Asanabilwadi Thailam

What it is

Asanabilwadi Thailam is a Thailam, a medicated oil. In Ayurveda an oil of this kind is not simply scented; the strength of a set of herbs is cooked slowly into a base of sesame oil until the oil itself carries their action. Asanabilwadi Thailam is one of the warming, Vata-settling oils made this way.

The name is built from its first two ingredients. Asana is the heartwood of a forest tree, dense and astringent, and bilva is a fruit and root long used in the tradition. The -adi ending means “and the rest”, so the name reads as the oil of asana, bilva and the herbs that go with them. The base, as with most such oils, is til taila, sesame oil, which Ayurveda holds to be the finest carrier for settling Vata.

What it is used for

Asanabilwadi Thailam sits among the Vata-shamaka oils, the oils used to settle Vata, the cold, dry, mobile quality of the body. The tradition reaches for oils of this group when Vata has gathered in the structural tissues, the joints, the lower back and the limbs, leaving them stiff, dry or unsteady.

The herbs are chosen for their affinity with these deeper tissues, and the warm sesame base is held to carry their action inward while the oil itself nourishes what has grown dry. It is an oil of the joints and the limbs, used in the warm-oil therapies rather than taken by mouth. As with all such preparations, it is applied, not swallowed.

How it is made

The making follows the classical method for a Thailam, set out in the old pharmacy texts, and it is unhurried.

First a decoction is made. The herbs are boiled with water and the liquid reduced down to a concentrated kashaya. Separately, a fine herbal paste, the kalka, is ground. The sesame oil is then warmed and the decoction and paste are added to it, classically in the proportion of one part paste and four parts decoction to the oil.

This mixture is cooked slowly and watched closely. As the heat draws the water off, the strength of the herbs passes into the oil. The maker judges the stage of cooking by old signs: how the paste behaves, the colour and aroma of the oil, and the way a little of the paste rolls between the fingers. When the right stage is reached, the oil is taken off the heat, allowed to settle, and strained clear through cloth. A well-made oil is a deep reddish-brown, with a woody aroma, and keeps for a year or two when stored away from heat and light.

Good to know

Asanabilwadi Thailam is an external preparation, used in massage and the warm-oil therapies, not a medicine taken by mouth. It belongs to the warming, settling side of Ayurveda, and the tradition uses it where Vata has dried and stiffened the joints and limbs.

This entry describes the classical Ayurvedic understanding of the oil. It is not medical advice, and anyone with a health condition should speak to a qualified practitioner.

Frequently asked

What does the name mean? It is named for its first two ingredients, asana wood and bilva, with the ending meaning “and the others”. So the name simply tells you the oil is built around asana and bilva.

Is it taken by mouth? No. Like other Thailams of this kind it is an external oil, used in massage and the warm-oil therapies. It is applied to the body, not swallowed.

Why sesame oil as the base? Because Ayurveda holds sesame oil to be the finest carrier for settling Vata. It is warming, it penetrates well, and it nourishes the dry tissues the oil is meant to reach.