Witnessed by: TCM · Ayurveda · Unani
Sappanwood (Caesalpinia sappan), of the Fabaceae (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae) family. Small thorny tree; native range: Tropical South and South-East Asia; long cultivated across India, Burma and southern China. Globally recognized as patanga / pattanga / raktasara in Sanskrit, patang / bakam in Hindi, su mu (蘇木) in Chinese, bakkam (بقم) in Arabic, and Indian redwood, false sandalwood in English. The part used is heartwood. Dense orange-red heartwood, faintly sweet, that steeps water to a deep crimson and shifts from red to yellow with acid and alkali.
In this cross-tradition database, we analyze how this substance operates across world medicine systems — tracking its traditional tastes, temperatures, tissue affinities, post-digestive effects, and planetary correspondences across Ayurveda, Unani, and Western herbalism.
SAPPANWOOD
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Sappanwood
- Scientific name
- Caesalpinia sappan L.
- Family
- Fabaceae (Leguminosae, Caesalpinioideae)
Form
- Part used
- heartwood
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- sweet · salty · pungent
- Ayurveda
- sweet · astringent (madhura-kashaya)
- Unani
- astringent · sweet
Temperature
- TCM
- neutral
- Ayurveda
- cooling (shita)
- Unani
- cold & dry (2nd degree)
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Heart · Liver · Spleen
- Unani
- liver · uterus · stomach
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- invigorates the blood, dispels stasis, reduces swelling and alleviates pain
- Ayurveda
- raktaprasadana (blood-purifier), raktastambhana (styptic), kapha-pitta-hara, vranaropana (wound-healing), vishaghna
- Unani
- qabid (astringent), habis-ud-dam (haemostatic), mujaffif (desiccant), mohallil (resolvent)
Cautions
- Contraindications
- pregnancy, and where there is no blood stasis; menorrhagia from deficiency
- Toxicity
- low in customary dose; large amounts of the strong decoction may over-move the blood
This is the card. Sign in for the full four-tradition entry — the aligned TCM · Ayurveda · Western · Unani reading, actions, dosing and cautions.