Vishnukranti

-by Sheela Rani Chunkath

Our ancient texts were fond of classifying the herbs and like the dasamoolam which I wrote about in last article, there is a group of flowers called the dasapushpam or the ten sacred flowers. Most of them are unusual and not flowers you would know or recognize offhand. Perhaps it was to bring to our notice and remind us of its usefulness, that these flowers have been made part of religious celebrations. In Kerala, women wear these flowers on their head on Thiruvathira Day and dance the Thiruvathirakkali. Most of the ten flowers are not large and showy. In fact most of the flowers tend to be rather miniscule. I am quite intrigued by the idea of women wearing these ten flowers in their tresses. The flowers are also used during marriage functions in Kerala.

In this article I will be dealing with two of the daspushpams, Aerva lanata and Evolvulus alsinoides. The flowers of Aerva lanata (Cheroola in Malayam and Sirupoolai in Tamil and Gorakhbuti in Hindi) are small white flowers, definitely not worth the bother of picking them. In Tamil Nadu, the plants and flowers are kept on top of the doorway during Pongal (harvest festival of Tamil Nadu) as a symbol of prosperity.

Perhaps the reason why it has been designated sacred is so that we recognize its remarkable lithotriptic properties i.e. its usefulness in treating kidney stones. I personally know at least two people who have had great relief from kidney stones after using this herb. They were treated by an Ayurvedic vaidyar who asked them to boil the leaves of Aerva lanata along with other herbs, namely, Boerhavia diffusa (mukkurttaikkodi in Tamil), Hygrophila schulli (neermulli in Tamil) and Tribulus terrestris (nerunjilmullu in Tamil) and to drink the decoction. This along with other treatments such as oil abhyangam completely cured them. Since both these persons live on a farm they were able to gather the herbs required from the wild. For those who do not have access to wild herbs there are ready-made herbal preparations like Punarnavasava and Chandranasava which gives great relief from problems associated with difficult urination, kidney stones etc.

The other dasapushpam flower, Evolvulus alsinoides ( vishunkranti in Malayalam and vishnukrantha in Hindi) is again a small flower, though a very pretty blue one. I saw a beautiful patch of these during one of my early morning walks in the Adyar Theosophical Society Gardens, Chennai. I did not have my camera with me. I went later in the evening armed with my camera. I could not find a single flower. I kept telling my husband, “I am sure I saw them right here.” Sure enough when I peered closely, I could see the weedlike plant amidst the grass, but no flowers. Vishnukranti blooms early in the morning and fades away as the day progresses.

Vishnukranti is valued for its antipyretic properties and is considered a specific for all kinds of fevers. It is considered a powerful brain stimulant and is also said to tone up the intellect.

I find vishnukranti growing in many weed lots along with grass. I have dug up a piece of sod and planted it hoping that the vishnukranti plants in it will survive and bear its characteristic pretty blue flowers.

--- The writer was earlier Health Secretary, Govt. of Tamil Nadu and is currently, Principal Secretary and Chairman & Managing Director, Tamil Nadu Handicrafts Development Corporation. She can be reached at Sheelarani.arogyamantra@gmail.com. Earlier articles can be accessed at http://arogyamantra.blogspot.com/