69. Patrakam
Names:- Latin Cinnamomum zeylanicum
Tamil Lavangapatri
Telugu Aakupatri
Canarese Lavangapatri
Malayal Lavangpatram
Urdu Tejpat
Patrakam Kapha Vaatarso
Hrillaasaa rochakaa paham.
Dhanvanthari Nighantu.
Patrakam checks Kapha and Vaata. It is used in the treatment of watering from mouth and in anorexia.
Dose:- 10 to 60 grains of the powder with honey or as a decoction along with other drugs.
Action:- Aromatic, mild febrifuge, mild expectorant and diuretic.
Uses:- It is rarely used alone. Bu, it enters into the composition of most of the lehams, where it is chiefly added to give aroma. It is also included in febrifuge and diuretic decoctions.
70. Pippali
Names:- Latin Piper longum
Tamil Thippili
Telugu Pippallu
Canarese Thippili
Malayal Thippili
Urdu Pippal
Pippalee Katukaa Swaaduh
Hima Snigiha tridosha jith
Trit Jwarodara jantwaana
Naasaneecha rasaayanees.
Dhanvanthari Nighantu.
Pippali is pungent and sweet. It is cooling and oily. It checks the three doshas. It is useful in the treatment of thirst, fever, abdominal diseases and worns. It is also useful as a tonic.
Dose:- 5 to 15 grains as powder with honey or ghee or ghee and sugar.
or 10 to 60 grains as decoction or boiled with milk,
or with equal parts of Saindava lavanam and ghee,
or with water, milk and sugar or butter milk in increasing doses starting with 5, increasing daily by 5, till the number reaches 50 and reducing by 5 daily (Vardhamana pippali-Charaka).
Action:- Digestive, carminative, stimulant, febrifuge, alternative and tonic.
Use:- In consumption and in ascites goat’s or cows milk is recommended to be used, boiled with Pippali churnam. It makes the milk more easily assimilable. In piles it is used with butter-milk. It is milder than Sunthi in relieving abdominal distension or pain. It is less pungent than pepper. It is used alone wherever a milder drug is required and a combination of the above two, when more powerful action is required. It is generally combined with Sunti for Vaataharatwam and with pepper for Kaphaharatwam. Itself, is mainly Pittahara and is used alone in kevala pitta vikaara. The combination of the three is therefore very popularly used in all the three conditions.
71. Pippalimoolam (Root of the above).
Katooshnam Pippalee moolm
Sleshma Sanghaata naasanam
Vaatcchittikaram hanti
Krimeen Vahni pradeeptikrit.
Dhanvanthari Nighantu.
Pippali moolam is pungent and heating. It checks accumulations of Kapha and Vaata. It improves appetite. It is useful in the treatment of Krimi.
Dose:- Action and Uses similar to the above but milder.
It is more a favourite of pregnant women and is used both in pregnancy and after child-birth. Its uses are probably digestive and tonic. It is reputed to be Vaataharam. As an anthelmintic, it is given with goat’s urine (Vaagbhata). As a galactagogue, it is given along with milk and sugar (Maricham pippaleemoolam ksheeram ksheera Vivriddhaye – Haareetha). In Nidraa naasa, Haritha prescribes a powder of this to be taken with Gudam.
72. Punarnava
Names:- Latin Boerhaavia diffusa
Tamil Chattarani
Telugu Galijeru
Canarese Gajjeru
Malayal Taludama
Urdu Peescopra
Punarnavaa Bhavedushna
Tiktaa rooksha Kaphaapaha
Sasopha Paandu hrid roga
Kaasorakshata Soolajit.
Dhanvanthari Nighantu.
Punarnava is bitter and heating. It is non oily (dry). It checks Kapha. It is useful in the treatment of diseases with swelling (sasopha), Paandu (Anaemia), Hridroga (heart diseases), cough, blood spitting (Urakshata), and colic (soola).
Dose:- 10 to 60 grains of the powder with hot-water.
Or ¼ to 1 tola as a decoction,
or ½ to 2 tolas of the juice of fresh root or the swarasam of the dry root.
Action:- Diuretic, leaf – laxative as a sakam (curry).
Uses:- Its very name is sophagni (that which cures swellings). It is used in a variety of diseases and is one of the most useful drugs in the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia. It is useful both in heart and kidney diseases and remarkable results are observed, swellings in the hands, feet or face or on the whole body disappearing promptly. The patient is also put on salt free diet during the treatment. The leaf used as a vegetable removes constipation. I have given below the summary of its uses as found in Vanoushadi Gunadharpana.
1. A paste of the root with Dadhimanda (water floating on curd) may be used as an application for all kinds of kushta.
(Chikitsa-Ch. 7. Charaka).
2. Decoction prepared with punarnava in Asmari.
(Chikitsa-Ch. 7. Sushruta).
3. Either the decoction or the kalka of Punarnava with Sunthi followed by an anupanam of milk in Sotha.
(Chikitsa-Ch. 23. Sushruta).
4. Powder of the root with honey in Mushika Visha (Rat-bite).
(Kalpa-Ch. 6. Sushruta).
5. Swetapunarnava and Dathura in Alarkavisha (Rabid dog-bite).
(Kalpa-Ch. 6. Sushruta).
6. Milk boiled with the root in Jwara.
(Uttara Ch. 36. Sushruta).
7. Ghee medicated with milk, Punarnava kashaya and yashti-kalka is nutrient and removes intoxication.
(Madaatyaya Chikitsa-Vrinda).
8. ½ pala of the kalka taken with milk for half a month or two months or six months or one year as a Rasayanam.
(Rasaayanaadhikaara-Vrinda).
9. Ghee medicated with the kalka and kashaaya of Punarnava for Sotha.
(Sotha chikitsa-Chakradutta).
10. The root of Sweta punarnava as a decoction for apakva Vidradhi.
(Vidradhi Ch. Chakrudutta).
11. The root taken with water obtained by washing rice for Visha.
(Visha chikitsa-Chakradutta).
12. Urakshata chikitsa – As in Sopha. (Haareetha).
13. Decoction of Punarnava for producing sleep.
(Chikitsa-Ch. 16. Hareetha).
14. Decoction of Sathi, Sunthi and Punarnava used continuously for seven nights in Aamavata (Bhaavaprakaash).
15. Use of Punarnava in eye-diseases:-
“Dugdhena kandoom kshoudrena netrasravancha sarpishaa Pushpam, thailena thimiram, kanjikaena nisaandhatham, Punarnavaa harathyaasu bhaaskarasthimiram yatha.”
With milk in itching of the eyes, with honey in discharges, with ghee in pushpam (white patch), with oil in timira (Immature cataract), with rice-washings in night-blindness-Phnarnava is useful in eye diseases.
(Bhaavaprakaasa).
16. The powder with milk for Pitta fevers and with thaambula for Chathurthika fevers.
(Jwara chikitsa-Vangasena).
17. Oil medicated with Sweta punarnava to be rubbed in the foot in Vaatakantaka.
(Vaatavyaadhi chikitsa-Vangasena).
18. The leaves as saaka for amavaata.
(Amaavaata chikitsa-Vangasena).
73. Raktachandanam
Names:- Latin Pterocarpus santalinus
Tamil Sigappu chandanam
Telugu Errachandanamu
Canarese Raktachandana
Malayal Raktachandanam
Urdu Sandalai suruk
Raktam Seetam Guru Swaadu
Chardi trishnaasra pittahrit
Tiktam netrahitam Vrishyam
Jwara Vrana Vishaapaham.
Raktachandana is sweet and bitter. It is heavy (guru) and cooling. It is useful in the treatment for Chardi, Trisna, Rakta, Pitta, Jwara, Vrana and Visha. It is good for the eye. It is an aphrodisiac.
Dose:- ¼ to 1 tola as decoction.
Action:- Refrigerant, antiperiodic, antipyretic, febrifuge, astringent and bitter tonic.
Uses:- Properties almost the same as Sweta chandanam (Refer page 22).
It is used in many fever mixtures including mixtures for plague (D. Gopalacharlu’s Haimaadi Paanakam) and it is probably specially useful in relieving thirst and burning sensation of the body. It is also specially mentioned in Visarpa (Erysipelas) and as a blood-purifier in skin diseases.
