tuvaraka :

Tuvaraka consists of the dried seeds of Hydnocarpus pentandra (Buch.-Ham.) Oken Syn. H. laurifolia (Dennst.) Sleummer., H. wightiana Blume (Fam. Flacourtiaceae), a deciduous evergreen tree upto 15 m or more, endemic to tropical forests of Western Ghats, upto 600 m.

Taxonomical Classification

Kingdom: Plantae - Plants
Subkingdom: Streptophyta
Family: Flacourtiaceae
Genus: Hydnocarpus
Species: Laurifolia

VERNACULAR NAMES

Sanskrit: Tuvaraka, Turveraka, Kushtavairi , katu kapittha, kushta vairi, alasakaapaha
English: Jangli almond, Marothi tree, chaulmugra ,Soorty oil tree,
Hindi: Chalmogra, Chalmoogra, Jangali Badam
Urdu: Chaalmagraa
Telugu: Adavi Badam , Nirudu, Niridi
Bengali: Choulmogara
Marathi: Kadu Kaveet , Kadukavatha
Tamil: Maravattai ,Nirati Muthu
Malayalam: Kodi, Vrikshamroti, Marotti
Kannada: Garuda phala,Suranti, surti, toratti

Mentions / Gana

Adhobhagahara

Synonyms

Synonyms in Ayurveda: tuvaraka, tuvarak, katukapittha, kunthavairy

Katukapittha – Has pungent testing fruit that looks similar to Kapittha fruit.

 Kushta vairi – Enemy of skin disease.

 Alaskaapaha – Used in indigestion.

Rasa: Kashaya Madhura Tikta
Guna: Snigdha Teeskhsna
Veerya: Ushna
Vipaka: Katu
Karma: Kaphahara Vatahara

Tuvaraka [Hydnocarpus laurifolia (dennst.) Sleumer] is tree is used in ayurvedic medicine in India for a long time.

This is a member of Flacourtiaceae family.

It is commonly known as Kushthvairi in Sanskrit and Chalmogra in Hindi.

It is a tall tree grow upto 16 m more in height found in western Ghat in Maharashtra to Kerala.

The great Acharya Susruta has indicated it “KUSHTAMEHAPAHAM” means this is the best drug of Kushta and Premaha.

Its pain relieving quality, it is used in the treating neuropathy, rheumatoid arthritis and gout.

Susruta and Vagbhata have classified this herb as UBHYATOBHAGHARA – being useful both in Vaman and Virechana treatment, capable of expelling Doshas from both oral and anal routes.

Phytochemistry:

Epegenin, hydnocarpin, isohydnocarpine methoxyhydnocarpin and fixed oils.

Parts used for medicinal purpose

Fruit, Seed, ,

Dosage:

Powder 1-3 gm in divided doses per day.

Seed oil – 3-30 drops, based on doctor’s advice, usually

administered along with ghee or butter

Morphology:

Tuvaraka is an evergreen deciduos tree with can grow upto 16m or more in height.

Bark is rough, brown and wood whitish but generally becomes brownish-grey due to fungal sapstain and turns streaked.

Leaves are oblong, ovate or elliptic, somewhat serrate and 10-16 cm long.

Flowers of this herb are small, solitary fascicles and greenish white.

Fruits are globose, mammilate, tomentose and 5.1-10.2 cm diameter.

It bears the fruits between the months of august and September

seeds are striate, sub avoid, obtusely angular and 2.0-2.5 cm long.

Flowering occurs from january to April.

Seeds obtusely angular, elongate - obovate, dark brown, 8 to15 mm in width and 12 to 28 mm in length; testa longitudinally ridged and stony; cotyledons two, thin, papery; endosperm, abundant and oily; odour, indistinct; taste, acidic

Histology:

TS through micropylar region of the seed shows seed coat, endosperm and embryo; the seed coat has outer

testa made up of three types of cells: (i) an outer parenchymatous epidermis with vascular supply, with a few

sclereids present around xylem; ii) a middle sclerotic tissue of cells with four distinct zones , a few outer layers

of isodiametric sclerotic cells upto 30 µ diameter, with thick walls and simple pits, followed by radially elongated

thick walled cell; a middle uniseriate, ribbon shaped thick walled sclereids elongated up to 900 µ; a few layers of

tangentially elongated sclereids; (iii) an inner multiseriate epidermal layer with thin walled isodiametric,compactly

arranged cells; tegmen is undifferentiated and is almost crushed by the endosperm; endosperm consists of

compactly arranged isodiametric thinwalled parenchymatous cells, filled with oil globules and abundant rosettes

of calcium oxalate prisms of 15 to 20 µ; cotyledons two, possess single layer of epidermal cells with brick shaped

cells; mesophyll undifferentiated.

Geographical distribution:

The plants are found in the maintains of western ghats from Maharashtra to Kerala and is also found in the hilly regions of Assam and Tripura. It is also cultivated in Uganda, Nigeria, Srilanka and few other South East Asian countries.

General Use:

Styptic, wound healer, Musculoskeletal disorder,abcess, boils, snake bite, sudation therapy, herpes, impure breast milk, fumigation in wounds, wounded patient ward, epilepsy.

Therapeutic Uses:

Anaha (Distension of abdomen due to obstruction to passage of urine and stools}

Arśa (Piles),

Gridhrasi (Sciatica),

Gandamala (Cervical lymphadenitis),

Gulma (Abdominal lump),

Jvara (Fever), Kandu (Itching),

Kaphavataja roga (Disorders due to Kapha & Vata dosa) ,

Krimi (Helminthiasis),

Kustha (Leprosy / diseases of skin),

S¹otha (Oedema),

Prameha (Metabolic disorder),

Raktavikara (Disorders of blood),

Tvak roga (Skin diseases),

Udara , (Urticaria),

Udavarta (A condition like partial intestinal obstraction),

Vrana (Ulcer)

Pharmacological:

1. Tuvaraka taila (Tuvaraka oil) 2. Eladi tailam – used in hair treatment for skin disease like allergic dermatitis ring worm infection, urticaria 3. Jatamayadi choornam – helps to relieve burning sensation, pain and edema when applied externally. 4. Nisosiradi Thailam – Heels wound quickly.