onAYU Citation Style
The first citation standard designed specifically for classical Ayurvedic literature in the digital age. A uniform, human-readable, machine-searchable framework for citing shlokas, formulas, and dravya entries from the classical corpus of Ayurveda.
1. Introduction
Prior citation approaches in Ayurvedic journals — including Vancouver-style adaptations used by Ancient Science of Life, AYU Journal, and Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine — were designed for print and lacked stable, resolvable identifiers.
The onAYU Citation Style addresses this gap by combining academic citation conventions with a persistent digital identifier — the onAYU ID — that uniquely and permanently identifies every entry in the onAYU Corpus.
2. Design Principles
3. The onAYU ID
Structure
| Component | Example | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| TextCode | CS | Unique abbreviation for the classical text |
| SthanaAbbr | Chi | Abbreviation for the Sthana, Khanda, Bhaga, Varga, or Prakarana |
| AdhyayaNumber | 26 | Chapter number within the Sthana, as an integer |
| ShlokaNumber | 43 | Verse number within the Adhyaya, as an integer |
Examples
Resolution
Any onAYU ID resolves to a permanent URL:
Direct search: Any onAYU ID can be typed directly into the search bar at onayu.in to instantly retrieve the exact verse, bypassing keyword and semantic search entirely.
4. Sthana Abbreviations
Brihat Trayi
| Sthana Name | Abbr. | Texts |
|---|---|---|
| Sutra Sthana | Su | CS, AH, SS |
| Nidana Sthana | Ni | CS, AH, SS |
| Vimana Sthana | Vi | CS |
| Sharira Sthana | Sha | CS, AH, SS |
| Indriya Sthana | In | CS |
| Chikitsa Sthana | Chi | CS, AH, SS |
| Kalpa Sthana | Ka | CS, AH, SS |
| Siddhi Sthana | Si | CS |
| Uttara Tantra | Ut | SS |
| Uttara Sthana | Ut | AH |
Laghu Trayi, Sahasrayoga & Nighantus
| Sthana / Division | Abbr. | Text |
|---|---|---|
| Purva Khanda | Pu | Sharangadhara Samhita |
| Madhyama Khanda | Ma | Sharangadhara Samhita |
| Uttara Khanda | Ut | Sharangadhara Samhita |
| Purva Bhaga | Pu | Bhavaprakasha |
| Madhyama Bhaga | Ma | Bhavaprakasha |
| Uttara Bhaga | Ut | Bhavaprakasha |
| Kashaya Prakarana | KP | Sahasrayoga |
| Ghrita Prakarana | GP | Sahasrayoga |
| Taila Prakarana | TP | Sahasrayoga |
| Churna Prakarana | CP | Sahasrayoga |
| Gulika Prakarana | GuP | Sahasrayoga |
| Avaleha Prakarana | AvP | Sahasrayoga |
| Haritakyadi Varga | Ha | Bhavaprakasha Nighantu |
| Guduchyadi Varga | Gu | Dhanvantari Nighantu |
| Karaveeradi Varga | Kar | Dhanvantari Nighantu |
| Khila Sthana | Kh | Kashyapa Samhita |
5. Text Codes
| Code | Text | Author | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| CS | Charaka Samhita | Agnivesha / Charaka / Dridhabala | c. 1000 BCE – 300 CE |
| SS | Sushruta Samhita | Sushruta / Nagarjuna | c. 600 BCE |
| AH | Ashtanga Hridaya | Vagbhata | c. 600 CE |
| AS | Ashtanga Samgraha | Vagbhata | c. 600 CE |
| Sha | Sharangadhara Samhita | Sharangadhara | c. 1300 CE |
| MN | Madhava Nidana | Madhavakara | c. 700 CE |
| BP | Bhavaprakasha | Bhavamishra | c. 1500 CE |
| KS | Kashyapa Samhita | Kashyapa | c. 600 CE |
| SY | Sahasrayoga | Kerala tradition | c. 1600 CE |
| DN | Dhanvantari Nighantu | Dhanvantari school | c. 900 CE |
| BPN | Bhavaprakasha Nighantu | Bhavamishra | c. 1500 CE |
| RN | Raja Nighantu | Narahari Pandita | c. 1300 CE |
| KN | Kaiyadeva Nighantu | Kaiyadeva | c. 1500 CE |
6. Full Citation Format
Standard Citation (Print and Digital)
Examples
Charaka Samhita
Agnivesha (Charaka, Dridhabala). Chikitsa Sthana, Ch.26 Trimarmiya Chikitsa, verse 43. In: Acharya YT, editor. Charaka Samhita. 4th ed. Varanasi: Krishnadas Academy; 2000. onAYU ID: CS.Chi.26.43. Available at: onayu.in/ref?id=CS.Chi.26.43
Ashtanga Hridaya
Vagbhata. Sutra Sthana, Ch.1 Ayushkamiya Adhyaya, verse 2. In: Paradkar HS, editor. Ashtanga Hridayam. 1st ed. Varanasi: Krishnadas Academy; 2000. onAYU ID: AH.Su.1.2. Available at: onayu.in/ref?id=AH.Su.1.2
Sahasrayoga
Kerala tradition. Kashaya Prakarana, Ch.1, formula 3. In: Sahasrayoga. Alappuzha: Vidyarambham Publishers; 2006. onAYU ID: SY.KP.1.3. Available at: onayu.in/ref?id=SY.KP.1.3
Short-form In-text Citation
Verse Range
When citing consecutive verses, use a hyphen:
7. Comparison with Existing Styles
| Feature | Vancouver | APA | carakasamhitaonline | onAYU Style |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stable ID | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Resolvable URL | ✗ | ✗ | Partial | ✓ |
| Machine-searchable | ✗ | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ |
| Ayurveda-native | ✗ | ✗ | ✓ | ✓ |
| Verse-level precision | Partial | Partial | ✓ | ✓ |
| Extensible to all texts | ✗ | ✗ | CS only | ✓ |
| In-text short form | ✓ | ✓ | ✗ | ✓ |
8. Governance and Versioning
The onAYU Citation Style is maintained by the onAYU project (onayu.in). Version 1.0 covers the Brihat Trayi, Laghu Trayi, Sahasrayoga, and major Nighantus. Future versions will extend coverage to commentary texts (Tika), manuscript variants, and non-verse entries.
The style is published as an open standard. Academic journals, research institutions, and digital humanities projects are encouraged to adopt it when citing classical Ayurvedic texts in digital contexts.
Proposed additions must not alter existing text codes, sthana abbreviations, or ID formats already in use. All proposals are reviewed by the onAYU team before adoption into a new version.
Submit Feedback
Help improve the onAYU Citation Style. You may propose new text codes, suggest additional sthana abbreviations, or raise any questions. Existing codes and abbreviations cannot be changed to preserve stability of published citations.