Musumusukkai

by Sheela Rani Chunkath

I am happy that my last day in government service was spent in a small village called Achama Naidu Kandigai adjoining the Tamil Nadu border where the village was celebrating its annual three-day temple festival for Mathamma. As part of the festivities, there was a fire-walking ceremony. Faith does move mountains or in this case helps you walk over hot embers with the full confidence that your soles will not be burnt. Being somewhat of a sceptic I ran to other side of the 11 feet long bed of glowing embers to check whether the devotees who had completed their walk had done so with their soles intact. Most of them proudly showed me their soles to convince me that there were no burn marks. The entire festivities was marked by a lot of good cheer, excitement and volunteerism.In keeping good health I think a similar faith and good spirits are needed. One should participate well in life events, and keep faith that one will be healthy.

Now to the main text of the article. I asked one the villagers what herbs they used commonly. As in Tamil Nadu the usage of herbs is not as common as it was with the previous generation. She plucked a creeper called Nugu dasari or Nugudosa that was growing in the garden and said that the leaves were used to treat colds, coughs and sore throats. I identified it as the Musumusukkai of Tamil Nadu. Since I had slight sore throat I asked for the local treatment. She put in a handful of the crushed leaves, a couple of cloves of garlic, a quarter spoon of turmeric and boiled it for about 5–10 minutes. The Kashayam was quite soothing.

Commonly known as Bristly bryony or rough byrony because of the rough, bristly texture of its leaves, this plant was first identified in the Madras presidency and hence its scientific name Mukia maderasapatana. The plant is useful in treating conditions of vitiated kapha and pitta. The plant belongs to the family cucurbitaceae, the leaves resembling that of the Kovakkai plant.

A research paper by T.S. Dhanaraj et. al. indicates that it contains among other constituents tinosporidine and columbin and beta-sitosterol. These constituents are possibly the reason for the herb's adaptogenic, antispasmodic, anti-inflammatory, antipyretic, hypoglycemic, antioxidant, immuno-potentiating and hepato-protective properties. The herb is therefore useful for those who are diabetic. It is also useful in keeping the liver well-toned.

Since it is not always possible to have Kashayams traditionally a chutney or thuvaiyal is made from the leaves. Take about 3 tightly packed cups of musumusukkai leaves. The herb grows as a creeper in the wild and can be found growing wild in many farms and in the roadside. It is now also sold in vegetable shops and markets in Chennai. The leaves are sauteed with a bit of ghee so that the bristly texture of the leaf disappears. Sautee about 2 teaspoonsful of urad dhal, 10 peppercorns, one or two red chilies and 2-3 cloves of garlic. Grind all the above with a few sprigs of coriander and some curry leaves. Add salt, grind to a smooth paste and have with rotis, idlis, dosa or hot rice with ghee. Most of the ingredients can be adjusted to suit your taste. Generally when the herb is being used medicinally one should go easy on the chillies. One can add ginger, a little coconut, a little sauteed channa dhal etc. for variety. Avoid channa dhal if you have a vayu problem. Chutneys made with herbs like musumusukai, pirandai (Cissus quadrangularis), curry leaves, pudina, vallarai (Centella asiatica), peerkankai( ridge gourd) etc. add interest and nutrients to one's meal.

--- The writer is retired Additional Chief Secretary, Government of Tamil Nadu. She can be reached at Sheelarani.arogyamantra@gmail. com. Earlier articles can be accessed at http://arogyamantra.blogspot.com/

Converted with Word to HTML.