Witnessed by: Western · Unani
Anise (Pimpinella anisum), of the Apiaceae (Umbelliferae) family. Slender annual umbellifer with feathery lower leaves and white flowers; native range: eastern Mediterranean and western Asia; cultivated since Egyptian and classical times. Globally recognized as anisun / yansoon (يانسون) in Arabic, and anise, aniseed, sweet cumin in English. The part used is ripe fruit (seed). Small ridged grey-green fruits, sweet and warmly aromatic, with the unmistakable liquorice scent of anethole.
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.
ANISE
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Anise
- Scientific name
- Pimpinella anisum L.
- Family
- Apiaceae (Umbelliferae)
Form
- Part used
- ripe fruit (seed)
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Western
- sweet · aromatic
- Unani
- sweet · aromatic
Temperature
- Western
- warm
- Unani
- hot & dry (2nd degree)
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Western
- stomach · digestion · lungs
- Unani
- stomach · liver · lungs
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Western
- carminative, expectorant, antispasmodic, galactagogue, mild diuretic and aromatic stomachic
- Unani
- kaasir-e-riyah (carminative), mudirr-e-baul (diuretic), mudirr-e-haiz (emmenagogue), mulattif (attenuant), mudirr-e-laban (galactagogue)
Cautions
Contraindications: known allergy to Apiaceae; large medicinal doses in pregnancy
Toxicity: the concentrated essential oil in excess is irritant and may be narcotic
Interactions
- Western
- hormonal therapy: phytoestrogenic anethole may add to or oppose the action of hormonal agents
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