A literary review of Shukra Dhatu and its interpretation with respect to modern science

Abstract

The Shukra Dhatu present all over the body since childhood, it only appears when the person gets puberty. Ayurveda has described three basic physiological constituents of human body, viz., Dosha, Dhatu and Mala. Human body is made up of seven Dhatus (seven categories of tissues) out of this Shukra is the seventh and last (ending) Dhatu. Shukra is white, pure, exquisite Dhatu, which is considered as best among all seven Dhatus. Sperm along with spermatic fluid and male sex hormones are also one part of Shukra dhatu. It takes about one month to synthesize Shukra Dhatu from Rasa Dhatu. Acharya Charak classified Shukra under Pitruja Bhava. Acharya Vagbhatt has considered Shukra as Ashraya Sthan of Kapha Dosha. In this article we are intended to make a correlation of shukra dhatu with modern prospective to have a clearer view about the shukradhatu. For which the basic materials have been collected from the Ayurvedic classics with the available commentaries, as well as text books of contemporary modern medical science have been referred for better understanding of the concept and its comparison with contemporary science.