Hallucinations in the classical Indian system of Ayurveda: A brief overview

The ancient Indian system of medicine “Ayurveda” is a compendium of various health related theories and practices and explained the abnormal state of mind, i.e., psychopathology in various contexts. Hallucinations were deemed abnormal. In Ayurvedic classics, hallucinations were called false perceptions (mithyajnana), illusions (maya), infatuations (moha), or confusion (bhrama). Hallucinations were not independent but a symptom of mental disorder (manasa roga). Hallucinations of different sensory organs were observed and explained. These symptoms could be observed in patients suffering from any illness of tridosha origin, organic disease or psychiatric disorder. False perceptions observed in patients were used as tools to understand the prognosis of the condition. This article may help provide preliminary insight and encourage interdisciplinary study toward understanding one of the main symptoms of schizophrenia.