Witnessed by: TCM · Ayurveda · Unani
Winged prickly ash (Zanthoxylum armatum), of the Rutaceae family. Spiny aromatic shrub or small tree with winged leaf-rachis and pinnate leaflets; native range: the Himalayas and hill tracts of India, Nepal and China. Globally recognized as tumburu / tejovati in Sanskrit, timur / tejbal in Hindi, zhu ye jiao (竹叶花椒) in Chinese, faghirah in Arabic, and toothache tree, Nepal pepper, winged prickly ash in English. The part used is fruit (pericarp) and seed chiefly; also bark and thorny twig. Reddish-brown warty berries splitting to shining black seed; intensely aromatic, pungent and lemony, leaving a characteristic tingling numbness on the tongue.
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.
WINGED PRICKLY ASH
IDENTITY
Name
- Common
- Winged prickly ash
- Scientific name
- Zanthoxylum armatum DC.
- Family
- Rutaceae
Form
- Part used
- fruit (pericarp) and seed chiefly; also bark and thorny twig
PROPERTIES
Nature
Taste
how the plant declares itself on the tongue
- TCM
- pungent
- Ayurveda
- dominant: pungent (katu) · secondary: bitter (tikta)
- Unani
- pungent · aromatic
Temperature
TCM: hot (slightly toxic)
Ayurveda: heating (ushna)
Unani: hot & dry (3rd degree)
convergence: all {witness_count} witnesses reckon the fruit fiercely hot — a warming carminative that scatters cold
Affinity
where in the body it travels
Organs / channels
- TCM
- Spleen · Stomach · Kidney
- Unani
- stomach · intestines · nerves
PRACTICE
Virtue
Actions
- TCM
- warms the middle and disperses cold, relieves pain, kills parasites, and stops itching
- Ayurveda
- dipana-pachana (digestive stimulant), vata-kapha-hara, krimighna (anthelmintic), shulaghna (relieves colic), and a dantya (dental) remedy
- Unani
- kasir-e-riyah (carminative), muharrik (stimulant), musakkin-e-alam (analgesic), and dafi-e-taffun (antiseptic); a chief toothache and colic drug
Cautions
- Contraindications
- high pitta and heat states, hyperacidity and bleeding; medicinal doses in pregnancy
- Toxicity
- the fruit is slightly toxic in excess, causing a numbing acridity; the seed is more irritant and used sparingly
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