RAS question
Sushruta, known as the 'Father of Surgery', authored which text?
Correct answer: (A) Sushruta Samhita.
Sushruta Samhita is the surgical treatise authored by Sushruta, the ancient Indian surgeon remembered as the Father of Surgery.
Explanation
Britannica identifies Sushruta as an ancient Indian surgeon who flourished around the 6th century BCE and was known for pioneering operations and techniques. It names Sushruta-samhita as his influential treatise and the main source of knowledge about surgery in ancient India. Sushruta Samhita is a surgical text with more than 300 procedures and 120 instruments, including rhinoplasty, cataract surgery, caesarean section and plastic surgery. Its stress on anatomy, disease classification and pre-operative and post-operative care makes the authorship link central: Sushruta is remembered through a surgical compendium, not through any of the other listed texts.
Why the other options are wrong
- (B) Charaka Samhita is wrong because it is a parallel work by Charaka focused on internal medicine, whereas the surgical authorship in question is Sushruta Samhita.
- (C) Ashtadhyayi is wrong because Sushruta is linked to Sushruta-samhita as his influential surgical treatise, with no basis to attribute Ashtadhyayi to him.
- (D) Arthashastra is wrong because it is not connected with Sushruta's surgical work; the supported text is Sushruta Samhita.
Concept
This tests ancient Indian science and medicine through a classic author-text association. It recurs in RAS because one pairing checks the scholar, the discipline and the civilisational contribution in a compact factual frame.