Introduction
Tulsi is found everywhere. People plant it around houses, gardens and temples but it grows on its own in the forests. There are many varieties of Tulsi but from the point of view of quality and religion, black Tulsi is the most important and best. Generally, the leaves of Tulsi are green and black. Tulsi plant is usually 1 to 4 feet tall. Its leaves are 1 to 2 inches long, oval, rectangular, glandular and have strong fragrance. It has round, purple or red colored buds (flowers). Tulsi plants are usually planted in March-June and in September-October the plants are filled with fragrant buds. Its flowers come in winter which later ripen in the form of seeds. Tulsi plant has strong electrical power which keeps flowing around it for up to 200 yards. The house which has a green Tulsi plant in its house never experiences thunderbolt (lightning falling from the sky).
Tulsi has been given great importance in Hinduism. Tulsi is worshipped in all houses and that is why Tulsi is planted in every house. According to religious beliefs, mosquitoes, snakes, scorpions and harmful insects etc. do not grow in the house where Tulsi plants are present.
Tulsi leaves should be plucked only as much as required with folded hands or by keeping respect and reverence for Tulsi in mind. While plucking its leaves, keep in mind that plucking the leaves around the bud makes the plant grow faster. Therefore, only the leaves near the bud should be plucked. Tulsi leaves should not be plucked on Purnima, Amavasya, Sankrantikaal, Kartik, Dwadashi, Sunday, in the evening, at night and around 12 o'clock in the day. Tulsi plant should not be touched without bathing after oil massage, during menstruation in women or at the time of any other impurity because due to this the plant dries up quickly. If holes start appearing in the leaves, then sprinkling the ashes of the dung cakes on them gives good results.
Properties
According to Ayurveda: According to Ayurveda, Tulsi is light, hot, sharp, bitter, dry and increases digestive power.
Tulsi kills insects, removes bad odour, removes phlegm and destroys gas. It removes rib pain, is beneficial for the heart, cures dysuria (difficulty in passing urine), destroys the defects of poison and eliminates skin diseases. It removes hiccups, cough, asthma, headache, epilepsy, stomach worms, poison disorder, anorexia (lack of desire to eat food), blood disorders, back pain, bad odour from mouth and breath and intermittent fever etc. It increases semen, cures vomiting, removes old constipation, heals wounds, digests swelling, joint pain, burning sensation in urine, pain in urination, leprosy and weakness etc. It destroys bacteria and prevents pregnancy.
According to Unani doctors: According to Unani doctors, Tulsi is a strength enhancer, heart stimulant, digests swelling and cures headache. Smelling Tulsi leaves in case of unconsciousness removes unconsciousness. Chewing its leaves removes bad breath. Consumption of Tulsi cures dry cough and thickens semen. Its seeds stop mucus and blood in diarrhea.
According to scientists: Chemical analysis of Tulsi by scientists reveals that its seeds contain a green and yellow colored stable oil in the amount of 17.8 percent. Apart from this, the stable oil extracted from the seeds also contains some sitosterol, stearic, linoleic, palmitic, linolenic and oleic fatty acids. It also contains glycosides, tannins, sevanine and alkaloids.
Volatile oil of yellow and green colour with clove like smell is found in Tulsi leaves and buds in the amount of 0.1 to 0.3 percent. It contains eugenol 71 percent, eugenol methyl ether 20 percent and carvacrol 3 percent. Its leaves also contain small amount of carotene and vitamin C.
Harmful effects
According to Charak Samhita, milk should not be used with Tulsi as there is a possibility of leprosy. Consuming Tulsi leaves with betel leaf in the month of Kartik can cause physical pain. Consuming Tulsi in excess quantity is harmful for the brain.
Treatment of various diseases
1. Fever and cold:
65 leaves of basil and 8 black peppers should be boiled well in 250 ml water and then filtered. Then add milk and sugar to it and drink it like tea. This cures fever and soothes cold.
50 grams of basil leaves dried in the shade, violet, fennel, brahmi booti, red sandalwood each 30 grams, cardamom and cinnamon 10-10 grams. Grind all these and mix them in water to make tea and then drink it by adding milk and sugar to it. Its consumption cures common fever, cold and sneezing etc.
Eating 15 basil leaves and 4 black peppers cures cold and fever.
2. Pitta fever:
If the patient suffering from pitta fever is feeling very nervous, then he should be given a sherbet of basil leaves. This cures pitta fever.
3. Fever:
Boil 25 basil leaves, 15 black pepper, 10 grams ginger and 10 cinnamon sticks in 250 ml water and drink it 3-4 times a day to cure fever.
Boil 20 basil leaves, 20 black pepper, 9 grams ginger and 2 grams cinnamon sticks in 50 ml water and make tea. Add 25 grams sugar candy or sugar to it and give it to the patient suffering from fever 2-3 times a day. This cures normal fever.
By drinking decoction of basil leaves, excessive sweating, fever subsides.
Boil 8-10 basil leaves, half a teaspoon clove, half a teaspoon dry ginger powder and 1 teaspoon black pepper powder in 1 glass of water. When half the water is left, filter it, add a little sugar and drink 3-3 teaspoons 3-4 times a day to cure fever.
Boil 10 basil leaves, 3 grams dry ginger, 5 cloves, 21 black peppers and sugar as per taste. When half the water is left, filter it and give it to the patient 3-4 times. This gives quick relief from fever.
4. Smallpox (Badi Mata):
Grind carom seeds with basil leaves and consume it daily to calm smallpox fever.
Make powder by mixing new neem leaves and basil leaves and give this powder to the patient in the morning by mixing honey or sugar candy. This reduces smallpox rashes and calms the burning sensation.
It is beneficial to grind basil seeds and washed carom seeds and give it to the patient suffering from smallpox fever.
Giving the patient half a teaspoon of basil leaves juice in the morning is beneficial in smallpox disease.
5. Pneumonia (fever due to cold):
Pneumonia is cured by grinding 20 basil leaves and 5 black peppers and mixing them in water and drinking it.
20 basil leaves, 5 black peppers, 3 cloves, 2 pinches of turmeric and a piece of ginger. Boil all these in equal quantity in a cup of water and when half a cup of water is left, filter it and give it to the patient suffering from pneumonia fever. Consuming it twice a day for about 10 days cures pneumonia.
Consuming the powder of basil leaves, dry ginger, black pepper and peepal gives relief in pneumonia.
6. Periodic fever:
Grinding 10 basil leaves and half to 1 gram of mace and mixing it with honey and making the patient lick it gives relief in periodic fever.
Make a decoction by taking equal quantity of black basil, forest basil and mint and give this decoction to the patient suffering from typhoid 3 times a day for 3 to 7 days. This reduces the fever and provides relief from the disease.
7. Typhoid fever:
Mixing black pepper powder in basil leaves juice and consuming it provides relief in typhoid.
8. Sheetla (Masurika) fever:
By grinding basil leaves juice and carom seeds and applying it on the body, the suppressed smallpox (mata) comes out.
9. Sannipaat fever:
Grind 25 grams of fresh basil leaves and 1 gram of black pepper with water, make small pills and dry them in the shade. Consuming 1 pill each with water in the morning and evening provides relief in typhoid fever.
10. Hiccups:
Hiccups can be cured by mixing 2 teaspoons of basil leaves juice and 1 teaspoon of honey 3 times a day.
11. Earache:
Heat the basil leaves juice slightly, add a little camphor and put 2-3 drops in the ear to get rid of earache.
If there is pus flowing from the ear or earache, heat the basil leaves juice and put it in the ear continuously for a few days. This cures earache and stops the flow of pus.
12. Ear swelling and lump:
Mix basil leaves and fresh soft castor leaves in equal quantity and grind them. Then add a little salt to it and apply it behind the ear. This cures ear swelling and cures lumps. It is also used in the disease called conjunctivitis.
13. Method of making basil oil:
Take the whole basil plant along with its roots. Then wash it and clean the dirt etc. Then grind it and mix half a kilo of water and half a kilo of sesame oil and cook on low flame. When the water evaporates and oil remains, rub it, filter it and keep it safe. This is Tulsi oil.
14. Deafness (low hearing):
Heating the juice of Tulsi leaves and pouring it in the ear daily cures deafness.
15. Kanfeda:
Grind Tulsi leaves, new castor leaves and a little salt together and apply it. Applying this paste cures ear boils.
16. Ringworm:
Mixing basil leaves juice and lemon juice in equal quantity and applying it on ringworm 2 to 3 times a day cures ringworm. Its use cures skin diseases like itching, acne, black spots, freckles etc.
A patient suffering from ringworm should drink basil leaves juice in the amount of 12 ml daily.
Applying basil leaves juice on ringworm cures ringworm.
Mix 100 basil leaves and a quarter teaspoon of salt and grind them, squeeze half a lemon in it and apply it on ringworm. This cures ringworm and itching.
Grinding 100 basil leaves and 5 cloves of garlic together and applying it on ringworm cures ringworm.
Cleaning the ringworm and grinding basil leaves and applying the paste cures ringworm in 15 days.
17. Vomiting:
Mixing basil leaves juice and honey in equal quantity and drinking it stops vomiting.
Vomiting stops by drinking basil leaves juice. If vomiting occurs due to worms in the stomach, then basil leaves juice should be given to the patient.
Dizziness and vomiting stops by licking the juice of basil leaves mixed with honey.
Vomiting stops by drinking basil juice, mint and fennel juice mixed together.
Grind 10 grams of basil leaves with 1 gram of cardamom, then add 10 grams of sugar to it and consume it. This cures vomiting caused by bile.
18. Toothache:
Toothache is cured by grinding basil leaves, black pepper and camphor and pressing it between the aching teeth.
Grind black pepper and basil leaves and make a tablet and keeping this tablet under the tooth eliminates toothache.
Mix basil leaves juice in water, warm it slightly and gargle. This cures toothache, bleeding from gums and other dental diseases.
Mix basil leaves juice, turmeric and rock salt in water and gargle with it. This cures all the disorders of mouth, teeth and throat.
19. Stye (pimples on eye lids):
If there are pimples on eye lids, rub cloves in basil leaf juice and apply. This cures pimples.
20. Increase in sperm count (increase in semen):
Eat 2 grams of basil seeds powder mixed with old jaggery and drink 1 cup of milk after that. Consuming it regularly in the morning and evening for a few months increases sex related semen. This cures problems of impotence and premature ejaculation.
In case of Dhatu Durbalta (weakness of semen), grind 60 grams of basil seeds and 75 grams of sugar candy together and make a powder. Consume this powder daily with cow's milk in the quantity of 3 grams. This removes the weakness of the semen.
21. Nightfall:
Drinking decoction of basil root in the quantity of 4-5 spoons regularly before sleeping at night for a few weeks relieves nocturnal emission.
22. Premature Ejaculation:
Soak basil root or seed in a quarter spoon of water at night and consume it in the morning. This removes premature ejaculation and strengthens the semen (thick).
