As Āyurveda is at its core a highly individualistic science, information on how collective suffering was understood and treated is scarce in its foundational works. While the passages referring to epidemics and similar events have attracted some attention in the last decades, endemic diseases are an almost completely neglected topic. Francis Zimmermann, in his inspiring monograph The Jungle & the Aroma of Meats, noticed that passages on the quality of river water virtually provide maps of health and disease for the South Asian subcontinent, but he did not develop this theme any further. By diligent reading and cautious interpretation of the relevant passages it is indeed possible to connect certain diseases with specific regions of South Asia, revealing differing opinions on this topic visible in the various works of Āyurveda.
In this talk, I will introduce, compare, and discuss maps of seemingly shifting endemic diseases as deducible from some of the earliest surviving compilations of Āyurveda (Caraka-, Suśruta-, and Bhelasaṃhitā, all dated roughly around 150 CE). In addition, I will also take into account certain later commentaries and raise the question of the plausibility of the alleged disease distributions.