Witnessed by: TCM · Ayurveda · Western · Unani
Asafoetida (Ferula assa-foetida), of the Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) family. Giant umbellifer with a stout fleshy taproot and a rosette of much-divided leaves; native range: Arid highlands of Iran and Afghanistan; the resin tapped from the living taproot. Globally recognized as hingu in Sanskrit, hing in Hindi, a wei (阿魏) in Chinese, hiltit / haltita in Arabic, and devil's dung · food of the gods · gum asafoetida in English. The part used is the oleo-gum-resin dried from the cut root. Dull amber-to-reddish tears and lumps with a milky, garlicky-sulphurous reek so fierce it clears a room; the taste is bitter, acrid and lastingly pungent, mellowing to onion when fried in fat.
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.
ASAFOETIDA
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Asafoetida
- Scientific name
- Ferula assa-foetida L.
- Family
- Apiaceae (Umbelliferae)
Form
- Part used
- the oleo-gum-resin dried from the cut root
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- pungent · bitter
- Ayurveda
- pungent (katu)
- Western
- acrid · bitter
- Unani
- pungent · bitter
Temperature
TCM: warm
Ayurveda: heating (ushna, tikshna)
Western: hot
Unani: hot & dry (3rd degree)
convergence: all {witness_count} witnesses agree on a strong penetrating heat
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Spleen · Stomach · Liver
- Western
- digestion · nerves · lungs
- Unani
- stomach · intestines · nerves · uterus
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- dispels food stagnation and disperses accumulation, transforms masses, kills parasites, dissolves blood stasis
- Ayurveda
- dipana-pachana (kindles and digests), vata-anulomana, shula-prashamana (antispasmodic), krimighna, hridya, medhya
- Western
- antispasmodic, carminative, expectorant, nervine and mild sedative; anthelmintic
- Unani
- kaasir-e-riyah (carminative), musakkin-e-alam (antispasmodic), muharrik (nervine stimulant), mohallil (resolvent), emmenagogue and aphrodisiac
Cautions
Contraindications: high pitta, hyperacidity and peptic ulcer, bleeding disorders; pregnancy (emmenagogue and uterine stimulant)
Toxicity: large doses irritate the stomach and may cause belching, burning and, rarely, methaemoglobinaemia in infants; not for babies
Interactions
- Western
- anticoagulants: coumarin constituents add to antiplatelet and anticoagulant effect · antihypertensives: may add to blood-pressure lowering
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