Kshirabala Tailam

By Sheela Rani Chunkath

My husband’s grandmother Mrs. Thandu Iyyukutty lived to be 94 years and took care of herself right up to the last. She hardly fell ill and her secret of long life could be attributed to her simple eating habits of having rice kanji and perhaps the Kshirabala (101) that she used to prepare herself.

Kshirabala tailam (101) is so called because it takes 101 days to prepare, the main ingredients being Kshira that is cow’s milk and Bala (Sanskrit name). The scientific name of the plant is Sida cordifolia, though some Kerala physicians use Sida rhombifolia and equate this with bala.

The recipe is simple and is given in the taila prakarana of the Sahasarayogam.

112 parts of the sida root decoction is added to 4 parts of sesame oil, 28 parts of pure cow’s milk and 7 parts of Sida root paste. This mixture is boiled gently the whole day till you get a taila. I saw them making this at Laksmi Sewa Sangh, Gandhigram in a large urn , it was the 35th day or so. The officials told me that at the end of each day they cover the urn, the next morning they add the same quantities of the sida root decoction, cow’s milk and the Sida root paste and boil it down once again. They painstakingly do this for 101 days just like Mrs. Thandu Iyyukutty used to do it in her kitchen. At the end of 101 days you have a precious ghee like substance which is useful for everything from nervous debility, insomnia, hypertension and rheumatoid arthritis. It is useful for facial paralysis, sciatica, headaches, diabetes, fever and uterine disorders.

Kshirabala is available in different strengths as 7, 28, 51 and 101 alluding to the no of days it took to make the tailam.

As a general tonic in case of nervous debility, 10 to 30 drops of Kshirabala (7 or 28) is taken with warm milk. Kshirabala (101) is far more effective and helps in rheumatoid arthritis and hypertension. 5 to 10 drops is taken internally with warm water or milk. In case of insomnia it can be applied on the head. Mrs. Thandu Iyyukutty had made this tailam her own and it used be liberally applied when any of her numerous children, great and greatgrand children would fall and give themselves nasty bump. The Kshirabala tailam would be brought out and religiously applied to the bump and invariably there would be no swelling. None of them of course make it at home today and generally it is bought off the shelf and taken to wherever the diaspora is scattered in Dubai, UK and the US.

I am tempted to see if I can make it , maybe it could be a retirement project.

A little about the herb bala itself. A very simple unpretentious looking herb, it is held in great repute by Ayurvedic physicians. It is reported to have aphrodisiac and tonic properties. It is called the Indian ephedra because it contains ephedrine and pseudo-ephedrine. In recent years bala is being touted as a herb which helps weight loss. No such traditional uses have been documented. It is a drug which in its Kshirabala form is a great aid in curing paralysis. It was one of the drugs among a great many that my own aunt of 90 years used when she was afflicted with paralysis of the right side. Almost completely immobile about two years ago she made a remarkable recovery and can now move around on her own thanks to some skillful ayurvedic treatment and her determination to follow the ayurvedic precepts and some great nursing by her close family and friends. The secret of the treatment was kashayams a great many of them to be drunk, and many tailams to be applied liberally or consumed internally, Kshirabala being one of them.

We need to mainstream these treatments and increase the availability of vaidyars and ayurvedic pharmacies so that our rich heritage is not lost in the womb of western medicine.

--- The writer was earlier Health Secretary, Govt. of Tamil Nadu and is currently CMD, TN Industrial Investment Corporation. She can be reached at Sheelarani.arogyamantra@gmail.com. Earlier articles can be accessed at http://arogyamantra.blogspot.com/