SHODHANA IN RASASHASTRA: AN OVERVIEW OF PRINCIPLES- PROCEDURES AND PRACTICES

Shodhana constitutes a fundamental Pharmaceutical process in Rasashastra, wherein various raw materials are subjected to specific procedures to remove undesirable constituents, reduce toxicity, modify their Physicochemical characteristics, and render them suitable for further pharmaceutical processing and therapeutic application. Although Shodhana has been extensively explored in postgraduate research, the available evidence is dispersed across individual dissertations, making it difficult to appreciate the overall research trends and methodological diversity. The present review compiles and critically examines the Shodhana-related postgraduate research undertaken in the Department of Rasashastra Evam Bhaishajya Kalpana, Government Ayurvedic College, Patiala, during 2018–2026. The reviewed studies encompass different categories of pharmaceutical materials and formulations and demonstrate the application of diverse classical Shodhana procedures and media selected according to the nature of the material. Particular attention was given to variations in Shodhana methods, media, Pharmaceutical processing, analytical evaluation, and the observations reported in individual studies. The compiled research reflects a broad spectrum of approaches to Shodhana and indicates an increasing integration of Pharmaceutico-analytical techniques for assessing changes following processing. At the same time, variations in procedural methodology, selection of Shodhana media, duration and processing conditions, and analytical parameters indicate the need for greater methodological uniformity and comparative evaluation. This review provides a consolidated overview of institutional research on Shodhana and highlights emerging trends and research gaps that may facilitate future systematic studies, standardization, and scientific validation of classical Shodhana procedures.