Listen, as the ancient wisdom unfolds the nature of disorders caused by the disturbance of the bodily humors, their symptoms, and the suffering they bring. When the balance of wind in the body is disturbed, the stool becomes hard, dry, and mixed with wind, leading to intense pain in the abdomen, back, heart, and sides. The belly swells with bloating, the stool remains hard and difficult to pass, nausea arises, and cutting pains trouble the sufferer—especially severe pain is felt in the bladder, and even the cheeks may swell. As the wind rises upwards, it brings vomiting, loss of appetite, fever, heart disease, digestive disturbances, retention of urine, and sometimes even diarrhea. The affliction does not end there. Deafness can occur, accompanied by severe headaches, breathlessness, pain in the head, cough, nasal congestion, mental disturbances, thirst, and difficulty in breathing. Disorders of bile, abdominal tumors, and other ailments may also manifest. These are the diseases born of wind, and when they arise intensely, they can be most dangerous, bearing fearful names and sometimes leading to death or severe complications. Even when such severe symptoms are absent, those whose bowels are afflicted by wind develop inherent disorders, including those that are internal and related to the body's channels. Diseases that have become established are considered incurable, though they may be managed to some extent by strengthening the digestive fire and other means. Some illnesses arise from the combination of two humors, or are related to the secondary channels; these, too, are described. Such conditions are difficult to cure, often taking years to resolve. Those that arise in the external channels and are dominated by a single humor are also known. Hemorrhoids, by contrast, are easily curable and do not take long to develop. Those that arise in the genitals and similar places are described according to their type, though congenital cases are not included here. Worm infestations are characterized by slimy and soft forms; when circulating wind picks up phlegm, it produces external hemorrhoids on the skin. Some growths are hard, immovable, and wart-like—these are recognized as such. Pain and roughness are caused by wind, while blackening of the mouth is due to bile. An oily texture, knotting, and normal color indicate the influence of phlegm. A wise person should act quickly to relieve hemorrhoids, for these diseases can soon obstruct the anus and abdomen. Dhanvantari, the divine physician, instructs Sushruta further: “I will now explain to you the causes of diarrhea and digestive disorders. These are of six kinds, arising from the disturbance of the humors—either singly or together—as well as from fear and grief. Diarrhea often arises from drinking excessive water, eating dry food, raw meat, oily substances, sesame flour, and improperly cooked grains. It may also result from excessive alcohol, dry or excessive foods, confusion of tastes and unctuousness, the presence of worms, and improper combinations of foods, all of which provoke wind. When wind is disturbed, it moves downward, destroying the digestive fire. Thus, food, feces, and the bowels are affected, resulting in looseness of stool and other symptoms. The signs that diarrhea is about to occur include disturbances in the heart, anus, and bowels, sweating of the limbs, and retention of impurities. In this state, there is bloating and indigestion without fever. The stool is scanty, passed silently and with difficulty. It may be dry, frothy, and clear, passed repeatedly or at intervals, sometimes appearing burnt or poisoned, slimy, and causing cutting pain. When the anus is dried and contracted, the hair stands on end, and there is sighing. If bile is involved, the stool turns yellow, resembling turmeric or green grass. The stool may be stained with blood, extremely foul-smelling, mixed with undigested grass, and accompanied by sweating and burning. There is pain and heat in the rectum, a craving for pungent tastes, and thick phlegm. The discharge may be slimy, scanty, and flowing, causing hair loss, severe discomfort, and heaviness in the bladder, anus, and abdomen. Even when the bowels move, if the process is not proper, the entire being is affected with all these signs. If the mind is disturbed by fear and the person lies down, the bowels are expelled. In such cases, wind should be quickly restrained with warm, liquid, and light substances. The symptoms are similar in disorders of wind and bile, and also in those caused by grief. In summary, diarrhea is of two types: with impurity and without impurity. When mixed with blood, it is a disorder of the fluids and, due to heaviness, is released into water. The stool is foul-smelling, noisy, obstructed, and causes pain. The opposite type, without impurity, is caused by phlegm and does not sink. Among those afflicted by diarrhea, the careless are susceptible to grahani disease, a chronic digestive disorder. In these cases, excessive accumulation of factors that extinguish the digestive fire causes, whether the stool is impure or pure, for it to be digested and then expelled as diarrhea. This diarrhea, by its nature, causes excessive discharge; when mixed with impurity, the stool is undigested, but when digested, it is not so. Chronic grahani disorder causes accumulation and compels fasting. Sometimes there is sudden trembling, at other times sudden joint pain. This disorder arises in four ways, according to the different humors, and also from their combination. Early symptoms include weakness of the limbs, persistent wind, slight salivation, bad taste in the mouth, loss of appetite, thirst, fatigue, and dizziness. There may be abdominal distension, vomiting, and sometimes ringing in the ears. General signs include emaciation, nausea, fainting, and fever. The patient may experience fainting, heaviness in the head and thighs, swelling of the hands and feet, drowsiness from wind, dryness of the palate, darkness before the eyes, and ringing in the ears. There is pain in the sides, groin, and neck, severe colic, and in the sick, an increase of all symptoms, with hunger and thirst that cannot be relieved. When digestion is complete, there is flatulence, and after eating, well-being is attained. However, due to wind, there is risk of heart disease, abdominal tumors, hemorrhoids, spleen disorders, and anemia. Over time, the stool becomes thin, liquid, dry, hard, noisy, and frothy. The patient passes stool again and again, with difficulty in the anus, and suffers from breathlessness and cough. When the stool is yellow or yellowish-blue, liquid, and accompanied by putrid, sour belching, there is burning in the heart and throat, loss of appetite, thirst, and pain. If phlegm is the cause, digestion is painful; the mind is nauseated, there is vomiting, loss of appetite, sticky saliva, spitting, cough, palpitations, and nasal discharge. The heart feels stiff, the abdomen is numb and heavy, belching is foul and sweet, there is weakness, and sometimes exhilaration. When the feces are mixed, sticky, heavy, or sour, even one who is not emaciated experiences weakness and all manner of diseases and symptoms. The three impurities—thirst and others—described in the division of the body, are also caused by disorders of the grahani, and are present everywhere as their cause. Thus, the wise physician observes the signs and understands the roots of suffering, as taught by the sages, for the restoration of health and balance.