This article explains Sushruta Samhita Sutrasthana Chapter 32 “Svabhava Vipratipatthi Adhyaya” – Fatal Signs of normal features of the Body.

Svabhava Vipratipatthi Adhyaya

Fatal Signs of normal features of the Body

अथातः स्वभावविप्रतिपत्तिमध्यायं व्याख्यास्यामः ||१||
यथोवाच भगवान् धन्वन्तरिः ||२||
We will now expound the chapter by name Svabhava Vipratipatthi – fatal signs regarding normal features of the body, as revealed by the venerable Dhanvantari.
Read – Lord Dhanwantari ‘The God of Ayurveda’

Anganam Anyatha Bhavitvam

Abnormal changes of the body parts

स्वभावसिद्धानां शरीरैकदेशानामन्यभावित्वं मरणाय |
तद्यथा- शुक्लानां कृष्णत्वं, कृष्णानां शुक्लता, रक्तानामन्यवर्णत्वं, स्थिराणां मृदुत्वं, मृदूनां स्थिरता, चलानामचलत्वं, अचलानां चलता, पृथूनां सङ्क्षिप्तत्वं, सङ्क्षिप्तानां पृथुता, दीर्घाणां ह्रस्वत्वं, ह्रस्वानां दीर्घता, अपतनधर्मिणां पतनधर्मित्वं, पतनधर्मिणामपतनधर्मित्वमकस्मात्, शैत्यौष्ण्यस्नैग्ध्यरौक्ष्यप्रस्तम्भवैवर्ण्यावसादनं चाङ्गानाम् ||३||

The different parts of the body undergoing change in their normal features, is indicative of death such as –

• parts which are white (normally) becoming black
• those which are black becoming white
• those which are red becoming changed to any other colour
• hard ones becoming soft and soft ones becoming hard
• those which are movable becoming immovable and those which are immovable become movable
• those which are large (thick, more) becoming small (short, less) and small ones becoming large, (gross ones becoming subtle and subtle or minute ones becoming gross)
• those which are long becoming short and those which are short becoming long
• those having the nature of falling off do not fall and those having the nature of not falling would fall off
• qualities such as cold, hot, unctuousness, dryness, profound rigidity, change of colour of the part etc. undergoing change to their opposite

All these abnormal changes happening without any other reason, is indicative of death.
Read – Arishta Lakshanas – Ominous Signs And Symptoms Indicating Bad Prognosis

 स्वेभ्यः स्थानेभ्यः शरीरैकदेशानामवस्त्रस्तोत्क्षिप्तभ्रान्तावक्षिप्तपतितविमुक्तनिर्गतान्तर्गतगुरुलघुत्वानि, प्रवालवर्णव्यङ्गप्रादुर्भावो वाऽप्यकस्मात्, सिराणां च दर्शनं ललाटे, नासावंशे वा पिडकोत्पत्तिः, ललाटे वा प्रभातकाले स्वेदः, नेत्ररोगाद्विना वाऽश्रुप्रवृत्तिः, गोमयचूर्णप्रकाशस्य वा रजसो दर्शनमुत्तमाङ्गे निलयनं वा कपोतकङ्ककाकप्रभृतीनां, मूत्रपुरीषवृद्धिरभुञ्जानानां, तत्प्रणाशो वा भुञ्जानानां, स्तनमूलहृदयोरःसु च शूलोत्पत्तयः, मध्ये शूनत्वमन्तेषु परिम्लायित्वं विपर्ययो वा, तथाऽर्धाङ्गे श्वयथुः शोषोऽङ्गपक्षयोर्वा, नष्टहीनविकलविकृतस्वरता वा, विवर्णपुष्पप्रादुर्भावो वा दन्तमुखनखशरीरेषु, यस्य वाऽप्सु कफपुरीषरेतांसि निमज्जन्ति, यस्य वा दृष्टिमण्डले भिन्नविकृतानि रूपाण्यालोक्यन्ते, स्नेहाभ्यक्तकेशाङ्ग इव यो भाति, यश्च दुर्बलो भक्तद्वेषातिसाराभ्यां पीड्यते, कासमानश्च तृष्णाभिभूतः, क्षीणश्छर्दिभक्तद्वेषयुक्तः सफेनपूयरुधिरोद्वामी हतस्वरः शूलाभिपन्नश्च मनुष्यः, शूनकरचरणवदनःक्षीणोऽन्नद्वेषी स्रस्तपिण्डिकांसपाणिपादो ज्वरकासाभिभूतः, यस्तु पूर्वाह्णे भुक्तमपराह्णे छर्दयत्यविदग्धमतिसार्यते वा स श्वासान्म्रियते, बस्तवद्विलपन् यश्च भूमौ पतति स्रस्तमुष्कः, स्तब्धमेढ्रो भग्नग्रीवः प्रनष्टमेहनश्च मनुष्यः, प्राग्विशुष्यमाणाहृदय आर्द्रशरीरः, यश्च लोष्टं लोष्टेनाभिहन्ति काष्ठं काष्ठेन, तृणानि वा छिनत्ति, अधरोष्ठं दशति, उत्तरोष्ठं वा लेढि, आलुञ्चति वा कर्णौ केशांश्च; देवद्विजगुरुसुहृद्वैद्यांश्च द्वेष्टि, यस्य वक्रानुवक्रगा ग्रहा गर्हितस्थानगताः पीडयन्ति, जन्मर्क्षं वा, यस्योल्काशनिभ्यामभिहन्यते होरा वा, गृहदारशयनासनयानवाहनमणिरत्नोपकरणगर्हितलक्षणनिमित्तप्रादुर्भावो वेति ||४||
Any body parts becoming displaced from their normal place such as downward, upward, roundabout or sidewards, falling off, getting loosened, coming out, getting in, becoming heavy or light etc. are indicative of death.

Below mentioned are the signs which indicate death (coming shortly) –

• pigmented  patch of the colour of the  pearl ( white) developing on the face (or any other part of the body) without any reason;
• prominent and elevated veins becoming visible on the forehead,
• eruptions developing on the ridge of the nose;
• sweating of the forehead in the early morning;
• flow of tears without any diseases of the eye,
• fine dust (like material) resembling the powder of cow dung appearing on the head,
• birds like pigeon, heron, crow etc. sitting / alighting on the head;
• increase of urine and faeces even if food is not consumed or absence of urine and faeces in spite of food is consumed,
• development of pain at the base of the breasts, heart and chest: 
• oedema in the  middle of the body (trunk) and its absence at the ends (extremities) or vice versa.
• swelling in one half of the body and emaciation in the other half;
• voice becoming lost completely, diminished, stammering or other abnormal changes of voice happening,
• development of discoloured flower (marks) on the teeth, face, nails or the  body (skin);
  Read – Bad Prognosis Based On Premonitory Symptoms Of Disease – Purvarupiya Arishta

Signs of person who will die due to dyspnoea 

A person who presents with the below mentioned features will die due to dyspnoea –

• a person whose sputum, faeces and semen sink in water;
• in whose area of vision (cornea of the eyes) images appear as torn / broken or distorted;
• he whose hairs and body appears as though anointed with oil;
• he who is weak (in strength) and suffers from aversion towards food or diarrhoea,
• he who is suffering from cough developing thirst;
• the emaciated person  developing  vomiting and aversion towards food,
• he who vomits froth, pus or blood and
• person who suffers from having loss of  voice and pain in the abdomen,
• the person who is emaciated (weak) and develops swelling of  the  hands, feet and face
• has aversion to food, looseness / debility of the calves, shoulders, arms and legs;
• he who has taken food in the forenoon develops vomiting or purging of undigested food in the afternoon, and also suffers from fever and cough (such a person dies  from  dyspnoea) 
  Read – 31 Easy And Effective Home Remedies For Dyspnoea

Other signs which indicate the person’s lifespan has been completed (death is closer)

• he who makes sounds like bleating of the goat and falls on the ground,
• the person whose testes (scrotum) gets displaced and has flaccidity / rigidity (absence of movement) of his penis,
• he who has dropping of the neck or indrawn penis; 
• the person whose chest (region of heart) will dry first after he has taken full body bath and he strikes a stone (mass or ball of mud) with yet another stone (mass or ball of mud) or a piece of wood with yet another piece of wood, or plucks (pulls out) grass,
• he who bites his lower lips or licks the upper lip;
• he who pulls out his ears or hairs;
• he who begins to hate Gods, Brahmanas, teachers, friends and the physician;
• he whose birth star and other planets moving from one malevolent place to another in their celestial cycle, or have remained in one unfavourable place giving troubles to him;
• he gets struck by meteors or thunderbolt either in person or at his birth place in the horoscope;
• or he whose  house, wife, bed, furniture, vehicles, transport, riding animals, gems, jeweller, equipment etc. developing unfavourable features without any reason (all these are indicative of death)

भवन्ति चात्र-
चिकित्स्यमानः सम्यक् च विकारो योऽभिवर्धते |
प्रक्षीणबलमांसस्य लक्षणं तद्गतायुषः ||५||
निवर्तते महाव्याधिः सहसा यस्य देहिनः |
न चाहारफलं यस्य दृश्यते स विनश्यति ||६||
एतान्यरिष्टरूपाणि सम्यग् बुध्येत यो भिषक् |
साध्यासाध्यपरीक्षायां स राज्ञः सम्मतो भवेत् ||७||
The patient, in whom there is an increase of diseases and decrease of strength and muscles greatly in spite of being treated properly, is going to die soon.
The person is sure to die in whom dreadful diseases disappear suddenly from the body or in whom effects of food (strength and growth of the body) are not seen.
The physician who understands these signs of death while deciding the curability and incurability of diseases, becomes acceptable to the king (eligible to become the royal physician).
Read – Bad Prognosis Of Diseases Based On Dreams and Shadows

इति श्रीसुश्रुतसंहितायां सुत्रस्थाने स्वभाविप्रतिपत्तिर्नाम् द्वात्रिंशोध्यायः ॥
 Thus ends the thirty-second chapter by name Svabhava Vipratipatthi in Sutra Sthana or Sushruta Samhita.