Advisory Services

Black Cumin

 

BOTANICAL NAME:

  • Nigella sativa

FAMILY:

  • Ranunulaceae

SYNONYM(S):

  • Nill

URDU NAME:

  • Kalonji

REGIONAL NAME:

  • Bengali: Kala Jira, Mugrele
  • Persian: Siyah danah, Shuniz
  • Hindi: Kalonji, Kala Jira
  • Pashto: Orawanza
  • Sanskrit: Kunchi, Knishana Jirka
  • Sindhi: Kalonji
  • Arabic: Kamune-Asvad

UNANI/TIBBI NAME:

  • Kali ziri, Gandna, kalonji

ENGLISH NAME:

  • Small Fennel, Black Cumin

HABITAT:

  • Cultivated in Punjab and NWFP

DESCRIPTION:

  • A herb of 30-60 cm
  • Leaves 2-3 pinnate, 1cm long
  • Flowers of pale blue colour on long peduncles, sepals ovate, acute and clawed.
  • Seeds 2mm long are black triangular
  • Kernel white in colour

PART USED:

  • Seeds

TASTE:

  • Slightly Bitter, Sharp Taste

TEMPERAMENT:

  • Hot 3°, dry 3°

PERIOD OF OCCURRENCE:

  • Seeds are sown in hilly areas in March and in the plains in October. It is ready for harvesting by the end of April.

PROCEDURE & TIME OF COLLECTION:

  • The plants are cut, sun dried, thrashed and fruits collected

CONSTITUENTS:

  • Essential oil
  • Glucoside
  • Melanthin
  • Melanthigenin
  • Fixed oil
  • Saponin
  • Nigellene
  • Palmatic acid
  • Mynistic
  • Stearic and oleic and linolenic acid

SUBSTITUTES:

  • Anisoon/Anisi (pimpinella anisum)

ACTIONS AND USES IN UNANI SYSTEM OF MEDICINE:

Pharmacological action:

  • Diuretic, diaphoretic
  • Antibilious
  • Stomachic
  • Stimulant
  • Carminative
  • Digestive
  • Emmenagogue
  • Abortifacient
  • Glactogogue

Therapeutic uses:

  • Remedy for worms
  • Increase menstrual flow and secretion of milk
  • In cough
  • Jaundice
  • Lungs complaints
  • Intermittent fever
  • Vomiting
  • Paralysis
  • Eye sores
  • Roasted bruised seeds tied in muslin cloth on inhalation are said to relieve headache and cold

DOSES:

  • 1-3 g

CORRECTIVES:

  • Kateera/tragacanth (sterculia urens)

IMPORTANT UNANI FORMULATIONS:

  • Hab hilteet
  • Malun kalkalanj
  • Jawanish shoneez
  • Zimad bars
  • Majun muhazzil
  • Qairuti arad krasna
  • Roghan kalan
  • Roghan shafa

ASTROLOGY:

  • Mars