Ayurveda, according to Caraka, is knowledge which seeks to weigh life in the scales of wholesomeness and happiness against their opposites. Its main themes of health and disease, and recovery of health from disease take the stage against an inspiring background of intuitive philosophy, lofty idealism, and vivid compassion, which are the hallmarks of India

Thousands of bears are being kept in appalling conditions to supply traditional Chinese medicine. Bear bile is used in traditional Chinese medicine and fetches a tidy price. In China, the wholesale price is around 4000 yuan (approximately $580) per kilogram; each bear produces up to 5 kilograms a year. Bears are milked for bile twice a day.

The relation between experience and knowledge has been the subject of several debates in the sociology of knowledge, especially with regard to medical knowledge. The disease is experienced by the patient and the physician, who has the knowledge of disease, conducts the diagnoses and provides treatment. This poses two questions: Does the patient, who experiences the disease, have knowledge?

This is an attempt to answer two questions on the manufacture of ayurvedic products in Kerala. First, has the performance of the ayurvedic sector been impressive?

The demand for cure and for the care of a growing range of health conditions which elude any particular system of medicine has made pluralism in therapeutic options a way of life.