Abstract

To review one’s research, in collaboration with many colleagues and that too, conducted over a period of two decades, is quite a formidable task. This is especially so if one is neither enthusiastic for an 'auto anthology' nor reached a stage of academic atavism just to sit back and ruminate the past. The only valid motivation that prompts one to write such a review is a remote hope that in the current scientific milieu of India, a young budding scientist may be prevented from a cynical despair and may feel inclined to pursue a scientific career with vigor and innovativeness. Particularly the interface of Ayurvedic concepts and practices with the modern gastroenterology may offer challenging opportunities for highly productive research. As cited in the quotation by Sir Thomas Lewis (vide infra), a clinical scientist must keep his options open and not get too narrowly restricted to technique-oriented or superspeciality-limited research. With limited resources of materials and money in India, we must try to avoid the crowded thoroughfares of research: we can embark on the bye lanes with novel directions and cultivate the lead present in Ayurveda and our immense health folklore. However we cannot abandon the rigor of scientific method, an advanced and prolonged apprenticeship in modern science is vital for success. The dual competence in Ayurveda and modern science is not easy to attain. It requires patience and a long painstaking period of learning.

Key words: INVESTIGATIVE, GASTROENTEROLOGY, CLINICAL, PHARMACOLOGY, BRIEF REVIEW