Difference Between Thailam and Oil: A Plain Guide

The difference between thailam and oil is that a Thailam is a medicated oil, cooked slowly with herbs until it carries their qualities, while a plain oil is simply the base, such as sesame or coconut, with nothing added. One is a herbal preparation; the other is the raw material it is made from.

What a thailam is

A Thailam is a medicated oil, and the word is the South Indian form of the Sanskrit taila, meaning oil. What makes it medicated is the way it is made. A plain oil is warmed in a heavy pan, and into it are cooked a paste of ground herbs and a herbal liquid such as a decoction or milk. The mixture is held over a low, steady heat for hours, until the watery part has fully cooked off and only the oil remains, now holding the oil-borne qualities of the herbs. The classical texts call this method sneha-paka, the cooking of oil, and the Sharangadhara Samhita sets out exact signs for judging when it is done.

The point of the method is that oil is a good carrier. A fresh herb acts quickly and passes quickly, while an oil holds the qualities of its herbs and releases them slowly, and an oily substance is understood in Ayurveda to travel deep, reaching the joints, the muscles and the fine channels beneath the skin. This is why so much of Ayurvedic care rests on medicated oils, and why the tradition took such trouble to perfect their making. Named oils such as Dhanwantharam, Ksheerabala and Kottamchukkadi are all thailams of this kind, each directed at a purpose. For the wider family they belong to, see the formulations of Ayurveda.

What a plain oil is

A plain oil is the base, and nothing more. In Ayurveda that base is most often Tila taila, sesame oil, which the tradition holds to be the finest of the oils. Even before any herb is cooked into it, the classical texts describe sesame oil as warming, oily, penetrating and stable, and they class it as the great settler of Vata, the dry, light, mobile quality of the body. Coconut oil, the other common base, is cooling by nature and suits Pitta, the hot, sharp quality, and hot climates.

So a plain oil is not nothing. It carries its own qualities and has its own everyday use. Plain warm sesame oil is used on its own for Abhyanga, the daily oil massage, and the Ashtanga Hridayam praises this simple daily oiling of the body as one of the most valuable of habits. What a plain oil lacks is the added direction of herbs. It is the material a thailam begins from, useful in itself, but general rather than aimed. You can read more about the quality it settles on the page for Vata.

The difference that matters

Set side by side, the two differ in a few plain ways.

Preparation. A plain oil is simply pressed and refined. A thailam is that same oil after it has been cooked with herbs by the slow sneha-paka method, a real pharmacy process rather than a mixing.

What is in it. A plain oil carries only the qualities of the base. A thailam carries the qualities of the base plus those of the herbs cooked into it, which is what gives it its particular character and direction.

Purpose. A plain oil is a general carrier, used for everyday oiling and cooking. A thailam is directed at a purpose, and often at a particular dosha, which is announced by its name and its herbs.

How it is used. A plain oil suits a simple daily massage. A thailam is chosen for the aim it is made for, and the potent ones are used with more care, matched to the person and the season.

Potency. Because it carries herbs as well as oil, a thailam is the stronger, more specific preparation, while a plain oil is the gentler, everyday material.

How to tell them apart, and which to choose

Telling them apart in practice is usually a matter of the label and the name. A plain oil is named for its source: sesame oil, coconut oil, castor oil. A thailam is named for its herbs or its purpose, and the name ends in taila or thailam: Bala Thailam is cooked with Bala, Ksheerabala with milk and Bala, Dhanwantharam for the physician-deity Dhanwantari. If the name announces a herb or a formula, you are looking at a medicated oil; if it names only the source, it is a plain base oil.

Choosing between them follows from what you want. For a simple daily oiling to steady the body and settle the dry, mobile quality of Vata, plain warm sesame oil is the classical answer and needs nothing added. For a particular aim, the joints, the head, the lower back, the skin, the tradition reaches for the thailam made for it, because the herbs give the oil its direction. The rule of thumb is that the general need is met by the plain oil, and the specific need by the matching thailam. Where the picture is a heated, Pitta one, a cooling coconut base is preferred over a warming sesame one, whether plain or medicated.

Good to know

Both are oils, and both are, used correctly, among the gentler forms of Ayurvedic care, but the medicated oils ask for a little more thought. A thailam is chosen for its herbs, so it should be matched to the purpose and, where relevant, the dosha, rather than used at random. Warm the oil rather than applying it hot, patch test on reactive skin, and keep any oil away from the eyes unless it is expressly made for them. A thailam meant for external massage is not to be swallowed, and any oil intended to be taken internally, or any strong classical therapy, should be used only on the advice of a qualified practitioner.

This guide describes the classical Ayurvedic understanding of medicated and plain oils for education. It is not medical advice, and anyone pregnant or managing a health condition should speak to a qualified doctor or registered Ayurvedic practitioner before using any oil.