Witnessed by: Ayurveda · Unani
Emetic nut (Catunaregam spinosa), of the Rubiaceae family. Thorny shrub or small tree with paired spines and a hard, ribbed berry; native range: dry deciduous forest and scrub across India and South-East Asia. Globally recognized as madanaphala in Sanskrit, mainphal in Hindi, jauz-ul-qai in Arabic, and mountain pomegranate in English. The part used is fruit (the ripe and unripe nut). A hard, bitter, nauseous fruit-pulp whose acrid taste turns the stomach.
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.
EMETIC NUT
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Emetic nut
- Scientific name
- Catunaregam spinosa (Thunb.) Tirveng.
- Family
- Rubiaceae
Form
- Part used
- fruit (the ripe and unripe nut)
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Ayurveda
- sweet · bitter · astringent (madhura, tikta, kashaya)
- Unani
- bitter · acrid
Temperature
- Ayurveda
- heating (ushna)
- Unani
- hot & dry (2nd degree)
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Unani
- stomach · liver
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Ayurveda
- vamaka (emetic), kaphahara, lekhana (scraping), krimighna (anthelmintic), vranashodhana (wound-cleansing)
- Unani
- muqayyi (emetic), munaffith-e-balgham (expels phlegm), jali (detergent), qatil-e-deedan (anthelmintic)
Cautions
- Contraindications
- the weak, the aged, children, pregnancy, and pitta or bleeding conditions; not for those unfit for emesis
- Toxicity
- an overdose causes violent, exhausting vomiting and purging
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