In the vast population of allopathic practitioners spread all over the world, there is a doctor at Patna who, eschewing professional chauvinism, advises his patient to go in for different system of medicine, be it Homeopathy, Ayurveda, Yunani, Naturopathy or even Acupressure /puncture if he feels that the alternative system would cure him soonest at the minimum risk and cost. He is Dr Shreenivas-a highly educated man in India, U.K, USA, Sweden and now, by virtue of his contributions to diverse fields of human interest, has found a niche for himself in the world of therapeutics.

Dr Shreenivas-a retired Professor and Head of the department of medicine, P.W Medical College, Patna and founder father of Indira Gandhi Institute of Cardiology at Patna is a highly innovative medical practitioner even at the age of 85. He floates new ideas in medical field and translates them in functioning reality.

His latest innovation is POLYPATHY, the principle that all the available methods of treatment must be amassed together for charting out the most suitable programme for the health and care of each patient separately, individually, and selectively. It believes in exploiting the total resourcefulness of all the pathies taken together by pooling all their drugs and curative measures and techniques through balanced integration in service of ailing individual.

In his very recently published book titled POLYPATHY (2004), illustrating the concept of disease, Dr Shreenivas says that diseases are caused by pollution of our internal environment and pushing the idea of Polypathy, he says that selection of medicine for a particular individual patient should be based on minimum and cheap medicine, its easy availability and acceptability by the patient, its harmlessness and non toxicity, non interference with natural healing process.

Enumerating various therapies available so far, the writer takes great pain to find out 151 therapies from all over the world but mostly Indian probably because this country is the richest in this field.

Tracing the evolution of the idea of Polypathy, Dr Shreenivas recollects a very interesting episode. While working in the field in the beginning of his career, he suffered from recurrent malarial fever. Insf his best effort and experiment on himself with then available medicines, there was no cure. His life had become miserable with no cure in sight, no sympathy from any corner rather hard coercive behaviour from his English boss. Once while sitting sad in his office, he confronted a simple unknown person who on great insistance succeeded in fetching information from the doctor that the cause of his misery was incurable malaria. The man came again next day and handed ver a mixture of dust powder and ashes and advised the miserable doctor to take it twice daily in minor dozes for 3 to 4 days and see its effect. To a great surprise Dr Shreenivas was fully cured for ever. This sowed the seed of the idea of Polypathy in doctor's mind and he pursued this idea life-long.

To propagate this idea, Dr Shreenivas founded International Institute of Polypathy in N. Delhi. Here, the idea and method of working is to collect, catalogue, collate and corroborate the recognizable assets inherent in the fabric of various systems for the best use of the patient who wants speedy relief, total cure and restoration of health at the soonest without any kind of loss to him. A number of experts from various therapies are working together in tandem to find out whether only one therapy or a combination of more than one could best suit the patient.

He also formed International Association of Polypathy. It has branches all over the world and a huge family of members in India and abroad. Being president of this Association, Dr Shreenivas presided over the first world conference in Delhi in 1997 and subsequently at Kathmandu(1998),Bagni di Lucca(1999), Madrid(2000), Milan(2001), lbagnano di Bee,Italy (2002)and again Kathmandu(2003).

His contribution to the idea of essential unity of all religions, his scientific approach to spirituality, his association of spirituality to medical therapy attracted the world Parliament of religions. Thus he has had the unique distinction of being the first individual in the world to be invited at Chicago to participate in centennial conference at Parliament of religions in 1993. He went there on the cost of Govt of India, 100 years after Swami Vivekanand.

Dr Shreenivas is still a medical practitioner even at the age of 85 but in his clinic 'Tribhuvan-Madhurya', he employs not only allopathic therapy but polypathic also for speedy recovery of the patient at cheapest cost. Besides being a medical practitioner, Dr Shreenivas takes keen interest in social, spiritual, literary, yogic and aesthetic activities. He is Director Yoga Research Institute, Patna, Chairman of several educational and literary Institutions besides being a fine artist and painter. He is credited with several useful research works, awards and a dozen publications, the latest being 'Polypathy'

The writer is Retd Professor, M.I.T Muzaffarpur. He can be accessed at snsinha@bihartimes.com