A SCIENTIFIC REVIEW ON HIGHER CRITICISM WITH SPECIAL REFERENCE TO THE MANUSCRIPT CHIKITSASARA BY GOPALADASA

Manuscriptology is the scientific study of manuscripts. It is the branch of learning concerned with searching, collecting, cataloguing, preserving, transcribing, reading, collating, editing, and publishing of manuscripts.[1] Manuscriptology plays a vital role in the preservation and critical understanding of India’s vast cultural and scientific heritage. One such valuable manuscript is Chikitsasara, composed by Gopaladasa, which encapsulates core principles of Ayurvedic therapeutics. The study is based on the two Manuscripts obtained from Gujarat Ayurveda University Jamnagar. This article presents a literary and critical analysis of Chikitsasara using the methodology of higher criticism— which includes: examination of linguistic features and style, Identification of sources and intertextual references, Study of internal evidence (colophons, authorial notes), Consideration of external references, Establishment of chronological context. By this process the data extracted through textual analysis and cross-referencing with established Ayurvedic literature. The study explores the author’s intent, language, sources, influences, and the textual structure. This analysis contributes to the broader understanding of Ayurvedic manuscript literature, adds many points to existing knowledge and highlights the relevance of higher criticism in textual studies.