Formulations
Sahacharadi Thailam
Sahacharadi Thailam is a sesame oil cooked with the root of the Sahachara plant and a small group of warming herbs. It belongs to the family of oils that Ayurveda reaches for when the lower half of the body feels cold, stiff or unsettled.
- Part used
- Cooked oil for external use
- Taste (rasa)
- Bitter and astringent, from the herbs (tikta, kashaya)
- Quality (guna)
- Penetrating and spreading (tikshna, vyavayi)
- Energy (virya)
- Warming (ushna)
- Action (karma)
- Settles Vata, warms and loosens stiffness (vatahara)
What it is
Sahacharadi Thailam is a medicated oil. The word Thailam means an oil that has been cooked with herbs rather than simply scented with them, and the oil takes its name from its chief herb, Sahachara, a shrub that grows in the hills of southern India.
The base is sesame oil, which Ayurveda treats as the finest of all oils for the body. Into it goes a decoction and a paste of Sahachara root, along with a handful of supporting herbs. The cooking carries the qualities of those herbs into the oil, so that what is left is a warm, penetrating oil with the Sahachara plant at its centre.
It is one of a large family of Vata-settling oils. Within that family it has a narrow reputation: the lower back, the hips and the legs.
What it is used for
In Ayurveda this oil is a Vatahara oil, which simply means it settles Vata, the dry, cold, mobile quality the texts hold responsible for stiffness, restlessness and the feeling of cold deep in the joints.
The tradition places it below the waist. Where the legs feel heavy or stiff, where the lower back is tight, where movement in the hips and knees feels restricted, this is the oil the classical writers name. It is warming and it spreads, and those two qualities are what the lower body is thought to need when Vata has settled there.
It is used almost entirely on the skin, warmed and rubbed in. The classical texts do describe internal use of medicated oils, but only as a supervised procedure, never as something taken at home.
How it is made
The method is the standard one for a Thailam, set down long ago in the classical manuals.
First a Kashayam, a decoction, is made by boiling the Sahachara root in plenty of water and reducing it down to a quarter of its volume. This pulls the water-soluble part of the herb into the liquid. Separately, a fine paste called Kalka is ground from the herbs.
The sesame oil, the decoction and the paste are then cooked together slowly. The water boils off over hours, leaving only the oil holding the herbal qualities. The maker watches for the classical signs that the cooking is complete: the paste, rolled between the fingers, forms a soft wick, and the oil stops throwing off steam. The oil is then strained while warm and stored.
How it is used
The simplest way is the traditional one. A small amount is warmed to a comfortable temperature, then rubbed into the lower back, hips and legs with firm, long strokes, following the lie of the body hair. It is left on the skin for twenty to thirty minutes and then washed off with warm water. This is Abhyanga, the daily oiling of the body, applied to one region.
In a treatment room the same oil is used in the Kerala procedures, where warm oil is poured and held against the lower back or the knee for a longer time. Those are done by trained hands, not at home.
As with any oil, a small patch is tested on the inner forearm before the first full use.
Good to know
This is a warming oil. Its whole character is heat and penetration, which is why the tradition keeps it for cold, stiff, heavy complaints and steers it away from anything hot or inflamed. Where there is already heat in the body, a cooler oil is preferred.
This entry describes the classical Ayurvedic understanding of the oil. It is not medical advice, and anyone with a health condition, or who is pregnant or nursing, should speak to a qualified practitioner before use.
Frequently asked
What is Sahacharadi Thailam used for? Traditionally it is massaged into the lower back, hips and legs to settle Vata, the quality Ayurveda links with cold, dryness and stiffness in the lower body. It is an external oil.
What is the main herb? Sahachara, a shrub of southern India, cooked into a sesame oil base along with a few supporting herbs.
Is it warming or cooling? Warming. That is its defining quality, and the reason the tradition keeps it for cold, stiff complaints rather than hot ones.
How is it applied? Warm a small amount, rub it into the lower body with long firm strokes, leave it for twenty to thirty minutes, then wash off with warm water. Always patch test first.
The oil cooked with Sahachara is praised for the disorders of wind that settle in the lower limbs.
After the Sahasrayogam, on Vata-settling oils
Frequently asked questions
What is Sahacharadi Thailam used for?
Sahacharadi Thailam is a classical Ayurvedic medicated oil built on the Sahachara plant, traditionally massaged into the lower back, hips and legs to settle Vata. The tradition classes it as vatahara, warming and loosening stiffness. It is a well known oil for the lower body and Vata complaints, used in Abhyanga and, where clinical, under a practitioner.
What is Sahachara in Sahacharadi Thailam?
Sahachara is Barleria prionitis, a thorny flowering shrub Ayurveda values for settling Vata, especially in the lower body. It heads the group of herbs (the adi) cooked into this oil, giving the preparation its name and its Vata settling, lower body character. The finished oil carries a bitter and astringent taste from its herbs (tikta, kashaya).
How do you apply Sahacharadi Thailam?
Sahacharadi Thailam is used as a warm massage oil in Abhyanga, worked into the lower back, hips and legs where Vata complaints settle, and it also enters classical therapies such as Basti and Dhara. Warm the oil gently before use. For any therapeutic application to the lower body, use it under an Ayurvedic practitioner's guidance.
Is Sahacharadi Thailam good for the lower back and legs?
Ayurveda traditionally associates Sahacharadi Thailam with the lower back, hips and legs, using it as a vatahara oil to settle Vata, warm the area and loosen stiffness. It is one of the classical oils for the lower body. It is a traditional support for stiff, aching, Vata affected regions, not a treatment for any named condition.
Which dosha does Sahacharadi Thailam settle?
Sahacharadi Thailam chiefly settles Vata, the Dosha Ayurveda links with stiffness, ache and coldness of the lower body. Its warming, loosening action suits Vata complaints, while its herbs carry a bitter and astringent taste. Being warming, it is less suited to high Pitta or heated conditions. A practitioner matches it to your constitution and complaint.
References
- Sahasrayogam, the section on medicated oils (Taila Prakarana).
- Ashtanga Hridayam, Chikitsasthana, on the oils used in disorders of Vata.
- Sharangadhara Samhita, Madhyama Khanda, on the method of cooking medicated oils.