CRITICAL ANALYSIS ON DOSHIK VARIATIONS IN RAJO NIVRUTTI W.S.R TO MENOPAUSE

The genesis of human life is housed in the body of female, with the very apt aphorism to ?Kshetra?, mentioned in the annals of Ayurvedic literature. Though the kshetra loses its fertility or the ability to bear further, nonetheless it has to be cared for as it becomes vulnerable. The pantheons of Ayurveda have the consensus that the fertile period in a woman?s life time is between 12 to 50 years, beyond which there is Jara(senility) due to Pakva shareera (ripening or degradation of the body). Menopause is the period during which the menstrual cycle usually becomes irregular and subsequently ceases, ovulation fails to occur and the female sex hormones diminish to almost none. It demands the woman to readjust her life which was previously stimulated by hormones to one devoid of them. The life after menopause is marked by a series of tumultuous physiological changes including extreme flushing of the skin, irritability, fatigue, anxiety, occasional various psychotic states , decreased strength and calcification of bones throughout the body. The incidence of menopause in Indian women is 40 to 50 years, with recent alarming reports of premature menopause, before 40 years. The present work aims to understand the pathophysiology of menopause in Ayurvedic classics in understanding and improving the quality of life after menopause.