The Clash of Two Cultures and Commercialization of Traditional Medicine in Colonial and Post-Colonial India

Abstract

This is a historical overview of the evolution of traditional Indian medical systems in the context of the British colonial period and the postcolonial phase, through the lens of the cultural conflict between indigenous medical systems and Western medicine. It examines colonial practices that marginalized preexisting medical systems but also generated revitalization movements. These consequences include the role of commercialization that changed medicine from a unique brand of healing practice to a commercial commodity in the contemporary market stage. Based on historical evidence from multiple contexts across India, with a focus on Kerala, the paper will inform our understanding of medical pluralism in postcolonial contexts and the complex ways traditional knowledge systems adjust themselves to changing socio-economic and power structures.