The origin of Ayurvedic medical sciences is claimed to come from a divine revelation from Lord Brahma. AYURVEDAVATARANA is the anecdote that shows the first existance of ayurveda into the world. Lord Brahma is considered as creator of this universe according to Indian mythology. Brahma the creator, created ayurveda much before human came into existence. It was an unscripted knowledge which was passed to Daksh Prajapati. Daksh Prajapati is said to be the father of Parvati, a goddess who is well known as the wife of lord Shiva, the destructor. Daksh Prajapati obtained the knowledge of ayurveda in the form of shloka hymned by Lord Brahma. Ayurveda was first described by Agnivesha, in his book Agnivesh tantra. The book was later revised by Charaka, and renamed to Charaka Samhita. Another early text of Ayurveda is the Sushruta Samhita, which in addition to the Charaka Samhita, served as the textual material in the ancient Universities of Takshashila and Nalanda. These texts are believed to have been written around the beginning of the Common Era, and is based on a holistic approach rooted in earlier Vedic culture. Its conspicuous use of the word veda, or knowledge, reveals its role in early Hinduism and explains its popularity in India.

Ayurveda is also known as Asthanga Veda. The word literally means "Eight branches of knowledge" as it is divided into eight specialized branches, which are :