Witnessed by: Western · Unani
Olive (Olea europaea), of the Oleaceae family. Long-lived evergreen tree with gnarled trunk; native range: Mediterranean basin and the Levant; cultivated since deep antiquity. Globally recognized as jaitun in Hindi, zaitun (زيتون) in Arabic, and olive leaf, olive in English. The part used is leaf; also the fruit and its expressed oil. Leathery grey-green leaves, silver beneath, intensely bitter and slightly astringent from oleuropein; the ripe fruit yields a smooth, mild 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.
OLIVE
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Olive
- Scientific name
- Olea europaea L.
- Family
- Oleaceae
Form
- Part used
- leaf; also the fruit and its expressed oil
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Western
- bitter · astringent
- Unani
- astringent, with the oil sweet and bland
Temperature
- Western
- cool
- Unani
- temperate (the leaf cooling, the oil warming)
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Western
- circulation · blood · heart · kidneys
- Unani
- heart · liver · stomach · skin
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Western
- hypotensive, hypoglycaemic, antimicrobial, febrifuge, mild astringent; the oil demulcent and laxative
- Unani
- muqawwi-e-qalb (cardiac tonic), qabid (astringent), the oil mulaiyin (laxative) and a soothing dressing
Cautions
Contraindications: caution with blood-pressure and blood-sugar lowering medication
Toxicity: well tolerated; large leaf doses may cause mild gastric upset
Interactions
- Western
- antihypertensives: additive blood-pressure lowering · antidiabetic agents: additive glucose lowering
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