limping gait is seen to be almost completely resolved. The patient is able to manage long walks up to half a kilometer without experiencing discomfort. . Earlier, the patient had to take support while changing posture from sitting to standing, and vice-versa; now he can change posture without support; Prior to therapy, patient was not able to sit cross legged on floor, which is an integral part of Indian lifestyle – now he does so, sans any discomfort. There is a definite amelioration in the patient’s pain management regime. Conclusion: The present study shows encouraging result with regards to the effectiveness of integrated approach including Yagya Therapy in the treatment of symptoms associated with OA of the knee, and associated complexities.

Objetivo: Describir los conocimientos sobre transmisión, sintomatología, acciones de prevención y control frente a dengue en la región Piura, Perú. Material y métodos: Análisis secundario de la sección 700 (salud) de la Encuesta Nacional de Programas Estratégicos 2014, realizada por el Instituto Nacional de Estadística e Informática a 113 073 habitantes de ≥14 años a nivel nacional (5 131 en Piura). Se analizaron las preguntas 701 al 704 sobre conocimientos de dengue. Las respuestas fueron analizadas según características demográficas y provincia de residencia. Además, se comparó los resultados de toda la región frente al promedio nacional. Resultados: En Piura, el 78,4% refirió que la transmisión de dengue es por la picadura de un mosquito, (solo 54,5% a nivel nacional). Hubo diferencias entre zonas urbana (84%) y rural (58,2%), y entre provincias. Los síntomas más recordados fueron fiebre (79,7%), cefalea (56,4%), dolor de huesos/articulaciones (30,3%) y escalofríos (28,7%). 96,9% acudiría a un establecimiento de salud si presentara síntomas (97,8% a nivel nacional). Conocimiento sobre control de mosquito fue menor del 50% de medidas adecuadas. Conclusiones: El conocimiento sobre algunos aspectos del dengue es aún limitado en la región Piura, siendo ésta la más endémica a nivel nacional. Se debe enfatizar en educación sanitaria a nivel poblacional para frenar el avance alarmante de este problema. 1. Guzman MG, Harris E. Dengue. Lancet. 2015;385(9966):453-65.2. Rey JR, Philip Lounibos P. Ecología de Aedes aegypti y Aedes albopictus en América y transmisión enfermedades. Biomédica. 2015;35:177-85. 3. Bouyer J, Chandre F, Gilles J, Baldet T. Alternative vector control methods to manage the Zika virus outbreak: more haste, less speed. Lancet Glob Health. 2016;4(6):e364. 4. 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Am J Trop Med Hyg. 2015;93(6):1330-7. 9. Cáceres-Manrique FM, Vesga-Gómez C, Perea-Florez X, Ruitort M, Talbot Y. Conocimientos, Actitudes y Prácticas sobre Dengue en Dos Barrios de Bucaramanga, Colombia. Rev. salud pública. 2009;11(1):27-38. 10. Santos SL, Parra-Henao G, Silva MB, Augusto LG. Dengue in Brazil and Colombia: a study of knowledge, attitudes, and practices. Rev Soc Bras Med Trop. 2014;47(6):783-7. 11. Egedus VL, Ortega JM, Obando AA. Knowledge, perceptions, and practices with respect to the prevention of dengue in a mid-Pacific coastal village of Costa Rica. Rev Biol Trop. 2014;62(3):859-67. 12. Wong LP, AbuBakar S. Health beliefs and practices related to dengue fever: a focus group study. PLoS Negl Trop Dis. 2013;7(7):e2310. 13. Van Benthem BH, Khantikul N, Panart K, Kessels PJ, Somboon P, Oskam L. Knowledge and use of prevention measures related to dengue in northern Thailand. Trop Med Int Health. 2002;7(11):993- 1000. 14. 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Yagya is one such meaningful gift given by the sages of Indian culture to Sadi Vasudha, which is considered the basis for maintaining the most productive and holistic environmental center. Rishis say: Ayam yajno vishwasya bhuvanasya nabhih.! By saying Yagya, Bhuvan has eaten the base point of the creation of this world. Yogi raj himself says, Shri Krishna. saha-yajñāḥ prajāḥ sṛiṣhṭvā purovācha prajāpatiḥ! anena prasaviṣhyadhvam eṣha vo ’stviṣhṭa-kāma-dhuk!! In other words: Prajapati Brahma created the subjects and the yajna at the beginning of Kalfa and told them that they might achieve growth through this Yagya. Here the Yagya is going to provide you the desired enjoyment. Yagya is a high level of effort made for charity. Yagya a type of tax: tax: For not giving it to God power like a state. Administration punishes the people. In the same way, the fears come in different forms and create their wrath on the saree world. There is a scientific basis to avoid divine wrath – Yagya. It involves incorporating divinity into the inner world, in the soul of the living being, and by sacrificing the soul of the Apana. The real yajna is to make the samadhi of life home in the form of society. If Satpravarti continues to be included in the feelings, then this is the natural form of Yagya. “Yagyoayam sarvakam dhuk ” Yagya is not the only way to fulfil all desires but the best scientific method of living life is