Withania
Folk names: Ashwagandha , Ajagandha, Indian Ginseng, Kanaje, Samm Al Ferakh
| Family | Solanaceae |
|---|---|
| Genus | Withania |
| Species | somnifera |
| Part(s) used | Roots, leaf and berry . |
Aphrodisiac, astringent, nervine, rejuvenative, sedative, tonic (what these mean)
Uses
The indications as stated in the Yoga of Herbs ( Dr. Vasant Lad and Dr. David Frawley ) are :
Constituents
alkaloids, withanine being the main constituent. The other alkaloids are somniferine, somnine, somniferinine, withananine, pseudo-withanine, tropine, pseudo-tropine, 3-a-gloyloxytropane, choline, cuscohygrine, isopelletierine, anaferine and anahydrine. Two acyl steryl glucoside viz. Sitoindoside VII and sitoindoside VIII have been isolated from root. The leaves contain steroidal lactones, which are commonly called withanolides. The withanolides have C28 steroidal nucleus with C9 side chain, having six membered lactone ring.( reference Wikipedia )