Witnessed by: Western · Unani
Blackberry (Rubus fruticosus), of the Rosaceae family. Scrambling thorny shrub of biennial arching canes; native range: Europe, temperate Asia and North Africa; naturalised across the temperate world. Globally recognized as toot ardi (توت أرضي) in Arabic, and bramble, brambleberry, blackberry leaf in English. The part used is leaf, root-bark and ripe fruit. Tannic, faintly bitter leaves that pucker the mouth; sweet-tart black aggregate berries staining deep purple.
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.
BLACKBERRY
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Blackberry
- Scientific name
- Rubus fruticosus L. agg.
- Family
- Rosaceae
Form
- Part used
- leaf, root-bark and ripe fruit
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- Western
- astringent · sour
- Unani
- astringent (qabiz)
Temperature
Western: cool (drying)
Unani: cold & dry (2nd degree)
convergence: both {witness_count} witnesses reckon it cooling and drying — a temperate astringent
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- Western
- bowels · intestines · mucous membranes · skin
- Unani
- intestines · stomach
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- Western
- astringent, tonic, antidiarrhoeal and styptic; a leaf-and-root decoction to bind a loose bowel and a gargle for sore throat and spongy gums
- Unani
- qabiz (astringent) and habis (styptic); the leaf and unripe fruit to check diarrhoea and bleeding, the ripe fruit mildly laxative and cooling
Cautions
- Contraindications
- the high tannin can aggravate constipation if taken to excess
- Toxicity
- essentially non-toxic in food and tea doses
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