Witnessed by: Ayurveda · Unani
Spanish cherry (Mimusops elengi), of the Sapotaceae family. Evergreen tree with a dense shady crown and fragrant cream star-shaped flowers; native range: the evergreen forests of the Western Ghats and the Indo-Malayan tropics; widely planted as an avenue and temple tree. Globally recognized as bakula / kesara in Sanskrit, maulsari / molsari in Hindi, maulsari (of Unani use) in Arabic, and Spanish cherry; bullet wood; medlar; Indian medlar in English. The part used is bark and flowers; also fruit and seed. Rough grey bark, strongly astringent and mouth-drying; the small cream flowers intensely and lastingly fragrant; the ripe berry sweetish.
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.
SPANISH CHERRY
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Spanish cherry
- Scientific name
- Mimusops elengi L.
- Family
- Sapotaceae
Form
- Part used
- bark and flowers; also fruit and seed
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Ayurveda
- astringent (kashaya)
- Unani
- astringent (qabiz)
Temperature
- Ayurveda
- cooling (sheeta)
- Unani
- cold & dry (2nd degree)
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Unani
- intestines · uterus (an astringent to the bowels and the womb, and a tonic to the gums)
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Ayurveda
- dantya (a tooth and gum tonic), kashaya-stambhana (astringent, styptic), grahi, kaphapittahara, vrana-ropana (wound-healing), a lasting fragrance
- Unani
- qabiz (astringent), muqawwi-e-lissa (gum tonic), muqawwi-e-asnan (strengthens the teeth), habis (styptic), mufarreh (through its fragrance)
Cautions
- Contraindications
- little noted; its drying astringency warrants care in marked dryness and constipation
- Toxicity
- safe in customary dose
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