Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate) Herb Ayurvedic Overview

Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate)

Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate) is a medicinal tree domestic to temperature and tropical Indian region used in the Ayurvedic system of Medicine for a long time. The flower and bark are both used in Kanchanara as medicine because of their chemical composition. The drug has been reported being Krimighana, Kushtaghana, Grahi, Gandamalanashaka, Raktapittashamaka, and Vranaropaka. Kanchanara comprises the dried stem bark of Bauhinia variegata Blume. It is a medium tree occurring in sub-Himalayan and extending eastwards to Assam, Central, Eastern, and South India.

Kanchanara is one of the main ingredients of many critical Ayurvedic formulations described in classical textbooks such as Kanchanara Guggulu, Kanchan Gutika, GandamalaKundan Rasa, Chandanasava, Vidangarishta, etc. The bark of the herb is anthelmintic, tonic, and astringent; it can be used in managing many stomach disorders, cough conditions and preventing skin diseases

Scientific Classification of Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate):

  • Kingdom: Plantae
  • Class: Dicotyledone
  • Subclass: Polypetalae
  • Series: Calyciflorae
  • Order: Rosales
  • Family: Caesalpiniaceae
  • Genus: Bauhinia
  • Species: variegate

Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate) Synonyms:

  • Sanskrit: Kancanaraka
  • Assamese: Kancan, Kanchan
  • Bengali: Kanchana, RaktaKanchana
  • English: Mountain Ebony
  • Gujrati: Champakati, Kanchnar, Kachnar
  • Hindi: Kachanar, Kanchanar, Kachnar
  • Kannada: Keyumandar, Kanchavala
  • Kashmiri: Kalad
  • Malayalam: ChuvannaMandharam
  • Marathi: Kanchana, Raktakancana
  • Oriya: Kachana, Kaniara
  • Punjabi: Kanchnar
  • Tamil: Sigappumandarai, Sihappumantarai
  • Telugu: Deva Kanchanam

Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate) Description:

Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate)a) Macroscopic: Bark, dark brown, occasionally with silvery patches, rough, compact, shedding in woody strips and scales, the outer surface is present with minor transverse and longitudinal cracks, the internal surface is white, taste and astringent.

 b) Microscopic: Transverse section of the mature stem bark manifests a wide stratified cork; the outer cork is composed of thin-wailed, slightly compressed, yellow-brown cells, which are followed by several layers of brown-colored cells. Inner cork is composed of transversely extended orange-brown cells. Cork interrupted at certain places due to the development of rhytidoma, some secondary cortex consisting of 15 or more rows or transversely stretched to circular, thin-walled, parenchymatous cells.

Some secondary cortex cells accommodate orange-brown contents; it is a group of stone cells found scattered in this region occasionally arranged in 1-7 or more tangential rows, pericyclic fibers, thick-walled with narrow lumen, dispersed in secondary cortex in singles or groups, secondary phloem comprises of sieve tubes, companion cells, phloem parenchyma and fibers traversed by the funnel-shaped medullary rays.

Phloem fibers set out in radial rows all over the phloem region, prismatic and rhomboidal crystals or calcium. The oxalate is profusely found in phloem and secondary cortex regions. Very rarely found in cork cells, cluster crystals are also available in the secondary cortex and secondary phloem; crystal fibers are also found in secondary phloem.

Identity, Purity, and Strength of Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate):

  • Foreign matter                                Not more than 2 percent,                    Appendix                    2.2.2.
  • Total Ash                                         Not more than 11 percent,                  Appendix                    2.2.3.
  • Acid-insoluble ash                          Not more than 0.2 percent,                 Appendix                    2.2.4.
  • Alcohol-soluble extractive              Not less than 2 percent,                      Appendix                    2.2.6.
  • Water-soluble extractive                Not less than 6 percent,                      Appendix                     2.2.7.

Chemical Constituents of Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate):

Stem Bark Contents: Sugar, hentriacontane, octacosanol, sitosterol, lupeol, galactopyranoside and tannans.
Flowers Contents: Octacosanal, B-stiosteral, flavonoid, quercitroside, rutoside, ascorbic, keto acid, amino acid and rutin.
Seeds & Bark Contents: Myrcetol glycoside, kaemferol glycoside, carbohydrates, proteins, amino acid, alkaloids, aspartic acid, and glutamic acid.

Ayurvedic Properties and Action of Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate):

  • Rasa: Kasaya
  • Guna: Laghu, Ruksa
  • Virya:Sita
  • Vipaka:Katu
  • Karma: Dipana, Grahi, Tridosahara, Gandavrddhihara

Ayurvedic Formulation made by Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate):

Kanchanara is used in Ayurvedic formulations of KanchanaraGuggulu, Kanchan Gutika, Kanchanara VarunaKwatha, Kanchanara Drava,Gulkanda Kanchanara, KanchanaradiKwatha, VidangaArishta, ChitrakadiTaila, ChandanaAsava, UshiraAsava, MutraSangrahaniyaKwath and GandamalaKundana Rasa.

Therapeutic Uses of Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate):

The main therapeutic uses of Kanchanara are Apaci, Gandamala, Krmiroga, Vrana, Gudabhramsa, Masurika, Kasa, Kushta and Jwara.

Dose of Kanchanara (Bauhinia variegate):

20-30 g of the drug for decoction.

Reference:

Ayurvedic Pharmacopeia of India.

 

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