Illdiall Journal of Traditional Kno wledge Vol. 2(2), ;\priI 2003, pp. 14R- 15X

Common spices and their use in traditional medicinal system of ethnic groups of Manipur state, North eastern India

H Birkumar Singh 1 and R C SundriyaI2",

I Reg ional Research Laboratory, (Jorhal), Manipur Substati on, Lamphelpat 79S 004, M an ipur, India

Phone: OJRS-3 10481 : Email : hbirk umars@yahoo.colll

~ G 13 Pant Instiwte of H illlalaY:1Il Environment and Development, North East Unit Vivek Vihar, Itanagar 79 1113, Arunachal Pr-adesh, India

Phone: 036()-2 11 773, Fax: 0360-211773 Emai l: sundriyalrc@yah()o.com

Receiva l / 2 Felirtlarv 2002; revised 20 NoveJllber 2002

Thi s inves ti gat ion reports on most commonly used spices and their utility in traditi onal med icinal system based on household and market surveys in Manipur. A total of 3X plant spec ies were recorded used as spices: of which 42% spec ies were used as daily kitchen food spi ces. Out of the tota l spec ies recorded, 13 species are cult ivated while R species were directl y co llected from wi ld habitats only, and remaining 17 spec ies are either culti vated or co llec ted from natural hab itats. The highest market price was fetched by Piper nig rtlJII , CllrclIJlla (,lIesill

and Cin/wlllOlIl/lIl/ zeY/llnicI/JII . A total o f 23 spices were used to cure 21 di seases in traditional medi cinal system, main ly for cough ( II spp.), fever (6 spp.), paralysis (4 spp.), infertilit y and urinary troubles (3 spec ies each), too thache, menstru al di sorder, snake-bite and vertigo (2 spec ies each) and many other diseases. The production potential of culti va ted spices was fairl y good for Corianclrl/lll slllivlIlII, A/liulII odo rtI III, Zingiber offic ina/e. Some of the spices such as A /Ii/II hookeri , A. ot/omll/. and!\. POrtllll are not comillonly grown in any othcr part of the country. It is eillphas ized that these species should be protected in nawral habitats, and multiplied for large-sca le usc at household level to avoid pressure in w ild areas.

Keywords: Spi ces. M edicinal uses. Manipuri traditi onal medicines, Productivity, Conserva ti on.

There has been a growing interes t in ex ploiting as well as conserving gene pools of economically important species, which include wild foods, medicinal and o ther useful plants I.,. [n India, the

angiosperm flora is represented by about 15,000 to 17,000 spec ies, of which 20% IS cons idered economically useful 4

.

*Correspondent author

Among these 20% fl ora, 600 species possess medicinal properties , 200 species are used as ed ible plants including cereals, pulses, fruits and vegetables , 700 are po isono us plants , 250 are used a;; o il and perfumery plants, over 500 as timber yielding plants , 250 famine food s and fodder pl ants, 200 plants as dyes and tans, 180 industrial plants and I SO species as gums and res ins4. Aromatic plants

SINGH & SUNDRI YAL: M EDICIN AL SPICES OF M ANIPUR 149

constitute a majo r source of natura l o rgani c co mpo unds w ide ly used in medi c i ne , spices. food produc ts and fl avour and are o f paramo un t importance In eve ryday lifes. Spi ces fo rm an important in gredi ent of Indian food sys tem. A large quantity of spi ces is used in Indi a, and d uring 1997-98 the to ta l ex port of spices fro m Indi a was 2 18,750 tons valued at 363.62 milli on US $5. There are still severa l spices hav ing hi gh potenti a l in the wild , whi ch are in regula r use by triba l socie ti es for di verse purposes but less known to o utside wo rld .

The peopl e o f Manipur co llect a good number of spi ces from the w ild habitats and also g row a few o f the m in the kitchen gardens fo r dail y consumpti on as well as se lling in local markets fo r cash needs. So me of the spices used are location specific and extensive ly used in traditional medicine. So me ethnobotani cal studi es have been do ne in Manipur in recent years emphas iz ing o n wild vegetables, medi c inal plants and biofolklo re6

-12

, but they hardl y cover spi ce plants. For judic ious and susta inable utili zation of natura l resources, a thoro ugh know ledge of its utility by the loca ls is a vital pre requisite . The present paper attempts to sc reen the po tenti a l sp ices of Manipur and document the ir uses in traditi o nal medicine system. It is expected th at thi s investigati o n w ill hi ghlight a few potenti a l spices fo r the ir large-sca le producti on through cultivati on, and thus he lp in econo mic upliftment o f the people. It is a lso ex pected that pharmaceutical co mpani es fo r the ir large-sca le use will poss ibl y adopt a few spi ces with medi c inal properti es.

Study area and its people Manipur state (23°47' to 25°41 ' and

93°6 1' to 94°48' E) at I ndo-M yanmar border with 22,327 sq km is conside red one of the mos t important hot spo t of biodi versity and compri ses mainl y hill y regio ns (92%), surroundi ng saucer­shaped valley call ed Impha l Valley ( 1795 sq km). The hill ranges are the te rti ary branches of the Himalaya and occur as para lle l fo lds f ro m no rth to south at vary ing altitudes fro m 726 to 3048 m as !. Admini strative ly , the state is divided in to nine di stri cts ; of whi ch four districts fo rm the Impha l Va ll ey while the remaining five are hill y regio ns (Fi g. I).

The climate is moderate ly ho t w ith heavy mo nsoon rainfa ll during June­September with an approx imate annua l

N

J

L !l SIal. capital

~ . District headqUilner [ .. -,' International boundary ~ ._, Stete boundrt S - - Dislrid boundary

Fig. I- Map o f Man ipur S iale show ing d iffe renl d isiric i headq uart ers. which a re the ma in marke tin g ce nters (shaded is the va lley area).

!50 INDIAN J TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE, VOL 2. No. 2. APRIL 2003

' 1 '

PLATE !-Top: Allium odoru11z Linn.; Bottom: Alliu111 hooke n· Linn.

SI GH & SUNDRIYAL: MEDICINAL SPICES OF MANIPUR 15 1

rainfall of 2800 mm. The dail y <.ur temperature ranges from 0 to 38°C in a temporal cycle that generall y ranges from 0- IO°C in wi nter and 10-35°C in summer.

Manipur state compri ses 30 ethni c co mmunities with a total populati on of more than 2.5 million people; the most dominant being the Meiteis, whi ch constitutes 53% of the total population of the state and li ves in valley areas. Nagas and Kuki s are major tribes. whi ch mostl y inhabit the hill y areas and foothill sl ~ . The va lley people mainly practice ri ce cultiv ation, while hilly people practice shifting cultivation (s lash and burn cu lti vati on) as well as depend on the surrounding forests. The people collect a large number of food items. med icine and ot her household requirements from natural habitat. They are closely assoc iated with the surrounding pl ant resources and have a fair knowledge about its uses, propaga tion and conservati on. The local people have faith in herbal medicinal practiti oners, who provide cure for a large number of diseases. Each tribe has its own herbal med ica l practiti oners.

Methods The study is based on frequent

household surveys of di rfe rent local it ies as we ll as market visits of important tow ns of the state. viz. Imphal, Wango i, Senapati. Chandel. Thoubal , Churachandpur and Bishnupur. Formal and informal interviews were conducted from 108 households, with regards to number of spices plants and their avai lability, collection sites . plant parts used, quantity collected and market pri ces by app lying some of the adopted

I · 14· 18 I I· . tee 1nlques . n ormation on source and

supp ly of spices (culti vated, wil d or both), their mode of propagation, as well as dai ly or occas ional use of each spec ies was gathered. Sample material of each spi ce was co ll ected from the market as we ll as from wi ld habitats, identified wi th the help of res idents fo r local names and preserved in the form of herbarium. The spec ies were identifi ed fo r botanical names through available sc ientifi c literatureC,·12 <.:nd with the help of Botanical Survey of India, Eastern Circle, Shillong. A checkli st of the spice-plan ts was prepared in alphabet ical seq uence along with their common and local names, partes) used, sources, propagation technique(s) and market pri ces. All the species thus coll ected were segregated as per parts used such as leaf, shoot, fruit, whole plant, rhi zome, bark, fl ower and bulb .

All the spices screened and collected were brought to herbal medicinal practitioners, which are known as 'Maiba ' (male prac titi oner) and 'Maibi ' (female practitioner) in Manipuri language. Detai led notes were prepared with reference to use of dilTerent spices for curing diseases and mode of uses. Finally, a few patients under trea tment (n= 12) as well as already cured (n=22) were visited and interviewed to assess the efficacy of treatment and the cure they received.

A few cultivated spi ces were also evaluated for their production potential using standard methodsl~ . . '. Plant density was calcu lated by counting the number of tillers or plan t lets on per unit area basis. Producti vity was es timated by harves ting the plants on unit area bas is (n=5) for each spec ies and presented on fresh

U, IV

Table I- Vari ous spices usecl as medi cine by diffe rent ~l h n i c communi ties of Mani pur Slale

Spec ies/Families Eng li sh namc Local name Habil Source ' Parts Use Propa- Markel used2 freque llcy-' g aliOIl

4 p,i cc z ;::;

( I{ S/kg)5 > AILiulIl cepa Linn . (Li liaceae) On ion Tilhou ll erb C Wp I:: BI 14 z A. hookeri Th w. (Li liaceae) Winter I .cek Maroi- napakpi Iler'b C/W Wp I:: BI 28 -l ;\, odorum Linn. (Lili aceae) Maroi- nakupi Herb C Wp E HI 35 ;v

A. por-rum Lin n. (L il iaceae) Leek Maroi-napakpi Ile rh C Wp E BI 22 > ;::;

A. s(l li vllIl1 Linn . (Liliaecac) Garlic Chanam I !erb C UIBI E Bl/Sd S3 ::::j

Alpinia alLughas Rose. Pulle i Herb \V Rh 0 Rh 28 6 (Zingiberaceae) Z

> Ilnis{)ciz i /us cam osus Wall. Lomba Undershrub C/W Sllf1..f 0 Sd 20 r (Lamiaceae) A

Z ArlohOlrys odoratissil1lllS R. Br. Chini-champa Shrub CIVI' Bk 0 Sd/C I 45 0 (A nnonaceae) < r CapsiculI! al1num Linn . (Solanaceae) Chilli Morok Under C Fr E Sd 38 en

shru b 0 Cl

C. lIlcuinlUm Linn . (Sulanaceae) Tree chill i U- morok Shrub/trec C/W Fr E Sd 68 rn c. lI !i!limul'll Roxb. (Solanacc-ae) Rate chi lli Uc hi-morok Unde"shrrlb C Fr E Sri 57 < ...., Cardall1ill e hirsuta Linn. B i Ucr cress Chantru k-maan Herb C Wp 0 Sci 17 r (Rrassieaceae) !'-' Cill/lC/mofllul'II ('amphora Nees Camphor Karpoor Tree C/W Bk 0 Sci 92 t (Lauraceae) ,.,,) C. tanwla Nees (Lauraceae) Bay leaf Tej bat Tree C/W Lf E Sci 76 C. zey/anicum Breyn . (Lauraceac) Cinnamon Ushing-sha Tree: C/W Bk 0 Sd/CI 95 >

u Citrus leuipes Sw ingle (Rutaceac) J-Ieiribob Shrub C Fr E Sci 42 ;v

Co ria l/drum sativum Linn . Coriander Phad igo tll Herb C Wp E Rh 42 r !:2

(Apiaccae) 25 Curcuma an/ada Roxb. Yai -heinou- Herb W In 0 Rh 31

'.-J

(Zing iberaceae) n3 mbi CO/lld.

Table I-Vari ous spices used as medic ine by different ethnic conullllnitics of Manipur Slale--Colllr/.

Species/Families

C. caesia Roxb. (Zingiberaceae)

C. Zanga Linn. (Zingiberaceae) C. zedoaria Rosc. (Zingiberaceae) Eisholtzia blanda Benth (Lamiaceae) Eryngiumfoeridum Linn . (Apiaceae) Ferula asafetida Boiss. (Apiaceae) Foeniculum vulgare Gaertn. (Apiat:eae) HOllttuYllia cordata Thunb (Saururaceae) Klloxia sumarrellsis DC. (Lamiaceae) Leucas aspera Spreng. (Lamiaceae)

l.it:,·aea citra/a BI. (Lallraceae) Mentha arvensis Linn. (Lamiaceae) Meriandra bellgalensis Bcnth. (Lamiaceae) Ocimum camillI Sims (Lamiaceae) Pipl'T Iligrllm Linn . (Piperaceae) Zamhoxv/um acanrhopodiwll DC. (RUlaceae) Z. a/arum Roxb. (Rulaceae)

Zingiber officil1ale Rose. (Zingitx:raccae) Z. ze rumber Sm. (Z ingihcraceae)

Engli sh name Local name

Black zedoary Turmeri c Zedoary

Eryngo Asfoetida Fennel

Minl

Basil Black pepper

Ginger

Black gi nger

Yai-mu

Yai-ngang Yai-pal Lomba Awa-phadigom Hing Pa-khon

Toning-khok

Meitei-lembum Mayang­Iembum Ushing-sha Nungshi-hidak Kangghu-maan

Mayang-lOn Gul-mirt:h Muklhru-hi

MukthJu-bi Sing

Sing-amuba

Habit

Herb

Herb Herb Cndcrshrub Herb Herb Herb

Herb

Undershrub Undershrub

Tree

Herb Undershru b

Undershrub C limber Tree

Tree Herb

Herb

Source '

CM'

C w crw crw C C

c/w

w w

W CIW C/W

crw crw w

C/w C

crw

Parts used2

Rh

RhlLf In Sh Wp Fr ShlLf

ShlLf

Sh Sh

Bk

ShlLf Sh

Sh Fr LtIFr

Lf/Fr LflRh

Rh

Use frequency)

o

E o E o E o

o

o o

o o o

o E o

o E

o

Propa-. -I

gallon

Rh

Rh Sd SdNb Sd Sd Sd

SdiSI

Sd Sd

Sd SdiSL Sd

Sd Sd Sd

Sd Rh

Rh

Markel price (Rs/kg )5

J 15

40 31 19 29 50 20

23

12 12

82 17 29

15 142 14

14 10

68

'(C=cultivated, W=wild ). l(Wh-whole plant. Sh=shool. 1.f=lea f, RI=bu lb. Rk=bark. Fr=fruit. [n=intlorescencc). \ E=cvcryday. O=occasionally), "(BI=bulb. Sd=seed, Rh=rh izolllc. Cl=c!olli ng , Sl=slo lon. Vb=vegerati vc bud). \ Rs 41l= I US$).

V1

Z Cl :r: R'o V1 c Z o ;:v

-< > r.-3: m o n z > r V1 "0

n m V1

o "11

3: > Z "0 C ;:v

VI W

Table 2 - Irnpo rtanr spices used as medicine in tradit ional system of Manipuries

Species I'an s ust'd Used against Mod.: of us.:

AlliulI! cepa \3ulb Paralysis Decoc ti on pastt' app lied extem ally A.odorwn Whole plant Urinary di sor'de r Bo iled soup drunk

A. sa/ivuIII Bulb Brui se. para lysis. liver Decoctio n pastc app lied externally. di sorder eaten fo r live r di sorder

Anisoch ilus carnosus Shoot Infe rtility Eate n with vege tab les Capsic lllll anrtUI/I Fruit Too thache Hot fo mentaLion applied on jaw CirtllamomlinJ zey/articlIlI! Bark Cold & cough Dried powder eaten wi th vegetab les Coriartdrum sa/ivllnJ Shoot Earac he Hot fo me ntati on ju ice as ear-drops Curcuma caesia Rhi zome Feve r and cough Fresh decoct io n juice dil uted wi th water

drunk C. /onga Rhi zome Jaundice. baldness & Fresh decoction paste applied on sca lp

poxes for baldness & eate n with vegetables fo r jaundi ce & poxes

Elsho/rzia blallda Shoot Infertility Eaten with vegetables EryngiumfoetidulII Whole plant Epi lepsy & paralysis Eaten with vegetables everyday Eugenia caryophyilata Inflorescence Toothache Powdered paste applied on jaws Ferllia asaferida Seed Paralys is Paste appl ied extemally as ointment KIl()xia sUlllatrensis Shoot Cough, fever & urin ary Bo il ed soup rtrun~

di sorder Leu cas aspera Shoot/Leaf Cough, fe\ 'er & urinary Boil ed soup drunk

di sorder Lirsaea cir/"{lw Bark Coug h, skin di seases & Dried powder eaten with vege tabl es

verti go regularl y Melllha an'ell sis ShootlLeaf Cough, fever & Eaten with vegetab les

inferti li ty M erialldra bellga /ellsis ShootlLeaf Infertility Eaten with vege tables

Dose suggested

2-3 bulbs 100 grams boiled in 2 liLres o f wale r. l ~lk t' n o m:.: a week Taken wi th vegetables everyday

Re " ularl v o ,

One fruit at a timc & tw ice a day O ne spoonfu l a day 415 drops each time thrice a day Five gra ms in one glass of wa ter in a day Ten grams a day for a week

Regu larl y 4-5 grams a day I gram a day for a week 5 grams a day reg ularly till c ured 3 glasses a day

3 glasses a day

2 grams a day

3-4 grams a day regu larl y

Regularl y

Com t!.

V1 ~

Z 0 > Z

...., ;;v > 0 ~ 0 Z > r A Z 0 :2 r en 0 0 rn < 0 r !'->

?: ,'-'

> -0 ;:0

r § ' .... J

"0 ., Vl :J Vl

Vl c: ~ .~

"0.. ~l) Vl "0 C ., '" VJ t:: ::> o 0-

.§ I 1l

N VJ ., :J

:D Vl

('j ro f- c..

Vl ., 'u ., 0-

U)

SINGH & SUNDRI YAL: MEDICINAL SPICES OF MAN IPUR 155

c o

"0 ., 0. 0-

'" ~ VJ OJ 0. C

.S? U o ~ "O

"0 "" .J:: ~ ~ ~

Lt 2

weight bas is fo r a ll usable parts. A ll the data were compiled and are presented in thi s paper.

Results The study reveal s that a tota l or 38

pl ant species were used as spi ces by the ethnic groups o f Mani pur state (Table I). T hese plants be long to 25 genera and 12 fam il ies , o f whi ch 50% were he rbs. 2 1 DA

undershru bs, 18% trees, 8% shru bs and 3% cl imber. The famili es Lami aceae and Zing iberaceae have the hi ghes t number or species (7 spp. each), fo ll owed by Lili aceae (5 spp .), Lauraceae (4 spp.), and Rutaceae and So lanaceae (3 spp. each). A max imum number of 15 spice spec ies are used for the ir leaves/shoot, fo llowed by inflorescence/fruit ( II spp.), who le plant (7 spp .), rhi zome/bul b (6 spp.) and bark (4 spp.). Out of the tota l 38 spi ces recorded, 13 were already under culti vati on, while 8 spec ies were co llected onl y fro m the wild habitat. Re maining 17 spi ces were e ither cul tivated or collec ted fro m the wi Id hab itat. S ixteen spices were used dail y a long with vegetables in one way or the other while the rest 22 spices were used occasiona ll y. Fi ve species of Allillll/ are mos t commo nly used among all spi ces, out o f whi ch A. hookeri , A. oc/orum and A. porum are used o nl y in Manipur state and are not reported fro m other parts (Table I).

Prices Most of the spi ce pl ants are avail ab le

in the markets th roughout the year, though quantity avail able vari es w ith season/mo nths. Interesting ly, the market prices are more or less same in all seasons except s light ly lower during

156 INDIAN J TRADITIONAL KNOWLEDGE, VOL 2, No.2, APRIL 2003

g rowing/availability pe riod of a particular species. Market prices of the spices as in August 1999 are presented in Table I. It is noted that most of the spices fetch high prices and therefore sold in the local markets. Among all these spices the highest prices were fetched by Piper IlI g nfJlI , Curcullla caesia and CillllOlllOlIlUIII zey/ollicilIll.

Use as medicine Among all the screened species of

spices, 23 are used to cure 21 types of di seases in the traditional systems (Table 2). In the medicinal uses , 8 species are used for their shoot/leaf, 6 for bulb/rhizome, 4 as intlorescence/fruit, 3 as whole plant parts and 2 for bark . All spices used as bark/rhizome for spices were having medicinal utility, while medicinal utility varies for other plant parts used (Table 2) . At least I I species are used for curi ng cough, 6 for fever, and 4 as remedy for paralysis . Ginger CZillg iber qfflcill.ale) has wider applications for curing maximum number of diseases, such as cough, fever, dysentery, menstrual disorder and snakebite and this species is also most wide ly used in vegetable food items.

Propagation and productivity More than 70% of the spice plants are

propagated through seed while rest by rhi zome (21 %), bulb (16%), stolon (8% each) and by vegetative buds (5 %) (Table I) . The annual production of the 16 most commonly cultivated spices is presented in Table 3. These spices have high production potential. Coriandrum sativum can be cultivated 4 times in a year wi th a highest plant density of 2000-2400 individuals per m2

, with an annual

production potential of 3.25 kg m2

Species of Allium can be harvested th rice in a year, while Zingiher and CurculI/o are harvested once in a year, and Dcilllllll i canum can be used for its leaf/shoot every 10 days.

Discussion The spices are used as an important

ingredient in Indian cuisine and most common spices are available in marke ts throughout the year and fetch high prices . As the rural ethnic people cannot afford to purchase costly ones, a large number of species are either cultivated or collectl:d from wild habitats, and indigenolls communities harbour a good knowledge about them. In the present investigation , a total of 38 plant species are screened for their use as spices, out of which nearl y 60% are having medicinal properties and are commonly used as traditional herbal remedies. The local communities coll ect these spices directly from the natural habitats , and over the years a few of the m are now raised in kitchen gardens as wel l. Such cultivation is not only beneficial for house consumption but also for earn i ng money by selling them in the local markets, as most of these spices fetch h· h . 164 Th' h' I ' I Ig prtces ' . e spices are aVlng ll g I

production potential and can be cultivated more than once in a year due to th e ir short growth cycle. Most of these plants are propagated through bulb/rhizome and generally produce seeds also that help in propagation in the next season .

A large number of spices are used in local ethno-medical system. In the present investigation the most commonly treated diseases by using spices, are epilepsy , paralysis, jaundice, dog-bite for wh ich modern medicinal treatments are not

SINGH & SUNDRIY AL: M EDI CINAL SPICES OF MANIPUR 157

Table 3- Producti vity of important culti vated spices in Manipur State

Species Dcnsity * Prnclucti vity (tiller or plantl et/mC

) (kg/m' /annum ) AI/illlll cepa 100- 120 2.25 1

A . hooken' 300-350 2.001

A.odorlllll 550-600 2~5 1

Il. ponllll 320-350 2.001

A . sali vlIlIl 150- 180 2.001

Capsicllllllrlll escells 80- 100 1.252

C. lIIillillllllll 80- 100 1.002

CoriOlldrlll1l sali vlIIlI 2000-2400 3.25 1

Cllrclllllo IOllga 20-30 2.60.1

C. caesia 20-3- 2.30.1

Erv lIg illlll ./fJelidlllll 50-SO 0.801

HOIIIII/ Vllia corli(l/o 100- 120 0.75 1

M eillha arvellsis 60-80 () .7 5~

O("illllllll C(JI11I1II 4-5 0.854

Z ing iber officillale 20-30 2.75 .1

Z. ~el"ll'lIbel 20-30 2.35.1

* bascd on fresh wcight basis: IWholc plant (both abovcground and belowgrnund ). 2Frui t. ·'Rhi zome. ~Leaves and shoot.

readily available in villages. The rural folks are well informed about the medicinal utility o f these spices, and therefore consumption o f these plant parts in da il y diets may be considered strongly sci entific. There is a need to make further studi es on standardization of culti vati on techniques of these spices so that their natural populations are conserved and at the same ti me they may also provide economic benefit to the rural populati on. Some of these spices may certainl y he exploited for largescale use in drug­pharmacy if properly culti vated and processed.

Acknowledgements The authors thank the Director, G.B.

Pant Institute of Himalayan Environment & Development for providing facilities and necessary support for conducting the study.

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domesti ca lly by East African coastal fishermen. £COII Bill. 33 ( 1979) 35.

19 Martin G J. Elhll o!Jo/(fIlY. (C hapman and Hall. London), 1995.