Witnessed by: Ayurveda · Unani
White water lily (Nymphaea lotus), of the Nymphaeaceae family. Aquatic perennial from a tuberous rhizome, with toothed floating leaves; native range: Egypt and tropical Africa through the Indian subcontinent — warm still waters. Globally recognized as kumuda, kairava in Sanskrit, kanwal, kumudini in Hindi, nilofar in Arabic, and white Egyptian lotus, tiger lotus in English. The part used is flower and rhizome; seed. White night-opening flowers, faintly perfumed; the rhizome and seed are sweetish, cool and mucilaginous, with a soft astringency.
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.
WHITE WATER LILY
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- White water lily
- Scientific name
- Nymphaea lotus L.
- Family
- Nymphaeaceae
Form
- Part used
- flower and rhizome; seed
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Ayurveda
- sweet (madhura) · astringent (kashaya)
- Unani
- sweet · astringent
Temperature
Ayurveda: cooling (sheeta)
Unani: cold (2nd degree)
convergence: both {witness_count} witnesses read it cold and calming — a refrigerant for heat and bleeding
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Unani
- heart · brain
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Ayurveda
- sheetala (refrigerant), raktapittahara (checks bleeding and heat), trishnaghna (quenches thirst), hridya (cardiac), shukrala
- Unani
- muqawwi-e-qalb (cardiac tonic), muqawwi-e-dimagh (brain tonic), mubarrid (refrigerant), musakkin (sedative)
Cautions
- Contraindications
- cold, damp and kapha conditions; sluggish digestion
- Toxicity
- non-toxic in customary use
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