Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Sandpaper tree Did you know that Sandpaper tree's leaves with silica content are widely used as a source of sandpaper to smooth wood and calabashes, and to impart the last fine-grade polish to ivory apart from use in folk medicine?  The Sandpaper tree known by the scientific names Ficus exasperate and Ficus asperifolia is widely known as forest sandpaper fig, white fig, or sandpaper leaf or as Siamese rough bush. It is a deciduous and dipciuos species of plant, densely branched, in the Mulberry family Moraceae, native to Southern India (moslty on the Western Ghats and Eastern Ghats); Sri Lanka; Southeast Asia; tropical Africa from Senegal to Ethiopia to Angola; and in the Arabian countries such as Yemen. The tree's highly textured leaf surface gives it the name as the "sandpaper tree".  Sandpaper tree is a small to medium sized tree in Banyan group of figs. growing to 18 to 20 m metres. It is a middle-sized tree, semi ever green; bark pale...

Panjiri  Did you know that Panjiri, a sweet dish of Punjab origin, considered a powerhouse of nutrition, is one the 'chappan bhog' offered to Lord Krishna on this Krishnjanmashtami day?  Panjiri, one of the quintessential delights of Krishna Janmashtami bhog, is an offering to Lord Krishna, the eighth avatar of Lord Vishnu, on the occasion of his birth anniversary. According to Hindu legends, in the Lunar calendar, Lord Krishna was born in Shravana month on midnight of the eighth day of Krishna Paksha. Hindus celebrate the birth of Lord Krishna with great fervour by observing fasts and performing puja rituals. A variety of naivedyam or prasad is prepared on Krishna Janmashtami to be offered to the lord. Panjiri, however, is considered the most popular sweet among the "Chappan bhog" (56 sweet and savoury dishes) offered to the lord.  Panjiri, a staple sweet dish from the Punjab region, is treated as a nutritional supplement. It is made from wh...

Sri Venugopalaswamy Temple, Malleshwara, Bengaluru  Did you know that Sri Venugopalaswamy Temple in Malleshwara in Bengaluru, though built in 1902, is reckoned ancient as it is deified with the Moola Vigraha of Lord Krishna playing the flute which had been earlier consecrated in or before 997 AD at Tirukadaluru in Tamilnadu?  Sri Venugopalaswamy Temple, popularly known as "Krishnar Kovil", is located in the predominantly Srivaishnava suburb of Malleshwaram, also spelled Malleshwara (ಮಲ್ಲೇಶ್ವರ), which developed as a suburb in 1892 in Bengaluru after a plague epidemic. The temple structure as such was the result of the efforts of prominent residents of Malleshwara, who in 1902 AD sought the help of then queen, Maharani Kempa Nanjammani Vani Vilasa Sannidhana of Mysore Kingdom; she was the queen regent following the untimely death of Chamaraja Wodeyar X, as their son Krishnaraja Wodeyar was a minor until 1902 . The queen readily agreed to not only partly fund (seed m...

Kalleshvara Temple, Ambali Did you know that the Kalleshvara Temple in Ambali in Bellary district of Karnataka, a black stone Chalukyan temple of 11thc century is dedicated to Kalleshwara, a form of Lord Shiva.? The Kalleshvara Temple in Ambali is in the Bellary district of Karnataka. An inscritpion the sabamnadapa (assembly hall) of the temple, dated 1063 AD ascribes the temple to the 50 years reign of the Western Chalukya Empire's King Vikramaditya VI (also called Tribhuvana Malla). The temple, is an ancient Chalukyan temple dedicated to Kalleshwara, originally consisted of a single shrine , opening into a mantapa of crucifom plan in the architectural style of the trans-Tungabhadra branch of the Lakkundi school, related to Kuruvatti (Mallikarjuna temple) with some non-mainstream affinities. The temple is dedicated to Kalleshwara, a form of Shiva Linga or Lord Shiva, as related to a story narrated to the Skandapurana. The temple was built i...

Sessile Joyweed or Honagone Soppu Did you know that Sessile Joyweed or Honagone Soppu, a prized greens, in pink and maroon colours, is a non-toxic plant used as vegetable and in salads. and also as a herbal medicine? Sessile Joyweed or Honagone Soppu in Kannada language, with botanical name Alternanthera sessilis in the family of Amaranthaceae, which is one of 16 tropical and subtropical species, is an aquatic plant, a common annual but greatly prized in India as greens. It is a non-toxic plant used as vegetable and in salads and as a medicinal herb in folk and Ayurvedic medicine.  The plant which grows throughout the warmer parts of India, preferably in wet places especially around tanks and ponds, is known in Indian languages as Honagone Soppu in Kannada, Ponnanganni Kerai in Tamil, Ponnaganti koora in Telugu, Koypa in Marathi, Matikaduri in Assamese, Peannaaṅaṇi in Malayalam, Sanchesak in Bengali, Gudari Saag in Hindi, and as Matsyaakshi Matsyag...