Sarsaparilla (Anantamul)
Also known as
Latin : Hemidesmus indicus
English : Sarsaparilla
Sanskrit : Anantamulah, Sariba
Hindi : Anantamul
Marathi : Upalasari
Tamil : Nannari
Telugu : Sugandhipala
Malayalam : Nannari
Kannada : Namadaballi
How it looks—It is a slender, perennial, turning, wiry shrub with a woody root stock and numerous slender stems having thickened nodes. The leaves are long and lance shaped, white
striped above and silvery white below. The flowers are greenish purple and fruits are slender cylindrical and tapering.
The tuberous root is dark-brown, silvery white inside with twisted, fissured bark. It has a strong, pleasant smell and taste.
What we use—Roots, leaves, stem
What it does—Roots—aromatic, refrigerant, aphrodisiac, carminative, appetiser, demulcent, febrifuge, expectorant, tonic.
How we use it—
In
piles—Make the following preparation for daily use in piles. Ferment milk to curds in a mud vessel along with the root of sarsaparilla put in it. Use this curd to prepare
buttermilk for use in daily diet to obtain relief from piles.
In
wounds—Wash wounds with a decoction of sarsaparilla leaves and roots to hasten recovery.
In
body heat and burning sensation—Boil ghee with sarsaparilla roots and take a tsp of this ghee in milk every day on empty stomach.
A decoction of the root will also serve the purpose.
In
breathlessness or asthma—Use the same sarsaparilla cooked ghee in hot milk to reduce respiratory spasms and allergy.
In
corneal ulcers/eye inflammations—Wash eyes with a mixture of the decoction of Sarsaparilla roots and some honey for its astringent action.
In
paralysis, joint pains and nervous disorders—Mix the powder
of sarsaparilla root and vasaka leaves in some milk and drink
everyday. This lubricates joints, enables free movements and is
strengthening to the nerves.
In
diarrhoea and dysentery—Mix a tsp of the root powder in a glass of buttermilk and drink it from time to time to arrest loose motions.
In
skin discolourations—Make a pack of the root powder and milk and apply to the face regularly for a blemish - free complexion.
