Random Ethnobotany Notes by Pankaj Oudhia

Traditional medicinal knowledge about common herbs used in treatment of common diseases : Recent interactions with the traditional healers of Chhattisgarh Plains , India. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia The whole world is in search of herbs and herbal formulations having anti-ageing properties. Through the recent interactions with the traditional healers of Chhattisgarh Plains, I got information on two such formulations. I have collected many new information also. I am giving the details in present article.  According to the traditional healers of Chhattisgarh Plains, Aonla (Phyllanthus emblica) fruits can be used for this purpose. The healers of Raipur region suggest the natives to take dry Aonla fruit powder in combination with Til seed powder. Both powders are mixed in equal proportion and given internally. In general, the healers recom...

Traditional medicinal knowledge about common herbs used in treatment of common diseases in Chhattisgarh, India. : Recent interactions with the traditional healers of Northern Chhattisgarh. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia Through the recent interactions with the traditional healers of Northern Chhattisgarh I have collected some valuable information on traditional uses of common herbs. I am giving the details in this article.  The traditional healers informed me about many common herbs used in treatment of Bavasir (Piles). Karonda (Carissa carandus) is under cultivation in this part of Chhattisgarh. The healers extract the juice from matured fruits of Karonda and boil it in low flame. When the juice became thicker by adding Kali Mirch (Piper nigrum), the healers prepare small globules. These globules are given internally in treatment of Bava...

Traditional medicinal knowledge about Anjeer (Ficus carica) in Chhattisgarh, India. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia Although Anjeer is not native to Chhattisgarh but the rich traditional knowledge about this herb, the healers of Chhattisgarh Plains have, motivated me to write a separate article on this herb. Through the interactions with the healers of Chhattisgarh Plains, I have collected many valuable information on traditional medicinal uses of Anjeer. I am giving the details in present article.  In general, the traditional healers of Chhattisgarh use Doomar, another Ficus species, Ficus glomerata as promising substitute to Anjeer. Doomar is known as 'Desi (Indigenous) Anjeer' among them. Doomar is native to Chhattisgarh and the natives and traditional healers have in depth traditional medicinal knowledge about this herb. For the av...

Traditional medicinal knowledge about common herbs used in treatment of common diseases, in Chhattisgarh, India : Recent interactions with the traditional healers of Southern Chhattisgarh. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia During the recent visits when I started discussion with the traditional healers of Southern Chhattisgarh, I got many valuable information on traditional medicinal uses of common herbs. I am giving the details in this article.  The traditional healers informed me about the use of gum collected from Kullu tree (Sterculia urens) in treatment of Epistaxis. They suggest the patients to smell the powdered gum in order to stop the bleeding. According to them this simple use cures the troubles at initial stages. This part of Chhattisgarh is rich in natural population of this important tree. In case of severe toothache, for immedia...

Some additional information on traditional use of Laung (Syzygium aromaticum ) in Chhattisgarh, India. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia Although Laung is not a native to Chhattisgarh but the natives and traditional healers of Chhattisgarh have in depth traditional medicinal knowledge about Laung. It is used as popular home remedy. I have written a lot on these uses in my previous articles. While searching my fields diaries, I sorted out some additional information on traditional uses of Laung, I have collected through the ethnobotanical surveys. I am giving the details in this article.  Laung holds a reputed position among the herbs used in treatment of Cough. From the traditional healers of Southern Chhattisgarh, I got new formulation in which Laung plays an important role. To prepare this formulation, the healers mix Laung, Kali Mirch (Pi...

Bakla (Vicia faba; family Leguminosease) as medicinal herb in Chhattisgarh, India. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia Bakla or Kala matar (or Kala Batra) is a herb under cultivation in Chhattisgarh. I have seen it in wastelands also but according to the experts, it is an escape from cultivated fields. It is not a popular agricultural crop and this is the reason that its cultivation is limited to few parts. The traditional healers of Chhattisgarh are aware of medicinal properties and uses of Bakla. To fulfill the requirement many healers grow this plant in home gardens. Through the ethnobotanical surveys conducted in different parts of Chhattisgarh, I have collected few but important information on traditional medicinal uses of Bakla. I am giving the details in present article.  The traditional healers of Chhattisgarh use it both internally as...

Traditional medicinal knowledge about Patang (Caesalpinia sappan; family (Fabaceae) in Chhattisgarh, India. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia For the first time I have seen the wood piece of Patang with the herb vendors of neighboring states. Out of curiosity, I searched the reference literatures and identified it as Caesalpinia sappan. According to reference literatures, its heartwood yields red dye which is used for colouring cotton and woolen cloth and for making red ink. The reference literatures do not support its natural occurrence in Chhattisgarh. I have yet not seen it in natural forests but many herb collectors claimed that it is present in isolated patches. Also, they talked about two types of Patang. Locally it is not known as Patang. My Guru Shri Vishal Bharat was aware of medicinal properties and uses of this herb. He informed me once t...

Traditional medicinal knowledge about common herbs used in treatment of common diseases in Chhattisgarh, India : Recent interactions with the traditional healers of Gandai-Salewara region. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia Through the recent interactions with the traditional healers of Gandai-Salewara region, I got many new information on traditional uses of common herbs. As you know, I have surveyed this region extensively. During this survey I have noted that many senior traditional healers have passed away. This was sad experience for me but the positive thing is that their valuable knowledge is safe in form of my articles. This incidence motivated me to accelerate the on-going documentation work. I am giving the results of this survey in present article.  The traditional healers informed that the flowers of Koha possess valuable medicina...

Traditional Medicinal Knowledge about common herbs used in treatment of common diseases in Chhattisgarh, India : Recent interactions with the traditional healers of Bhopalpatnam and Bagbahera regions. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia Through the recent interactions with the traditional healers of Bhopalpatnam and Bagbahera regions, I got many valuable information on traditional uses of common herbs used in treatment of common diseases.  The traditional healers of Bagbahera region informed about the decoction prepared by using bark of different medicinal trees in treatment of gum and teeth related troubles. According to them, this decoction helps as both curative and preventive. In this decoction, the bark of Bar (Ficus benghalensis), Pipal (Ficus religiosa), Doomar (Ficus glomerata) and Chirai Jam (Syzygium cumini) are used. All barks are c...

Traditional medicinal knowledge about Deodar wood (Cedrus deodara, family : Pinaceae) in Chhattisgarh, India. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia Deodar is not found in Chhattisgarh. The climate of Chhattisgarh is not suitable for its commercial plantation. According to reference literatures, Deodar is a tall, evergreen tree distributed in N-W Himalayas from Kashmir to Garhwal. The forest of Deodar occurs in Kulu, Kashmir, Chamba, Tehri - Garhwal , Almora etc. Deodar is supposed to be the strongest of the Indian conifers and the wood is chiefly used for construction work and railway sleepers. Although Deodar not occurs in Chhattisgarh, but the traditional healers of Chhattisgarh are aware of its few but important medicinal properties and uses. They purchase the wood pieces of Deodar from local herb shops and also from herb vendors coming from neighbor...

Traditional medicinal knowledge about common herbs used in treatment of common diseases in Chhattisgarh, India : Recent interactions with the traditional healers of Narharpur region. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia Through the recent interaction with the traditional healers of Narharpur region, I have collected many valuable information on traditional uses of common herbs. Many of these information's are still not reported in reference literatures. I am giving the details in present article.  The traditional healers informed about many traditional uses of small spines found in Doomar leaves. The small spines are collected and used for different purposes. In treatment of Scrofula, the traditional healers recommend the use of small spines in combination with sweet curd (Dahi). Sugar is also added for taste. The use is continued till complete...

Interactions with the herb collectors of Chhattisgarh, India having traditional medicinal knowledge about common herbs used in treatment of 26. Naksutri. Pankaj Oudhia Extended Summary (For complete research document please visit pankajoudhia.com or write at pankajoudhia@gmail.com ) © Pankaj Oudhia I am not aware that what Naksutri is known in medicinal terms. Naksutri is a small painful boil having thread (Sutri) like structure in it. The natives know this boil as Naksutri. During its treatment care is taken that the thread like structure must come out without any break. The traditional healers of Chhattisgarh consider the blood impurity, a reason responsible for Naksutri. The traditional healers take full precaution and care in its treatment. They try to suppress the boil at very initial stage but in later stage, they try to suppurate it. Through the ethnobotancial surveys conducted in different parts of Chhattisgarh, I have noted that like the traditional ...