The curative use of Sacred Fig trees in Indian history and heritage

All parts of the Sacred Fig are used as a medicine for their cooling and healing properties, as part of the Indian Ayurvedic healing system. The fruits, leaves, bark and even the latex are used to prepare herbal remedies, to treat various diseases of the skin and blood, the digestive, reproductive, respiratory and other body systems.

In this Article

Ficus religiosa: The word ‘Ficus’ in Latin refers to ‘fig’, the fruit of the tree and the word ‘religiosa’ refers to ‘religion’, as it is sacred in both Buddhism and Hinduism. Also, for this reason, it is named ‘Sacred fig’. It is a huge tree often planted near holy places and temples.

The vernacular names of peepal trees are Pipal, Pipala in Hindi; Jari, Piplo, Pipalo, Piparo in Gujarati; Pimpal, Pipal, Pippal in Marathi; Ashud, Ashvattha, Asvattha in Bengali; Aswatha in Oriya; Ahant in Assamese; Pippal, Pipal in Punjabi; Ravichettu in Telugu; Arara, Arasu, Arasan, Ashwarthan, Arasamaram in Tamil; Ranji, Arlo, Basri, Ashwatha, Ashvatthanara, Aralegida, Aralimara, Basari, Ashvathamara, Ashvattha in Kannada; Arayal in Malayalam; Bad in Kashmiri.

Aswattha and Kalpavriksha

Other names are Assattha in Pali and Asvattha in Sanskrit. Aswattha is described as “Tree of knowledge”, “Tree of life”, ”Tree of Eternal Life” and “Tree of Creation” … Felling of this tree is considered as capital sin.

Aswattha refers to both the ficus varieties (religiosa and bengalensis), that are the Pipal and Banyan. Also the sacred Wish fulfilling tree, the Kalpavriksha can be any of the Fig trees.

This sculpture of the Kalpavriksha from the Indian Museum of Kolkata, possibly is the capital of a pillar. It represents a banyan tree, enclosed by a railing at the base and by a bamboo fence in the shape of a network.

The branches of the tree bear a coin purse, a conch shell, a lotus and a vase overflowing with coins.

Ancient texts, such as the Ramayana and Mahabharata, frequently mention a term, Chaitya-vriksha. Interestingly both chaitya-vriksha and kalpavriksha are similar in concept.

Chaitya-vrikshas are tree shrines with dense leaves and fruits that provide shelter and food for all living beings. These are open air shrines with railing or fence like structures that cover the tree trunks, or sometimes the tree is placed on a pedestal.

Various tree spirits known as yakshas and yakshis (wood maiden), and sometimes even the nagas (Snake gods), are believed to live in these trees.

Sacred Fig trees are worshiped as protectors of both human beings and gods alike.

Habitat and distribution of Sacred fig trees

Sacred fig trees grow throughout the Indian subcontinent and are a familiar sight in Hindu temples, Buddhist monasteries and shrines, villages and at roadsides. People also like to grow this sacred tree in their gardens and fields.

The native range of this species is Southeast Asia from Pakistan to Myanmar. It grows primarily in the seasonally dry forest biome, open woodlands in tropical areas that have a long dry season followed by a season of heavy rainfall (monsoon).

Ficus religiosa has also been widely planted in many hot countries all over the world from South Africa to Hawai and Florida but it is not able to naturalize away from its Indian home, because of its dependence on its pollinator wasp, Blastophaga quadraticeps. An exception to this rule is Israel where the wasp has been successfully introduced.

Native to (light gray): Andaman Islands, Assam, Bangladesh, East Himalaya, India, Malaya, Myanmar, Nepal, Nicobar Islands and Pakistan
Introduced into (dark grey): Afghanistan, Cambodia, Chagos Archipelago, China South-Central, China Southeast, Florida, Hawaii, Iran, Laccadive Islands, Laos, Maldives, Marianas, Mauritius, Mozambique, Palestine, Réunion, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Trinidad-Tobago, Venezuela and Vietnam.

The use of the Sacred Fig in traditional Indian medicine, Ayurveda and daily life

All parts of the Sacred Fig have been used as a medicine for their cooling and healing properties as part of the Ayurvedic healing system.

Ficus trees are extensively used also in ancestral systems of medicine like Unani and Siddha in the form of various formulations.

Traditionally, Ficus religiosa is used as folk medicine to treat asthma, cough, sexual disorders, diarrhea, earache and toothache, migraine, eye troubles, gastric problems and scabies.

F. religiosa contains several phytoconstituents like β-sitosteryl-D-glucoside, vitamin K, n-octacosanol, kaempeferol, quercetin, and myricetin.

The plant has been studied for various pharmacological activities like:

• antibacterial – prevent the growth or spread of bacteria;
• antifungal – prevent the growth or spread of fungus;
• anticonvulsant – prevent or treat seizures or convulsions by controlling abnormal electrical activity in the brain;
• immunomodulatory properties – induces, amplifies, attenuates, or prevents immune response;
• antioxidant – molecules that fight free radicals in your body;
• hypoglycemic – reduces blood sugar, glucose;
• hypolipidemic – agent the reduces the level of lipids and lipoproteins (lipid-protein complexes) in the blood;
• anthelmintics – expels parasitic worms (helminths) and other internal parasites from the body; and wound healing activities.

Ethnomedicinal uses of different parts of Ficus religiosa

Ethnobotany is a multidisciplinary science that studies how people traditionally use plants – for food, clothing, shelter and their use for religious ceremonies and health care (Ethnomedicine).

Plant Parts	Traditional Uses (as/in)
Bark	Astringent, cooling, aphrodisiac, antibacterial against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli, gonorrhoea, diarrhoea, dysentery, haemorrhoids and gastrohelcosis, anti-inflammatory, burns
Bark Decoction	Cooling, gonorrhea, skin diseases, scabies, hiccup, vomiting
Leaves and tender shoots	Purgative, wounds, skin diseases
Leaf juice	Asthma, cough, sexual disorders, diarrhea, haematuria, toothache, migraine, eye troubles, gastric problems, scabies
Fruit	Asthma, laxative, digestive
Dried fruit	Tuberculosis, fever, paralysis, hemorrhoids
Seeds	Refrigerant, laxative
Latex	Neuralgia, inflammations, haemorrhages

The tree might have the following properties:

The bark and leaf buds

• are useful in arresting secretion or bleeding.
• are beneficial in the treatment of chronic diarrhea and dysentery.
• Bark’s phytosterols are utilized as powerful central nervous system stimulant.
• A regular douching of the genital tract with a decoction of the bark of the tree is helpful in leucorrhoea.
• The bark is used as medicine for diabetes, gonorrhea, paralysis and ulcers.
• various skin diseases can be treated with the tree bark.

The leaves

• A hot poultice of the leaves can be applied with beneficial results to abscesses to promote suppuration and to hasten their breaking.
• Leaf decoction possesses analgesic attributes for toothache.

• The milky juice from the fresh green leaves is useful in destroying warts.

The fruit

• exercises a soothing effect on the skin and mucous membranes, alleviates swelling and pain, and serves as a mild purgative.
• are nutritious.
• Fruit is laxative and digestive.
• The fruit powder can enhance fertility rate.
• can help with dysentery,
• can help with uterine troubles,
• can help with ulcers,
• can help with biliousness,
• can be used as a bitter tonic,
• is used in blood diseases.
• The ripe fruit is used as tonic, alexipharmic, suitable for burning sensation, biliousness and diseases of blood and heart.
• Ficus Seeds are laxative and taken during menstruation in women for a long time.

The latex (sap)

• of the banyan tree mixed in milk and taken daily helps cure bleeding piles.
• The latex is also useful in the treatment of diarrhea and dysentery.
• The latex can be used rheumatism, pain and lumbago.
• The latex is commonly used locally for sores, ulcers and bruises.

The areal roots

• Cleaning the teeth with the aerial roots of the Banyan is beneficial in preventing teeth and gum disorders. As one chews the stick and brushes, the astringent secretion from the root-stick cleanses and strengthens the teeth and gums.

• The tender ends of the aerial roots can be taken to stop vomiting and are considered beneficial in the treatment of female sterility.

Some limitations must be considered. More studies are required to elucidate the mechanisms exerted by the sacred fig tree extracts and compounds. Also pre-clinical and randomized clinical trials, are needed to better understand the beneficial effects of the ficus tree extracts and compounds on human health.

Note:

This post does not contain medical advice. Please ask a health practitioner before trying therapeutic products new to you.

 If you do wish to experiment, we suggest doing further research. Sacred fig tree preparations for internal use must be sold as such.

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Works Cited & Multimedia Sources

• Vishnu Sharma, Sweta Mishra, Rincy Yesudas, Ritu Singh Rajput. Review on Ficus religiosa (Sacred Fig). Department of Food & Biotechnology, Jayoti Vidyapeeth Women’s University, Jaipur, India. 2019. http://ijrar.com/upload_issue/ijrar_issue_20543853.pdf
• https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3249921
• Health MOF, Welfare F. The ayurvedic pharmacopoeia Part-I http://www.ayurveda.hu/api/API-Vol-1.pdf 
• POWO (2019). “Plants of the World Online. Facilitated by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Published on the Internet; http://www.plantsoftheworldonline.org/ Retrieved 2024.”
• https://indiabiodiversity.org/species/show/31353