Sans. A'rdraka, Sringavera.
Vern. A'dá, Beng. A'drak, Hind.
Ginger is described as acrid, heating, carminative and useful in dyspepsia, affections of the throat, head and chest, piles, rheumatism, urticaria, dropsy, etc. It is much used as a carminative adjunct along with black pepper and long pepper under the name of trikaṭu or the three acrids. The dried root is called Nágara, Sunṭi and Mahaushadha in Sanskrit. In addition to possessing the properties of ginger it is said to be laxative.
Ginger with salt taken before meals, is highly praised as a carminative. It is said to purify the tongue and throat, increase the appetite and produce an agreeable sensation. Ginger forms the active ingredient of several medicines for dyspepsia and hæmorrhoids.
Samasarkara churna. Take of cardamoms one part, cinnamon two parts, flowers of Mesua ferrea (nágakesara) three parts, black pepper four parts, long pepper five parts, dried ginger six parts, sugar in quantity equal to all the other ingredients; powder and mix. Dose, about a drachm in dyspepsia, loss of appetite and piles.
Saubhágya sunṭi. Take of clarified butter, sixteen tolás, milk four seers, sugar six seers and a quarter, dry ginger one seer ; boil them together so as to make an electuary. Then add coriander twenty-four tolás, fennel seeds forty tolás, báberang seeds, cumin seeds, nigella seeds, long pepper, black pepper, ginger, tubers of Cyperus rotundus, leaves called tejapatra, flowers of Mesua ferrea (nágakesara), cinnamon and cardamoms each eight tolás in fine powder, and stir with a ladle till cold. This confection is much used as a carminative tonic in dyspepsia and in disorders of the alimentary canal in females after confinement.
Sunṭi ghrita. This is a preparation of ginger made with a decoction and paste of the root, clarified butter and kánjika in the usual proportions. It is said to be useful in rheumatism.
A'rdraka khanḍa. This is a confection made with ginger, clarified butter, milk and sugar with the addition of a number of aromatics in small quantities. It is used in urticaria.
In cephalalgia and other affections of the head, ginger juice mixed with milk is used as a snuff. The fresh juice of ginger taken with honey relieves catarrh, cough and loss of appetite.
Saindhavádya taila. Take of dry ginger forty tolás, rock-salt, long pepper root and plumbago root, sixteen tolás each, marking nuts twenty in number, fermented rice water sixteen seers, sesamum oil four seers, boil them together and prepare an oil in the usual way. This oil is rubbed externally in sciatica and other forms of rheumatism.
The Sanskrit verses in the footnotes are not transcribed, and the superscript footnote numbers that point to them are left out. The Devanagari forms of the Sanskrit names beside the headword are not reproduced.