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Background: Sneha kalpana, the preparation of medicated ghee (ghrita) and oils (taila) by cooking a herbal paste (kalka) and liquid (drava) with a fat until defined end-points are reached, is one of the most important dosage forms of Ayurveda. It is often described as an ancient lipid-based drug delivery system. Objective: To examine the scientific basis for describing Sneha kalpana as a lipid-based delivery system, and the evidence that it improves the bioavailability or activity of herbal constituents. Methods: A critical narrative review of classical process descriptions, analytical and pharmacological studies of ghrita and taila, and the modern literature on lipid-based formulations. Results: The classical ratio of one part kalka, four parts fat and sixteen parts liquid, with defined stages of cooking (mridu, madhyama, khara paka), creates conditions for extraction of both lipophilic and some hydrophilic constituents into the fat. Ghee is about 98% lipid, mainly triglycerides, with small amounts of mono- and diglycerides. Digestion of such lipids forms mixed micelles that can solubilise lipophilic compounds and promote lymphatic transport. Comparative studies show that ghrita forms can be more active than aqueous forms, for example Guduchi ghrita compared with fresh juice in rats; however, direct pharmacokinetic comparisons of ghrita or taila with other dosage forms are rare. Conclusion: The lipid-delivery hypothesis is scientifically plausible and partly supported, but it needs pharmacokinetic studies using marker compounds and classification of Sneha kalpana within modern lipid formulation frameworks.