Apart from it there are several terms in Ayurveda that are used for grouping specific medicines in specific proportions. They can be termed as medicine matrix. Some of them are as follow

Triads

• Triphala (three fruits powder)
• Trimada (three hypnotic drugs)
• Trikatu (three bitter drugs)
• Madhur traya (three essence producing drugs)
• Trijataka (three essence producing drugs)
• Kshaar traya (three alkalis)
• Lavantraya (three salts)

Quadrant

• Chaturjataka (four essence producing drugs)
• Chaturushana (four drugs)
• Chaturbeeja (four seeds)

Pentads 

• Brihta panchamual (five drugs made of root part)
• Laghu panchamula (five drugs made of root part)
• Trina panchmula (five grass roots)
• Pankshiri vriksha (five milk like sap producing drugs)
• Panchatikta (five tikta Rasa drugs)
• Panchavalkal (five types of bark)
• Panchamarita (milk, curd, ghee sugar and honey)
• Panchagavya (cow’s milk, curd, ghee, urine and dung)
• Mitra panchak (five drugs used for parad (mercury) preparation)
• Panchkola (five drugs taken in one kol quantity)
• Panchmrittaka (five soils)
• Kshaar panchak (five alkalis)
• Lavan panchak (five salts)

Sextants

• Sadhaushana (six drugs)
• Sadahngapaniya (decoction of six drugs)

Octaves

• Kakarashtaka (8 type of contraindicating drugs for parad (mercury) preparations)
• Ksheerashtak (8 type of milks)
• Mutrashtaka (8 type of urines)
• Ksharashtaka (8 type of alkalis)

There are certain categories like

• Jeevaniya (vitamins type category found in Charka but are extinct today)
• Dravakagana (smelters or drugs used for melting and lowering the melting point)
• Krishanavarga (black color producing category)
• Peetavarga (yellow color producing category)
• Raktavarga (red color producing category)
• Shuklavarga (whitening category)
• Shewata varga (whitening drugs)
• Vitvarga (Typical category of animal stools used for processing mercury)
• Vishavrage (poison category)
• Upvishavarga (mild poison category)
• Amlavarga (acidic substance category)
• Paradjaarnarth vidd (category of drugs used in processing mercury)
• Sneha (lubrication oil, fat, marrow and ghee)
• Taila (oil)
• Sarvagandha (all fragrance producing materials)
• Bhavana (processing a drug in a decoction by rubbing the powder in it till it dries up)
• Shodhanam (purification process of minerals and drugs)

Some procedures are also specifically defined but they are rarely used. They are discussed at the context of their appearance. From the 18 sanskaars (purification process) of parada (mercury) only 8 are commonly used so the rest 10 sanskaars are not so relevant. These are all the definitions and terms used in context of Bhaishajiya Kalpana. We will discuss about them in a separate sections of references of Rasa Shastra.

References -

• Ashtaang Hridya, Classical text book by Chaukhambha Surbharti Publication Varanasi India
• Ashtaang Samgrha Classical textbook by Chaukhambha Surbharti Publication Varanasi India
• Bhaishajya Ratnavali Classical textbook by Chaukhambha Surbharti Publication Varanasi India
• Charka samhita classical textbook vol-1-2 by Chaukhambha Surbharti Publication Varanasi India
• Chukra dutta tika by Chaukhambha Surbharti Publication Varanasi India
• Sharangdhar Samhita Classical textbook by Chaukhambha Surbharti Publication Varanasi India
• Sushrut Samhita Classical textbook vol 1,2, & 3 by Chaukhambha Surbharti Publication Varanasi India

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