MAMSA VARGA (GROUP OF MEATS)

Mriga Varga (deer etc.)

• Harina (fawn) 
• Kuranga (type of deer),
• Arksa (white-footed antelope) 
• Gokarna (Deer antelope), 
• Mrigamatrika (Red-colored hare-like deer), 
• Shasha (rabbit), 
• Shambara (deer with branched horns), 
• Charushka (gazelle) 
• Sarabha (eight footed animals) 
• These are different types of deer, antelope, and bucks. Some of them have horns, and some are Hornless, all of them are herbivorous in nature and live in dry regions especially in shrubby forests. They were being hunted mainly for food.

Viskira Varga (group of birds that attain their food through scratching)

• Lava (bustard quail), 
• Vartika (bush quail), 
• Vartira (rain quail),
• Raktavartma (red-eyed owl),
• Kukkubha (wild cock),
• Kapinjala (black partridge), 
• Upachakra (small greek pheasant), 
• Chakora (greek pheasant), 
• Kurubahava, Vartaka (button quail), 
• Vartika (bush quail), 
• Tittiri (grey partridge), 
• Krakara (black partridge), 
• Sikhi (peacock), 
• Tamracuda (domestic cock), 
• Bakara (small creane), 
• Gonarda (siberian crane), Girivartika (mountain quail), 
• Sharapada (a kind of sparrow),
• Indrabha (hedge sparrow), 
• Varata (goose)
• All these belong to the Viskira group (birds that scratch the ground with their legs and pick up their food.) 
• Pratuda (group of birds who eat while striking)
• Jivanijivaka (greek partridge), 
• datyuha (gallinule), 
• bhrunagahwa (shrike), 
• suka (parakeet), 
• sarika (Mynah), 
• latva (wild sparrow), 
• kokila (cuckoo), 
• harita (grey pigeon), 
• kapota (wood pigeon),
• Chataka (house sparrow) etc. 
• All these belong to the pratuda group (birds that peck the food and eat).

Bileshaya – a group of animal living in burrows –

• Bheka (frog), 
• Godha (iguana lizard), 
• Ahi, (snake), 
• Swavid (hedgehog)
• All these are bileshaya (living in burrows).

Prasaha Varga (animal or birds who take their food by snatching)

• Go (cow), 
• Khara (ass, donkey), 
• Aswatara (mule),
• Ustra (camel), 
• Ashwa (horse), 
• Dwipi (leopard),
• Simha (lion), 
• Aruksha (dear), 
• Vanara (monkey), 
• Marjala (cat),
• Musaka (rat, mice), 
• Vyaghra (tiger), 
• Vrka (jackal), 
• Babhru (large brown mongoose 
• Tarksu (hyena), 
• Lopaka (fox, 
• Jambuka (jackal), 
• Syena (hawk), 
• Casa (blue joy),
• Vantada (dog), 
• Vayasa (crow),
• Sasaghni (golden eagle ),
• Bhasa (bread vulture ), 
• Kurara (osprey), 
• Grdhra (vulture), 
• Uluka (owl), 
• Kulingaka (sparrow hawk),
• Dhumika (owlet), 
• Madhuha (honey buzzard), 
• All these and, other animals and birds belong to this group known as Prasaha (which catch their food by the teeth, tear it and eat.)

Mahamriga (big animals)

• Varaha (boar), 
• Mahisa (buffalo), 
• Nyanku (dog deer), 
• Rohita (big deer), 
• Ruru (swamp deer), 
• Varana (elephant), 
• Srmara (Indian wild boar), 
• Chamara (yak),
• Khadga (rhinoceros) 
• Gavaya (goyal ox)
• All these belong to mahamriga Varga (animals of the huge body).

Apchara Varga (aquatic birds)

• Hamsa (swan), 
• Sarasa (Indian crane), 
• Kadamba (grey legged goose), 
• Baka (heron), 
• Karandava (white-breasted goose), 
• Palva (pelican), 
• Balaka (crane),
• Utkrosa (mattard), 
• Chakrahva (ruddy Sheldrake), 
• Madgu (small cormorant), 
• Krouncha (pound heron)
• All these belong to Apcara Varga (aquatic birds).

Matsya Varga (group of fish)

• Rohita (redfish), 
• Pathina (boal), 
• Kurma (tortoise), 
• Kumbhira (gavial, alligator),
• Karkata (crab),
• Ukti (pearl mussel), 
• Sankha (conch shell), 
• Urdu (otter), 
• Sambuka (common snail), 
• Safari (large glistening fish), 
• Varmi candrika (kind of cat fish) 
• Culuki (sea hog),
• Pakra (crocodile),
• Makara (crocodile), 
• Sisumara (dolphin), 
• Timingala (whale, shark), 
• Raji (snake fish), 
• Cilicima (red striped fish) and others belong to a group of Matsya (fishes). 
• Thus eight kinds of sources of mamsa. Goat and sheep are not included in any specific group because of their mixed heredity and live in all types of lands.
• Out of all these eight groups the Mriga, viskriya, and pratuda are also Known as Jangala and Vata dominant.
• The mahamriga, Jalacara, and Matsya are also called Anupa and Kapha dominant.
• The bilesaya and prasaha are known as sadharana and  it is tridosha balancing
• The land area which has dry forests with less rainfall is called Jangala and this region is Vata dominant.
• Area with plenty of rainfall and water-logged is known as Anupa Desha and this region is Kapha dominant.
• The region which has neither too much dryness nor too much moisture is Sadharana Desha.

The flesh of Shasha (rabbit)

• Enhances hunger, 
• Pungent after digestion, 
• Water absorbent and cold in potency,
• The flesh of the Vartaka (buttonquail) and others are slightly hot in potency, hard to digest, Tittiri (sparrow) is still better, and increase intelligence, digestion, strength, and semen, holds body fluids discharges, improves the skin complexion, and effectively mitigates Sannipata with an increase of Vata.

Flesh of cock

• It is similar to that of peacock meat, and it is aphrodisiac, 
• Increase Kapha
• Hard to digest 
• The flesh of krakara (black partridge) 
• Increases intelligence and digestion, 
• Good for the heart or the mind.

The flesh of the Mahamrigas (big animals)

• It is cold in potency generally
• Carnivorous and prasaha animals have salt as a secondary taste, pungent taste at the end of the digestion,
• Increases the muscles of the body, 
• Best for the persons suffering from long-standing hemorrhoids, duodenal diseases, and consumption 

Aja (goat’s meat)

• Goat meat is not very cold in potency, 
• Hard to digest, 
• Fatty, 
• Does not imbalance the doshas,
• It is anabhisyandi means does not cause increases in secretions in the tissue channels.
• It is nourishing and helps in increasing weight.

Avi (meat of sheep)

• It has opposite in nature with that of goat meat and causes weight gain. 
• Gomamsa (flesh of cow, bull, bullock) 
• It cures dry cough, 
• Exhaustion, 
• Excess hunger, 
• Intermittent fevers, 
• Chronic nasal catarrh, Emaciation, 
• Diseases caused by the increase of Vata independently.

The flesh of mahisa (buffalo)

• It is hot, 
• Not easily digestible, 
• Produces sleep, 
• Provide strength and stoutness of the body.

The flesh of Varaha (pig)

• It is similar to that of the buffalo, 
• Relieves fatigue, 
• Increases taste, semen and strength 

Fish

• It generally tends to increase Kapha 
• Chilichima fish tends to increase all three dosas.
• Lava, rohita, godha, and are best in their groups. 
• The meat of animals that have been just killed, which are uncontaminated and of adult animals only should be used for food.

Meat should be avoided if:

• It is of dead animals, 
• If it is of very emaciated animal, 
• Meat which is very fatty,
• The meat of those animals which are dead due to diseases, 
• Drowning and poison should be rejected. Meat obtained from the above part of the umbilicus of male animals and from below the umbilicus of female animals, and obtained from the pregnant animal are all hard to digest.
• Among the quadrupeds, the flesh of females is easily digest but among the birds it is of the Male’s flesh which is easily digest. Flesh obtained from the head, neck, thighs, back, waist, forelegs, stomach and intestines are hard to digest in the reverse order of enumeration. The tissues of the animals such as blood and others are hard to digest in their successive order testicles, penis, kidneys, liver and rectum are hard to digest than the flesh.