Charak Samhita is divided into how many chapters and sections?

Question

UnlockIAS · Accepted Answer

Correct — C, 120 chapters and 8 sections. The Charaka Samhita, the foundational Ayurvedic treatise on internal medicine (kayachikitsa), is organised into 8 sections called sthanas, which together contain 120 chapters (adhyayas). The eight sthanas are Sutra (30 chapters), Nidana (8), Vimana (8), Sharira (8), Indriya (12), Chikitsa (30), Kalpa (12) and Siddhi (12) — 30+8+8+8+12+30+12+12 = 120. So the pairing '120 chapters and 8 sections' is exact.

Why the other options are wrong — (a) Both counts are wrong — the text has 8 sthanas, not 7, and 120 chapters, not 80.  (b) The number of sections (8) is right, but the chapter total is 120, not 60.  (d) Both figures are wrong — neither the section count (8, not 5) nor the chapter count (120, not 100) matches.

Concept: The Charaka Samhita is one of the two great classical texts of Ayurveda (the other being the Sushruta Samhita, focused on surgery). Attributed to the physician Charaka and based on the older Agnivesha tantra, it deals chiefly with internal medicine, diagnosis, pathology, physiology, ethics and therapeutics. Its structure — 8 sthanas totalling 120 chapters — is a favourite factual hook in prelims.

State PCS 2023 Q60 — Art & Culture PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2023 Q60 — Art & Culture PYQ with Answer