Vansa

Arindam Mallick M.Pharma(Ayurveda) Section : Y1153

Botanical Name: Bambusa arundinacea Family: Graminae / Poaceae Sub family: Bambusoideae

 Vernacular Names: Sanskrit: Vansa Trinadhwaja Tavaphala Sataparva Venu Hindi: Bans Bengali: Baans English: Bamboo

Introduction
Bamboo, any of the tall, treelike grasses comprising the subfamily Bambusoideae of the family Poaceae. More than 75 genera and 1,000 species of bamboos have been proposed in botanical literature, but many names are synonymous and thus not considered legitimate.

Description
It is a large grass, grows upto 30 meters in height. Stems tufted on a stout root-stock, nodes prominent, internodes upto 45 cm. long.

 Leaves 17.5 20.5 long and 2-2.5 cm broad, linear or linear -lanceolate, tip stiff, glabrous or puberulous beneath, margins scabrous, base cilliate, mid-rib narrow. Petiole very short.

 Inflorescence: 5-8 mm long, Flowers are seen in large branched panicles, bisexual, small yellowish, grooved on one side.

 Flowering and Fruiting : Once in life time, often during September. Fruits are oblong grains, grooved at one side.

 Useful part: Young leaf(Patrankur), Grains, Bamboo manna, Root. The Bamboo manna is called as Vansa lochana, which are known as Vamsa Yava. Vansa lochan is the siliceous crystals, occurs in the hollow part of the stem of bamboo. Occurrence: Throughout India growing wild, also cultivated Chemical constituents:

Chemical constituent: Shoot has active constituents are Oxalic acid, reducing sugar, resins, waxes, HCN, benzoic acid (Ghosh et al., 1938), diferuloyl arabinoxylanhexasaccharide, diferuloyl oligosaccharide (Tadash, 1991), (5, 5-di--(diferul-9, 9dioyl)-*-Larabinofuranosyl-(13)-O--D-xylopyranosyl-9 (14) D-xylopyranose] (taxiphyllin) (Leslic, 1978). Seed contain arginine, cysteine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylamine, threonine, valine, tyrosine, niacin, riboflavin, thiamine (Chatterjee and Pakrashi, 2001). Leaves mainly contain Protein, gluteline, contains lysine, methionine, betain, cholin, proteolytic enzyme, nuclease, urease (Chatterjee and Pakrashi, 2001).

 Rasa Panchak:
Rasa- Madhura (Sweet); Kashaya (Astringent) Guna- Ruksha (Un-unctuous); Laghu (Light); Teekshna (Sharp in action) Virya- Sheeta (Cold) Vipaka- Madhura (Sweet) Dosh karma- Vanshamoola kaphapitta shamaka; Patrankur and fruit Pittavardhaka; Vanshoalochana Vatapittashamaka;

Uses: External Paste of root used in Varnavikar, Bhasma used in Dadru, Kushtha and Khalitya. Internal: Alimentary system: Agnimandya, Ajeerna, krimi, Vamana, Atisara, Trishna roga. Circulatory system: Hridroga Respiratory system: Swas, Kasa, Genital organ: Vanshlochana is a good aphrodisiac(vrisya)

 Urinary sytem: Vanshlochana cleanses the urinary system(Vasti Shodhana) Vanshlochanapossess cutting action so it is used in kidney stones(Chhedana) Satmikaran: Bruhana: Vanshlochana nourishes the body so increases the bulk of body Balya: Vanshlochanaincreases the strength of body.

 Dose: Decoction 50 100 ml. Vansalochana 1- 3 g. Note: Decoction of bamboo nodes (20 g.) and Satapuspa (40 g.) mixed with jaggery induce mensturation. In case of Alarka visa, Ankota(Alangium salvifolium) root and Vansa root pounded with milk and given to the patient.