Kalarippayattu is an aggressive form of martial art. (At least in a few kalaris where the masters refuse to change this martial art into a spectator/performance art). In the course of daily training many students get injured. Injuries range from minor scratches, cuts and bruises to the very rare broken bones and dislocated joints. The Kalarippayattu has a wonderful system of medicine based on the principles of ayurveda and in the case of the southern style, the ancient Tamil texts written by sage Agasthya on the science of vital points or marma. Some of the core principles of ayurveda form the basis of kalari treatment . But kalari treatment differs from the ayurveda in many ways. In ayurveda emphasis is placed on internal medicines and various detoxification processes along with instructions for a way of life aimed at the Swastha or average sedentary person (The Susrutha Samhita - a text on ayurveda, is an exception . Many different techniques and methods for treatment and surgery of injured warriors and treatments for fractures and joint dislocations are described in this text). Kalari treatment, on the other hand, evolved to treat mainly the warriors who get injured either in battle or during training.. The ayurvedic principles play an important role in kalari treatment, but the Siddha system of medicine - the system of ayurveda popularized by sage Agasthya and his disciples in the southern most part of India, in the present day states of Kerala and Tamilnadu, predominates over ayurveda in the southern style kalari treatments. The practitioners of northern system of Kalarippayattu follow mainly the texts of Susrutha, Charaka and Vagbhata and their system of medicine is much more closely related to the Ayurveda than the southern style kalari marma treatment. Since many websites and books are available on the subject of Ayurveda, here we will present only the southern style kalari marma treatments.

Sage Agasthya - an immortal according to Hindu mythology is credited with the discovery of the vital points or marma points in the human body . Sage Agasthya taught the principles of medicine and the science of vital points to his 18 disciples. Theses disciples are called Siddhas - enlightened persons. This is how the medicinal system practiced by sage Agasthya became to known as Siddha system. Each of the 18 disciples of sage Agasthya is said to have written 4 books on marma and Siddha treatments. But out of the 72 such texts written by them only about 15 or 20 are said to be available now. Most of the texts are closely guarded from the outside world by the masters and their families who are in possession of the manuscripts. The language in which these books are written is ancient Tamil and since the contents are in the forms of poetry and many of the secrets are written symbolically using words that appears to have nothing to do with medicine or marma, it is very difficult for the common man to understand the real meaning of the manuscripts. However the practice of the kalari medicine continues even today as masters teach their own children and a select few of their students. Though originally developed for the practitioners of Kalarippayattu , this system of medicine can be used effectively by anyone.

The kalari treatment in the southern style Kalarippayattu has the following:

Atankal

It is a form of physical manipulation to rectify the misalignment of joints and thus relieving the nerves of any stress due to such misalignment . In many cases the effect is more than this. The energy flow inside the body which has been disrupted by strikes to the vital points are balanced by the often seemingly violent manipulations of the joints. This method has been employed by almost all of the southern kalari masters and is extremely effective while there are no side effects.

Tirummu or massage

Massage is performed after applying medicated oils. The massage is superior to the other systems of massage and the ayurvedic uzhichil because the massage is done according to the principles of vital points and the energy flow through the nadis or meridians. The oil acts as a medium to carry the herbal medicines into the body thus increasing the rate of recovery from illness or injuries.

Herbal concoctions

Concoctions prepared using various herbs are internally administrated. There are many different such preparations and the Tamil manuscripts describe the ingredients, methods of preparation and administration in detail.

Some medicines are prepared by distilling fermented herbal concoctions along with whole free range country chicken or wild cats. These are very effective in curing injuries to the internal organs. Since distillation of alcohol is prohibited by law, these medicines are prepared only for extreme cases of internal injuries.

Herbal oils

Mainly used for the kalari massage but can be used just like any other liniment for pain relief. Some preparations use the meat, fat, bones and marrow of various wild animals. May be due to the not-so-easy availability of the animals these preparations are made only very rarely.

Powdered herbs or Podi

Many herbal mixtures are dried and powdered which are taken along with honey or ghee.

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