Dasamoolakaduthrayam Kashayam

What it is

Dasamoolakaduthrayam Kashayam is a Kashayam, a decoction made by boiling herbs in water and reducing the liquid down to a strong, concentrated brew. Its long name is really two parts joined together. Dashamoola is the classical group of ten roots, dasha meaning ten and moola meaning root. Kaduthrayam points to the three fruits added to them, the group Ayurveda knows as Triphala. So the name means the decoction of the ten roots and the three fruits.

It is taken as a warm liquid, dark and bitter, by the small measured cup. A Kashayam is among the plainest and most direct of Ayurvedic preparations: there is no fermentation and no oil, only the roots and fruits drawn into water by gentle boiling. This makes it a light preparation, quick to take up and easy on a tired body, which is why the tradition turns to it so often.

What it is used for

The two halves of the formula do two things, and the value of the preparation lies in how they work together. Dashamoola, the ten roots, is the foremost group in Ayurveda for settling Vata, the dry, cold, restless quality the texts hold responsible for movement and for the nerves. Their taste is mostly bitter and astringent, their potency is warming, and the tradition reads this as grounding and steadying for a body that feels run down and unsteady.

The three fruits of Triphala add a second action. They are classically valued for clearing what Ayurveda calls ama, the heavy, undigested residue that the texts say gathers when digestion is weak. So this Kashayam is reached for when an unsettled Vata goes hand in hand with a sluggish, irregular digestion, a pairing the tradition sees often. The ten roots warm and steady, the three fruits lighten and clear, and the warming brew suits the cold, dry quality of Vata that lies behind both.

How it is made

The ten roots are gathered in the two groups the texts always name together. The five greater roots come from trees: Bilva, Agnimantha, Shyonaka, Patala and Gambhari (also called Kashmari). The five lesser roots come from smaller plants: Shalaparni, Prishniparni, Brihati, Kantakari and Gokshura. To these are added the three fruits of Triphala: Haritaki, Bibhitaki and Amalaki.

The making follows the classical method for a Kashayam. The roots and fruits are cleaned, dried and coarsely broken, then placed in water. The texts give a familiar proportion: one part of the broken material to sixteen parts of water, brought to a gentle boil and held at a slow simmer until the liquid reduces to about a quarter of what it began as. Slow, steady heat is the rule, since too fierce a boil is thought to spoil the fine qualities of the herbs. When the brew has reduced and deepened to a golden-brown colour, it is strained through a clean cloth. The clear decoction is the finished Kashayam. A Kashayam is at its best fresh, taken within a day, and is traditionally made in a small batch rather than stored for long.

Frequently asked

What does the long name mean? It joins two groups. Dashamoola is the ten roots, and Kaduthrayam points to the three fruits of Triphala that are added to them. So the name simply means the decoction of the ten roots together with the three fruits.

How is it different from a plain Dashamoola decoction? A plain Dashamoola Kashayam is the ten roots alone, taken mainly to settle Vata. This preparation adds the three fruits of Triphala, which lighten and clear a heavy digestion, so it suits the common case of unsettled Vata together with sluggish digestion.

Is it the same as the fermented Dasamoolaristam? No. This is a fresh, unfermented decoction of the roots and fruits in water. Dasamoolaristam is a fermented liquid tonic made from the ten roots and kept for a long time.