Importance of good health

Dhanvantari, an amsa of Lord Narayana, is mentioned in Puranas. The treatise called Bhavaprakasa says Indra wanted to help human beings, because he saw them suffering from diseases, said Velukkudi Krishnan in a discourse. He, therefore, asked Dhanvantari to go to the earth and keep the world free from disease, for that, after all, was the purpose of the Dhanvantari avatara. The nine gems were Dhanvantari, Kshapanaka, Amarasimha, Kalidasa, Varahamihira, Vararuchi, Shankhu, Vetala Bhatta and Ghatakarpa. The presence of Dhanvantari among the nine gems shows the importance kings gave to the health of their subjects.