TINOSPORA CORDIFOLIA.
Sans. Guḍuchi. Amritá.
Vern. Gulancha, Beng. Gurach, Hind.
The stem, leaves, roots and watery extract of this plant are all used in Hindu Medicine. The entire plant is regarded as a valuable alterative and tonic. It is used in general debility, fever, jaundice, skin diseases, rheumatism, urinary diseases, irritability of stomach, etc.
The fresh juice of the plant is taken with milk as a general tonic. In fevers it is used in a great variety of forms. Thus a cold infusion of gulancha is given with honey in bilious fever. A decoction of gulancha or its fresh juice is given with the addition of long pepper and honey in chronic fever with cough. A compound decoction is thus prepared. Take of gulancha, Hedyotis biflora (parparta), Cyperus rotundus (mustaka), chiretta and ginger, each one drachm, water, half a seer. Boil down to one-fourth. It is said to be useful in fevers caused by deranged air and bile. Practically it is found very useful in chronic fevers, which have resisted other antiperiodics, and which are apt to recur after apparent recovery. In chronic fever with loss of appetite, the following confection is recommended by many writers.
Only the first two paragraphs are transcribed; the article continues with recipes. The Sanskrit names in Devanagari and the Sanskrit verses in the footnotes are not transcribed, nor the superscript note numbers. Words hyphenated across a line break are joined.