For today's episode we have Ashtavaidyan Alathiyoor Dr. A N Narayanan Nambi, one of the leading figures in Ayurveda, a star orator, teacher, clinician and researcher with deep ties in developing Ayurvedic curriculums around the world.  He represents the rich ancestry of Ashtavaidyas- the legendary traditional medical families of India, perhaps unique in the entire world, for they have carried forward their knowledge for centuries from none other than the source, Acharya Vagbhata, author of Ashtanga Hridaya.  Acharya Vagbhata or his disciples are said to have travelled to Kerala with the precious documents, to protect it for humanity's sake. They covered a distance from the Sindh region of Punjab, present day Pakistan to the Southern most tip of India, more than 1500 miles, possibly escaping persecutions and slave raids.  In Kerala they found fertile ground, 18 families came together to study Sanskritam and the medical practice.  They became an inseparable part of Kerala's Ayurvedic history. Dr. Nambi is one of the few remaining from this unbroken tradition.  Dr Nambi is a strict adherent of classical Ayurveda which may diverge from the currently practiced form of Ayurveda.I enjoyed this conversation very much, and I do hope you will sit with his  Website --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/salila-sukumaran/message