Pippali, Prishniparni, Pushkaramoola,Punarnava
Detailed Dravyas
For BAMS students
Dr. Remya Krishnan

Pippali
• Piper longum
• Piperaceae
• Kana, Krishna,Kola, Chapala, Tikshna Tandula, Magadhi,
Vaidehi, ushna
• Charaka: Deepaniya, Kanthya , Asthapanopaga,
Shirovirechana,Seeta prashamana, Soola prashamana
• Susrutha: Pippalyadi, Oordhwabhagahara, Thryushna,
Amalakyadi, Shirovirechana
• Vagbhata : Pippalyadi
• Agrya : Pleehamaye pippali

Varieties &Morphology
• Pippali and Gaja Pippali ( Susruta and Vagbhata)
Raja nighantu-Pippali, Gaja pippali, Simhali Pippali,
Vana Pippali
An aromatic slender climberwith creeping jointed
stems attached to other plants
Leaves are subacute, entire , glabrous,cordate at the
base
Flowers in pendulate spikes , straight, male larger and
slender,
Yellowish orange fruit sunk in fleshy spikes

Chemical constituents
• Useful part – Fruit, root
• Chemical constituents – essential oil, mono
and sesquiterpenes , caryuophyllene,
piperene,piplartine,piperlongumine,piperlong
uminine , pipercide, betasitosterol

Self work
• Notes on RP, DK, BK and RK
• Write the different Kalpanas based on reference
• Write why Pippali should not be used for long ( Charaka
Vimana – 1 )
• The difference in dynamics of Ardra and shushka pippali
• Dosage powder – 0.5- 1 gm
• Yogas – Pippalyadi ghrita, Pippalyasava,Vyoshadi vati etc

Pippalimoola
• Root of Pippali
• Granthikam, Ooshanam, Kana moola
Under Dipaniya and Sula prashamana groups
, Pippali and Pippalimoola together are
mentioned
• Constituents : essential oil,
Piperene,cepharadiones etc
“ Pippaleemoolam deepaneeya pachaneeya
anaha prashamananam”

“ Katooshnam pippaleemoolam shleshma sanghata
nashanam
Vatocchetthi haram hanthi krimi vahnideeptikrit”( Dha.
Ni)
Dosage
Powder -0.5-1 gm
Yoga – Panchakola kashaya
Rasa – Katu
Guna- Laghu, rooksha
Veerya- Ushna
Vipaka – Katu
Self work : Write BK, DK and RK based on reference

Prishniparni
• Desmodium gangeticum
• Pappilonaceae
• Prithakparni
• Charaka – Angamardda prashamana , Sotha
hara, balya,snehopaga, madhura skandha
• Susruta- Vidareegandhadi, Laghu
panchamoola
• Vagbhata- Vidaryadi, Durvadi gana

Morphology
• An erect diffusely branched undershrub, 90-120
cms in height with a short woody stem and
numerous prostrate branches provided with soft
grey hairs
• Unifoliate leaves, ovate to ovate lanceolate
membraneous and mottled with grey patches
• White flowers purple or lilac in elongate lax ,
terminal or axillary racemes
• Fruits moniliform , 6-8 jointed glabrescent pods

Chemical constituents
• Useful part : Root
• Chemical constituents- NN Dimethyl
Tryptamine, Hypaphorine, Hordenine,
Caudicine, Gangetin 3H

Self work
• Notes on RP, DK, BK and RK
• Kwatha dosage – 50-100 ml
• Yogas – Vaanari Gutika

Punarnava
• Boerhavia diffusa
• Nyctaginaceae
• Kathillaka , Varshabhu , Sothaghni
• Charaka – Vayasthapana ,
Kasahara,Anuvasanopaga, swedopaga

Varieties
• Kayyadeva – Shwetha Kantakari, Neela
Kantakari
• Raja nighantu – Eight varieties :Sarpatanu,
Kasaghni,Lakshmana, Bhantaki,Sveta Brihati,
Vrinthaki, Brihati, Kantakari

Varities & Morphology
• Rakta and Shweta Punarnava
• Shvetha Punarnava is Trianthema
portulacastrum.
• In Raja nighantu, there is another variety Nila
Punarnava

Morphology
• A perennial creeping herb with woody stout
root and diffuse branches.
• Opposite leaves, broadly obovate , unequally
paired .
• Solitary flowers ,white or pinkish, tubular calyx
• Fruits are capsules containing one seed
• Reniform dull black seeds

Chemical constituents
• Useful part – Whole plant
• Chemical constituents- Hentriacontane , Beta
sitosterol, Oxalic acid , Punarnavoside,
Punarnavine-1 , Punarnavine 2

• Dosage – Fresh juice – 5-10 ml
• Yogas – Kantakari ghrita , Vasakantakari
Avaleha, Vyaghri Hareethaki , Vyaghritaila .

Pushkaramoola
• Inula racemosa
• Asteraceae
• Paushkaram , Pushkaram
Adulterant : Coffea travancorensis root
Charaka – Shwasa hara, hikka nigrahana
Susrutha – Phala varga
Vagbhata – Hidhma nigrahana , Shwasa shamaka
Agrya- Pushkaramoolam Hikka shwasa parshwa
soola haraanaam

Morphology
• A stout herb upto 1.5 mtrs in height with rough
grooved stem
• Leaves – Simple , alternate , radical or cauline , crenate,
leathery, rough above, densely hairy beneath , yellow
flowers, many in heads , outer bracts broad with
triangular tips , recurved, inner bracts linear , sharp ,
pointed
• Fruits Slender achenes with red pappus
• Fresh root is brown externally and white internally

Chemical constituents
• Useful part – Root
• Chemical constituents – Inuline,
Alantolactone,Beta sitosterol,
Isoalantolactone and its glucosides

Self study
• Write RP, DK, RK, BK
• Dosage powder –1-3 gms
• Pushkara moolasava, Pushkaradi choorna,
Brihat yogaraja