Bangal Kins (Bael, Aegle Marmelos, Bel)
Bael is a sacred tree, as its flowers, leaves and flowers are used of worshipping Lord Shiva. Its wood is also used for sacrificial performances. In unripe form, its rind is very hard and green or greenish yellow but, when ripe its pulp becomes sweet and rind also becomes reddish yellow. Its tree is found all over India. Ripe bael fruit is laxative, delicious, aromatic and the unripe fruit is used as a useful ingredient for medicinal purposes.
Chemical Properties: Water-6l.5 gms, Food-64 gms, Protein 1.8%, Fat-0.3%, Carbohydrates 31.8%, Calcium 85 mg, Iron 0.6%, Calories 137, Mineral Salts-1.7%. In addition to it, it also contains Karotin-O.92% mg, Vitamin B-l-1.19, Niacan lmg and vitamin ‘C-8 mg (in 100 gms of bael). Bael (and its rind) is also rich in tannic acid, potassium and sodium compounds, lime, iron, phosphates, magnesium, silica, calcium carbonate. Mucilage pectin is found in its pulp, tannin, volatile oil, bitter element and ash (20%) and fructose (sugar content of fruit). When its leaves are distilled, they shell out green-yellowish coloured oil which has bitter taste and aromatic odour.
Curative and Medicinal Properties of Bangal Kins:
Dysentery and Diarrhoea: Its pulp of ripe fruit retards diarrhoea or else unripe pulp of bangal kin, if taken with whey will control loose motions and also give soothing effect to intestinal irritation and impaction or, still better, prepare a blend of ripe and unripe pulps by boiling them together in hot water. The resultant strained liquid will remove acidity and also control repetition of loose motions, whether of dysentery or diarrhoeal origin.
Jam of bangal kins is also frequently used to quell ravages of both the said disorders, including expulsion of flatus. A decoction of unripe fruit, mixed with sugar-candy, will also control dysentery.
Vomiting: Preparation of decoction of unripe fruit- will control vomiting. Vomiting, during pregnancy, can be suitably controlled by mixing pulp of ripe fruit with water, obtained after boiling rice, and adding some sugar-candy to it.
Effects and Prevention of Heat: Mash and strain pulp of ripe fruit and add water to it, to convert it into a palatable dilution. If a glassful is taken of this preparation, before moving out in the scorching heat of sun, it will not let the heat affect the body.
Acne, Freckles and Blemishes: Apply pulp of ripe fruit on the affected organs of body, and let it remain there for 15-20 minutes and thereafter wash off the application. It will remove freckles and blemishes. Apply juice of raw fruit on face to get rid of acne. This will also help in getting rid of freckles and blemishes. In addition, if juice or pulp of ripe fruit is eaten (say 250 gms or so) daily, it will give extra nourishment, glow, lustre and smoothness to skin. It will also restore general good health of the skin.
General Uses: To recapitulate, Bangal kins, taken in any form (milk of unripe fruit, pulp of ripe fruit as also or unripe fruit) is of immense medicinal and nutritive values, if eaten in moderate quantity or if taken in its juice form. Generally, it is taken ripe form. It is used quite often in high blood pressure; itching, eczema and ringworm, tonsillitis, to increase milk in breasts of mothers who have no or deficient milk in their breasts; intestinal worms, stranging while or before urinating; Filaria, enlargement and torpidity of liver and spleen, fever, dandruff, menstrual irregularities as also other disorders etc.
POMEGRANATE (ANAR, DADIM, PUNICA GRANATUM)
It is grown almost in every part of the country and its quantity, food content, weight, colour, juicy element depends on the soil on which its trees grow. It needs hardly any introduction, since it is widely grown and used all over our country due to its curative, medicinal and nutritive values. It is equally beneficial in health and disease. Best quality of pomegranates is grown in Kandhar, Kabul and some Arabian Countries.
‘Kandhari Anar’ is even now pick of all its varieties, as it is larger in size,very juicy red from within and without, has larger seeds. ‘EK Anar, Sau Beemar’ is an opt-repeated adage, followed closely by ‘Eat Pomegranate for it purges the system of envy and hatred.’ Both adages highly bespeak of physical and spiritual sides of this unique fruit as it not only rids the body of many disorders but also rids the body of two (personal) repugnant traits, envy and hatred. The fruit is orange-shaped but its skin is leathery which has red to brownish yellow colour.
Its taste is sweetish sour. Its fruit, rind, seeds, juice, roots have many medicinal values. Another variety is bedaana which is a reservoir of strength. It dispels bad effects of wind; controls, bile and phlegm, improves appetite, is digestive and carminative, adds to haemoglobin and purifies blood. It also removes flatulence and acidity.
Curative and Chemical Properties : It is rich in B and C Vitamins with plenty of Citric Acid. Its fresh juice is an excellent cooling beverage, is preventive of heat stroke and also cures fall-out effect of heat stroke, quenches thirst, useful in sickness and fever. Its juice is an invigorating tonic. The syrup prepared from fresh fruits, is an excellent remedy and also a tonic for digestive system. It is equally useful for the students and senile persons, who have weak memory and often fall prey to forgetfulness and memory impairment, as it fortifies memory, juice of its flowers is used in cases of nose-bleeding as a suiff (epestaxis).
To get further benefits, its juice should be mixed up with honey (5-10 ml in 250 ml of juice of pomegranate juice), to restore, sharpen and preserve memory. It is also used in various uterine disorders, including uterine ulcers. It also expels worms, provides relief in Typhoid, Bronchitis and sore throat. Being an appetiser par excellence, it not only induces natural appetite but also helps the system in digestion. In Ayurveda, origin and cause of diseases is attributed to malfunctioning of stomach. That is to say that, if the stomach is diseased and disordered, it can be responsible for many diseases. Pomegranate is a fruit that keeps the stomach and other organs of digestion in good humour, hence its use in multiple diseases.
Curative and medicinal uses of Pomegranate:
Indigestion: Add finely powdered/ground and roasted cumin seeds and jaggery to 20-25 ml fresh juice, with a pinch of salt, to get relief from indigestion, acidity, sour eructations, gas formations, rumbling in abdomen and loose motions too. Stomach ache can be relieved if its seeds are taken daily, sprinkled by black pepper and rock salt.
Tonic: Fresh juice of ripe pomegranates (say about 100-150ml), alone or mixed with fresh tomato juice will regulate bowels, tone up entire system, improve circulation of blood, increase RBCs, improve and nourish skin, purge out foreign bodies. It will also strengthen and regulate cardiac rhythm. If desired, a few drops of lemon juice may also be added to it. Those who have some allergy to use of its juice, should suck juice from its seeds.
Diarrhoea and Dysentery: Take about 50-70 ml of juice of pomegranate, add powder of two cloves to it and take it, after a gap of 6-8 hours. Alternatively, grind its dried rind and mix it with Triphala (Both in equal quantity) and take a teaspoonful with whey to seek total relief from both the maladies. If whey does not suit (agree), then the powder may be taken with juice of pomegranate.
Epistaxis (Nose-Bleeding): Pour 2-4 drops of its juice in each, nostril. Half cupful of juice, mixed with sugar-candy, will relieve instant problem and, if continued for sometime will provide an almost permanent immunity from nose-bleeding. Some say that even smelling fresh rind of the fruit can also give instant relief. Further, juice of fresh leaves and semi-ripe pomegranate, if mixed together,will relieve dysentery.
Fever: As mentioned earlier also, its fruit juice quencher-thirst and provides coolness to body and brings down fever, especially if caused by effects of summer-heat, since it is a great febrifuge. During course of fever, if the patient is fed only with juice of pomegranate, it will meet bulk of his food requirements.
Spleen Enlargement: Juice of dried pomegranate root with milk is very efficacious in enlargement of spleen. In addition, it will also remove general debility.
Typhoid Fever: Give diluted sherbat, prepared from ripe fruit, in typhoidal fever. It will also be beneficial in asthmatic fevers and gastric problems.
Worms: Grind rind of (dried) pomegranate and boil on slow fire. Use when cooled in 15-20 ml dose, thrice daily, or else grind finely rinds of orange and pomegranate (5 mg per dose), add some rock salt to it.
Blood pressure (High): Take 1/2 cup of fresh fruit juice twice daily.
Loss of memory: Fresh fruit juice, mixed with honey, is an excellent memory restorer and also rejuvenator.
Pomegranate is freely used in household preparations in the form of chutney, in preparing various spices and recipes. It adds extra taste to food articles. If one wishes to have his appetite improved, its juice should always be taken before lunch and dinner. Habitual drunkards will do well to take their spirituous liquors mixed with the fruit juice of pomegranate or else they can have it after finishing their drinks or even after lunch or dinner. The fruit juice will also help to subdue craving for alcohol, in addition to help in digestive process. Hence use of pomegranate will keep up general well-being of the body.