Witnessed by: TCM · Ayurveda · Unani

Job's tears (Coix lacryma-jobi), of the Poaceae family. A tall robust grass of wet ground, bearing pendulous bead-like fruits; native range: wet ground across tropical and subtropical Asia; anciently cultivated for grain. Globally recognized as gavedhuka · gavedhu in Sanskrit, gurlu · samkru in Hindi, yi yi ren (薏苡仁) in Chinese, sankru in Arabic, and coix seed, adlay, pearl barley, coixseed in English. The part used is the seed (kernel). Within the glossy grey teardrop shell lies a starchy, pearly-white kernel, faintly sweet and bland, cooking soft like barley.

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.

JOB'S TEARS

IDENTITY

Name

Common: Job's tears
Scientific name: Coix lacryma-jobi L.
Family: Poaceae

Form

Part used: the seed (kernel)

PROPERTIES

Nature

Taste

how the plant declares itself on the tongue

TCM: sweet · bland
Ayurveda: sweet (madhura) · astringent (kashaya)
Unani: sweet · bland

Temperature

TCM: cool (slightly)

Ayurveda: cooling (sheeta)

Unani: cold (& dry, 1st degree)

convergence: the {witness_count} witnesses agree on a mild, cool, damp-draining grain

Affinity

where in the body it travels

Organs / channels

TCM: Spleen · Stomach · Lung
Unani: stomach · lungs · kidneys · bladder

PRACTICE

Virtue

Actions

TCM: strengthens the Spleen and leaches out dampness, promotes urination, clears heat and expels pus, and relaxes the sinews to clear damp-heat from the joints
Ayurveda: balya (nutritive tonic), mutrala (diuretic), kaphahara, and strengthening in convalescence; eases inflamed joints
Unani: muqawwi (nutritive tonic), mudirr-e-baul (diuretic), mulattif (attenuant) and muhallil; for chest and urinary complaints

Cautions

Contraindications: pregnancy (traditionally moving, and best avoided in quantity), constipation from dryness, and deficiency without damp
Toxicity: a bland, wholesome food-grain, practically non-toxic

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