Ashwagandharishta

What it is

Ashwagandharishta is an arishtam, a gently fermented Ayurvedic tonic. An arishtam is made by leaving a sweetened herbal liquid to ferment slowly. As it ferments, a small amount of natural alcohol forms of its own accord, and this both preserves the tonic and helps it carry the qualities of the herbs into the body. What you are left with is a dark, sweet, keeping liquid, taken by the spoonful.

The name tells you where the formula rests. Ashwagandha is the herb the whole preparation is built upon, and arishta names the fermented form. Around the Ashwagandha the classical formula gathers a company of supporting herbs. Among them the texts name Musali, Manjishtha, Haridra, Daruharidra, Yashtimadhu (licorice), Rasna, Vidari, Arjuna, Chandana and the Trikatu, the three warming spices of long pepper, black pepper and dried ginger. This sweetened decoction is set to ferment with jaggery and the flowers of Dhataki, whose skins carry the wild yeasts that begin the fermentation, so that over a set period the liquid matures into a mild, self-generated preparation. The finished character the tradition settles on is Balya, strengthening; Rasayana, rejuvenating; Medhya, supporting the mind; and settling to the dry, restless quality of Vata.

What Ayurveda uses it for

In the classical texts Ashwagandharishta belongs to the nourishing, steadying side of Ayurveda, drawing together the strengthening reputation of Ashwagandha with the gentle, carrying nature of a fermented tonic. The sources describe the preparation as traditionally indicated in a familiar set of conditions, each named here in its classical Sanskrit term with a plain gloss:

• Unmada and Apasmara: the classical groups of disturbance of the mind, where its Medhya, mind-supporting quality is called upon.
• Daurbalya and Karshya: debility and thinness, where its building, nourishing character is reached for.
• Shosha: the classical picture of wasting and depletion.
• Vata-vikara: the broad class of Vata complaints, given its steadying action on that dry, mobile quality.
• Shukra-daurbalya: weakness of the reproductive vitality, the seat of its place among the strengthening tonics.
• Anidra: poor and unsettled sleep.
• Smriti-daurbalya: weakness of the memory, again the province of its Medhya action.

These are the traditional textual indications recorded in the classical literature. They set out how Ayurveda has long understood the preparation and are given for reference and study, not as statements of medical effect or as advice to treat any condition.

What is in it

The preparation is built on Ashwagandha, which gives the tonic its name and its leading character as a strengthening and steadying herb. To this the classical formula adds a considered company of supporting herbs. Musali and Vidari lend their own nourishing, building quality; Manjishtha and Chandana bring a cooling, settling note; Haridra and Daruharidra are the turmeric pair; Yashtimadhu, the licorice root, adds sweetness and a soothing softness; Rasna and Arjuna round out the group; and the Trikatu, the three warming spices of long pepper, black pepper and dried ginger, keeps the sweetness from sitting heavily and helps the digestion take the tonic up.

The fermentation itself rests on two further ingredients. Jaggery supplies the sugars that the fermentation needs, and the flowers of Dhataki carry the wild yeasts that set it going. Together these turn the sweetened herbal liquid slowly into the finished arishtam, with its dark colour, its faint fermented note and the small amount of alcohol that preserves it.

How it is taken

Ashwagandharishta is taken in a small measure, classically a spoonful, and usually diluted with an equal part of water, which softens the tonic and suits its measured use. The customary time to take it is after food.

Like the other members of the fermented family it is used as a course over a stretch of days, as a building and steadying tonic, rather than as a single dose. The sweet, nourishing, warming character that suits the dry, depleted quality of Vata means the tradition uses it with more thought in someone heavy and congested, where a lighter preparation would be favoured.

Good to know

Ashwagandharishta sits among the slow, building preparations of Ayurveda, drawing its reputation from Ashwagandha and carrying it in the gentle, fermented form of an arishtam. Because a small amount of alcohol forms naturally in the fermentation, it is taken in small, measured doses, usually diluted with water, and this is part of how the tonic works and keeps. A well-made arishtam keeps for a long time, and the tradition holds that it settles and improves with a little age.

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

Frequently asked

Does Ashwagandharishta contain alcohol? A small amount, yes. It forms naturally during the fermentation and is part of how an arishtam works and keeps. The tonic is taken in small, measured doses, usually diluted with an equal part of water.

How is it different from taking Ashwagandha powder? It is the same leading herb carried in a different form. Where the powder is dry, the arishtam is a fermented liquid, sweetened and matured with its supporting herbs, which the tradition holds makes the preparation gentle to take and easy for the body to receive.

How is it usually taken? By the spoonful, most often diluted with an equal part of water, and after food. It is used as a course over a stretch of days, as a building and steadying tonic, rather than as a single dose.