Millets: A review of its properties as per Ayurveda

Varieties of millets

Ayurveda describes many varieties of millets. Kordush, shyamak( barnyard millet), hastishyamak (big barn yard millet), nivar ( rice grown without cultivation), toyaparni, gavedhuk (small wheat), prashatika( redbeak), ambh shyamak( barn yard millet grown in water), lohitanu (red small grains), priyangu( fox tail millet), mukund (vkastrun), zinti, garmuti, varuk( charuk-shanbeej), varak (shyambeej-black grains), shibir (siddhak-), utkat, jurn( jondhale- jwari- sorghum), these millets are described by Charak.^[1] Sushruta describes, shantanu, uddalak, madhulika, nandimukhi, kuruvind,sar, todaparni and venuyav- bamboo rice as additional varieties of millets.^[2] Ashtang sangraha describes some extra milles named as, gadi, varunpadika, shilbika, shishir, antnirgandi, and venuparni.^[3]

Common properties of kudhanya- Accoding to Sushruta, all grains of kudhanya are hot in potency, astringent, sweet, dry, after effect is pungent, kapha pacifying, reduces urine, vata, pitta increasing, except few grains. Vagbhata describes its properties as cold, kaphapitta balancing and lekhna- helps to lose weight. Bhavprakash narrates its potency as semi-hot-anushn. It’s after digestion effect is pungent, as per bhavprakasha. It is very good to absorb bad water content from body. Kodrav, nivar, shyamak, shantanu these grains are sweet, astringent, cold, and pitta pacifying¹. Kaiydev nighantu describes it as bad for shukra and rakta-blood.

In spite of all these properties, while describing wholesome diet Sushrut enlist some millets, nivar, kodrav, uddalak, shyamak, and venuyava. Dalhane explains that as these grains are not increasing vata in large quantity, and not bad for our nutrition, it is wholesome diet.

While describing about good nourishment, charaka explains that, food which nourishes body and mind, satisfies our sense organs with its good appearance, smell, and color and also ignites digestive fire is wholesome food. Heavy diet leads to suppress digestive fire hence we can’t always recommend heavy diet as a regular diet. That is why millets are included in wholesome diet by Sushrut.

Millets are recommended,

When digestive fire is diminished.

Obstructive pathology

Kaphapitta vitiation

Diseases aroused from heavy, oily food consumption.

Diseases of accumulation of bad water content e.g. diabetes, obesity.

Anabolic diseases such as diabetes, itching, urticaria, anaemia, fever, all skin diseases, indigestion, urinary disorders, impotency, giddiness, anorexia, obesity, laziness, heaviness, obstructive pathology in ch^[4]nnels, sense organs, unconsciousness, excessive worries, and edema.

Millets listed in shasti shali

Millets listed in shashtic shali-rice which requires 60 days for cultivaton are of good quality, they are ripen inside corn, cultivated in summer-grishm season. kangu (fox tail millet), is listed in this. It is grown in summer, hence considered as wholesome diet for regular use. Crop cultivated in rainy season and harvested in sixty days are of less quality, than crops cultivated in summer season. Varak, uddalak, china,sharad, ujjwal, dardur, gandhan, kuruvind, are its name. Hayanak, yavak, chinak,uddalak, naishadh, itkat are also shsati rice grown in rainy season hence considered to increase kapha and meda in body.

Millets description

Priyangu- kangu-it is a panic seed, Panicum Italicum; foxtail millet; family-Gramineae Meaning of kangu is, to become black or turn dark and also to lose original color, luster, and reputation. It grows where water is available radially. It satisfies who eats it, it is very nutritious hence the name kang. It is tasty and healthy millet good for weight gain-bruhan. It is 3^rd rank most cultivated millets in world. It is grown in Europe, USA, Australia, North Africa and China.

Priyangu is of four varieties, black, red, yellow and white. Gradually they are superior in quality, more dry, and kapha pacifying gradually. It has capacity to rejoin broken bones. It is dry by nature and heavy for digestion. It is kapha pacifying and strength giving, hence considered as wholesome diet for everyday use. It is cultivated only in 10 days; and can be harvested within 80 days. Priyangu is sweet, astringent by taste, it’s after digestion effect is sweet. Its potency is cold. It is good for shukra as it is aphrodisiac. ^[2], ^[1], ^[5], ^[6]

Therapeutic uses of foxtail millet

Joins broken bones- astringent property of priyangu is useful to rejoin broken bones. This property is mentioned by all authors.

Wound healing: Add root of priyangu in rice prepared from kangu mixed with curd prepared from buffalo milk and consume it for non-healing wound. Astringent, dry, properties of priyangu helps to absorbs bad water content-kled in wounds and promotes wound healing.

Obesity- dry, kapha and fat reducing-lekhan property of kangu helps to reduce weight. Priyangu helps to clear channels.

Diseases for vitiated breast milk- breast milk are byproduct updhatu of rasa dhatu-tissue. Rasa always get contaminated because of overeating; light, dry, vata promoting kapha pacifying properties of foxtail millet helps to reduce undigested food part-aama from breast milk-stanya and cures diseases of stanya (breast milk) vitiation.

Raktapitta-bleeding disorders- shyamak and kangu millets are recommended in this condition.

Duodenal ulcers- aanadravakhya shul- vangsen recommends sweet payasam prepared from priyangu and milk, ghee, sugar for this condition. It helps to digest sama pitta- undigested vitiated pitta dosha; its astringent, cold, bruhan property helps in this. Priyangu is also recommended in hyperacidity-amlapitta patients.

Anti-poisonous- charak explains to eat kangu and kodo millet in poisoned patients.

Kaṅgu is also mentioned as being mutually incompatible (viruddhāhāra) with Paya (milk). Kaṅgu is also mentioned in a list of potential causes for indigestion. A complete section in ‘Bhojanakutūhala’ is devoted for the description of agents that cause indigestion. These ingredients when consumed in large scale can cause indigestion to certain people. The remedies for these types of indigestions are also explained, for example mantha.

Chinak-vari- proso millet, Indian millet, Pannicum miliaceum Linn is its botanical name. kak-kangu, shlashnak,sushlashn, these are other Sanskrit names. Its properties are like foxtail millet; it is explained as variety of kangu by our scientists, as ’kakkangu’. It is included in ‘shashtic Sali’. It is sweet, after digestion effect is sour, pitta increasing, heavy for digestion, produces more urine and feces, hot in potency, and tridosha vitiating grain. ^[5], ^[3] Being a short duration crop (60 -90 days) with relatively low water requirement, this escapes drought period and, therefore, offers better prospects for intensive cultivation in dry land areas. Under un- irrigated conditions, proso millet is generally grown during kharif season but in areas where irrigation facilities are available; this is profitably grown as summer catch crop in high intensity rotations.

Kordush-kodo millet, Paspalum scrobiculatum; kodrava, kordush, are its synonyms. It is cold, vata increasing pitta kapha pacifying, and constipating by nature. It has anti-poisonous property. With its outer covering, this crop can sustain up to 50 years. It is astringent and sweet by taste, and light for digestion. It is astringent, sweet, light for digestion, vata increasing, kaphapitta pacifying by properties. These are cold by potency, constipating, helps to reduce bad water content in body. ^[2], ^[1]

Uddalak-vankodrav:wild kodo- kodo millet which is grown without cultivation. It is hot, ^[6] constipating and vata increasing. It is gown in rainy season-varsha season, cut in kartik season. Sometimes naturally this crop develops intoxication, which may be harmful for human consumption.it is constipating, pitta kapha balancing, and profuse vata producing grain.

Shyamak-sama- Japanese barnyard millet: Echinocholoa frumentacea link: Sama,shyamak, shyamak, shyam, tribeej, avipriya, sukumar, rajdhanya, trunbeejottam, these are synonyms of Shyamak. It is astringent, sweet, light for digestion. It has capacity to absorb bad water content, dry by nature, vata increasing, and kaphapitta pacifying. It is cultivated in 6 wks.

For absorption of kleda-bad water content in body, shyamak is given with kusha and aamla.

Hasti shyamak-big sama, nivar-rice growing without cultivation, toyparni, gavedhuk-small wheat, prashatika, ambshyamak-sava grown in water, lohitanu, priyangu, mukund, zinty, gurmuti, varuk, varak, shibir, utkat, jurn- big millet-sorgham, all have properties like shyamak ^[1] barnyard millet, is astringent, sweet, light for digestion, vata increasing, kaphapitta pacifying by properties. These are cold by potency, constipating, helps to reduce bad water content in body. ^[1]. It is wholesome diet to eat in madhumeha and sthaulya-obesity. ^[7]

Yava-barley- different varieties are mentioned by ‘Bhavprakash’. Yava is with white barn, when its outer covering barn is removed it is called as ‘tokya,’when it is without cover but color is blackish it is called as ‘atiyava’, when it is small, green, it is called as ‘jai’.

Astringent, sweet, dry, cold, light for digestion, gas producing, feces producing, stabilizes body, strength giving, kapha pacifying are its properties. ^[1] Yava are sweet, astringent, cold, after effect is pungent, kapha, patta balancing, good in patients of wound. It is ‘anbhishyandi’-It reduces bad water content in body, decreases quantity of urine, increases vata and fecal matter. It increases stability of body, increases appetite, voice quality, complexion, intelligence. It is sticky, yet reduces weight and heaviness in body, and also reduces fat, and thirst. It is very dry by property, hence cleans body channels-‘strotas vishodhan’; it nourishes good pitta and blood. ^[2]

Therapeutic uses of yava

It is a wholesome diet to eat in madhumeha and obesity. ^[7] it is heavy for digestion.^[6] It is good for weight loss; it is dry, gives satiety, heavy for digestion, constipating and we can prepare many varieties of food dishes from it, hence very good grain for weight loss and diabetes patient.

It is good in diseases of throat, voice-swarya ^[6]

Skin diseases, and also diseases produced because of increased kapha, pitta, and fat.

It is also good in sneezing, asthma, cough, chest diseases,

Good for excessive thirst

Blood diseases.

Wound healing ^[6]

Ignites digestive fire ^[6]

Good for intelligence ^[6]

Strength giving, stabilizing-sthairya

Complexion enhancing-varnya

Atiyava-it do not have outer covering-‘shuk’, its colour is black, red. It is inferior to yava in quality² Yavak- small java-small barley-causes more urine production.

Vanshayava: bamboo rice: Bambusa arundinacea wild: this is dry, astringent by taste, after effect is pungent. It is kapha pacifying and vata pitta increasing, hot and laxative by nature. It is good in frequency of micturition- baddhamutra.

Yavnal/jurn: Panera: sorghum:jwari: Sorghum vulgare pers, family-Gramineae. It is tasty, aphrodisiac, astringent, cold and dry by nature. It is good for blood purification, balances kapha and pitta. It is light for digestion. It is mutrajanan, helps in urine production. It produces bad water content kled in body as it contains 13% moisture in it. ^[6]

Gavedhuk: Coix lacryma jobi Linn is its botanical name family-Gramineae. It is called as adlay millet or Job’s tear in English, kasai in marathi. It is pungent, sweet and weight reducing grain. It is vata and agni prominent grain, reduces kapha and meda. ^[6]

Roasted gavedhuk cooked to prepare porridge with honey helps to reduce weight.

Hyperacidity with vomitting- root of gavedhuk soaked in cold water- heem- helps to reduce bouts of vomiting.

Urinary incontinence- mutrakrucchrahar- helps to break urinary stone and thus helps dysuria. It helps to expel out urine-mutrajanan.

Madhuli and nandumukhi are is sweet, cold, and unctuous.

Charuk: Saccharum munja Roxb, family: Germineae –sharbeej-it grows on river bank. It is sweet, dry, vata increasing, blood, kapha, pitta pacifying, cold by nature, light for digestion; good for shukra nourishment, aphrodisiac, sweet, astringent by taste. It is good to satisfy thirst. It is more urine producing.^[6] It is used in burning, thirst, blood impurities, dysuria, diseases of eyes, and tridosha balancing grain. ^[6]

Kusumbh beej: varata, varatica, vanhishikha, vastraranjak, safflower, parrot seed, bastard saffron are its name. Carthamus tinctorius Linn; is its botanical name family-Compositae. It is sweet, astringent, unctuous, cold, and heavy for digestion, aphrodisiac, good for all three dosha and rakta-blood impuriries.^[6] Oil from safflower is laxative and good to consume in type 2 diabetes mellitus. For external use, it is used as anti-inflammatory, analgesic, to reduce itching, and helps in wound healing. Kusumbhabeej oil is used in renal calculi and dysuria.

Nivar: prasadika, trunanna, tini, devbhat are its synonyms. It is cold in potency, constipating, kaphavata increasing and pitta stabilizing grain. It is light for digestion. Its botanical name is Hygroryza aristata ness, family- gramineae.it is water prominent herb found in Asam. ^[6]

Mukundak and varuk are good to absorb bad water content kleda in body.

For prameha, millets such as nivar, fox tail millet, java-barley, bamboo rice, kodo millet, barnyard millet, kurubind and mukundak these small grains, are wholesome diet for prameh⁸. Charuk(sharbeej). Kusumbh beej (safflower), gavedhuk, nivar, these are not recommended for diabetes. Hayanak, yavak, chinak, uddalak, naishadh, itkat, all these small millets can cause diabetes after regular consumption. Yavak, hayan, pansu,bashp, naishadh thse grainsare ot,sweet, heavy, unctuous, laxative, urine producing, kaphapitta increasing grains. It’s after digestion effect is sour, hence not recommended for regular consumption.

list of small grains listed by our authors

list of rasa,virya, vipak,prabhav, action on dosha, dhatu, mala and diseases of millets.