In comparison with the progress made by western medicine in the present, the ancient medicine in Sri Lanka was in an extremely advanced state.

Today, Western doctors, while searching for a cure for a disease, examine all body parts such as feces, urine, and blood. After that, X-rays and scans are used to view and observe the inside of the body. At the end of all these tests, medicine is prescribed for diagnosis. Tens of thousands of animals are killed in research laboratories for a medicine that is speculated to be so. There are few side effects from the prescribed medicine.

Compared to these primitive phenomena, our ancient medicine has never researched on animals. There are written evidences that King Buddhadasa also administered medicine to a cobra.
Pulse examination of patient was sufficient for diagnosis.

Considering the archaeological evidence, even surgical instruments used in ancient Hela medicine have been found in Anuradhapura.

The ancient Maligawila was the largest eye hospital in Sri Lanka. In the morning, patients who have undergone eye surgery are untied with blindfolds and are first shown the most beautiful Buddha statue there.

Our Sage Pulatisi is also a scholar who has done great service in Hela medicine in the past.

The Ravana era was the most advanced era of Hela medicine. There are a number of medicine books written by Emperor Ravana. He has written many books like Arka Prakarasya, Oddisa Tantra, Uddisa Tantra, Vatika Prakarana, Kumara Tantra etc.

He composed the book Kumara Tantra written for the diseases of infants to appease the desire of his queen when she was about to have her first child. Arka Prakashaya is the world’s first book on the science of medicine distillation. It is considered an extremely advanced technology today.

Ravana Samhita and Arka Prakasha are considered to be the oldest microbiology books in the world, as even Western scholars believe today.

Cancer medicine as well as “Rasa” medicine (based on Mercury) was in a very advanced state in our old traditional medicine. It used to be a very simple to remove tumors from internal parts of the body such as the brain that required surgery and take them to an external part of the body to cure them. It is heard that even today in some parts of Uva this method is still alive.

Emperor Ravana treated every plant growing in Sri Lanka as a herb. Ritigala, Rumassala and Dolukanda were the royal herb gardens of King Ravana. Many of the plants with priceless medicinal value in our country are being stolen and patented by foreigners today, so we should all think that we should protect each of these herbs and find our ancient prescriptions and re-enact Hela medicine.