Witnessed by: Ayurveda · Western · Unani
Juniper (Juniperus communis), of the Cupressaceae family. Evergreen coniferous shrub or small tree with sharp awl-shaped needles in whorls of three; native range: circumpolar across the northern hemisphere — Europe, North Africa, northern Asia, the Himalaya and North America — on heath, chalk down and mountain slope. Globally recognized as hapusha / matsyagandha in Sanskrit, hauber / abhal in Hindi, Abhal (أبهل) in Arabic, and common juniper, juniper berry in English. The part used is the ripe berry-like female cone. Round blue-black berries with a soft resinous flesh, warm and peppery-bitter with a piny, gin-like aroma from the volatile oil.
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.
JUNIPER
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Juniper
- Scientific name
- Juniperus communis L.
- Family
- Cupressaceae
Form
- Part used
- the ripe berry-like female cone
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Ayurveda
- pungent · bitter (katu-tikta)
- Western
- pungent · bitter · aromatic
- Unani
- pungent · bitter
Temperature
Ayurveda: heating (ushna)
Western: hot (& dry, 3rd degree — Culpeper)
Unani: hot & dry (3rd degree)
convergence: all {witness_count} witnesses converge — a hot, drying, downward-clearing berry in every tradition that names it
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Western
- kidneys · bladder · digestion · uterus · joints
- Unani
- kidneys · bladder · uterus · stomach · liver
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Ayurveda
- mutrala (diuretic), artavajanana (emmenagogue), dipana-pachana (kindles and digests), kapha-vata-hara, krimighna (anthelmintic)
- Western
- diuretic, carminative, stomachic, emmenagogue and uterine stimulant, antiseptic to the urinary tract, rubefacient
- Unani
- mudirr-e-baul (diuretic), mudirr-e-haiz (emmenagogue), kaasir-e-riyah (carminative), mufatteh-e-sudad (deobstruent), muqawwi-e-meda (stomach tonic)
Cautions
Contraindications: pregnancy — a uterine stimulant reputed to bring on abortion; acute kidney inflammation or disease, the oil being a renal irritant; avoid prolonged use
Toxicity: large or long-continued doses irritate the kidneys and may cause albuminuria, haematuria and quickened pulse; the concentrated volatile oil is a strong renal irritant
Interactions
- Western
- diuretics: additive diuresis with risk of fluid and electrolyte depletion · antidiabetic agents: the berry's reputed glucose-lowering effect may add to that of the drugs
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