arishtam

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> How does on prepare arishtams(herbal wines)?

 

there are many recipes - it depends on what you are doing

the basic recipe it to prepare a strong decoction, add lots of sugar

(when hot) or honey (when cool), and let it ferment in a sealed vessel

that is buried in the ground

 

get a copy of the Sharangadhara samhita (Srikanthamurthy translation)

for specific recipes

 

> I recently ordered an

> arishtam and it had a note on the label saying that it contained only

> self-generated alcohol. These seems to me a more benign way of

> ingesting herbs as compared to commercially available herbs that are

> soaked in strong alcohols(eg rum).

 

nobody macerates herbs in rum

its just pure distilled ethanol, usually from grain, sugar, or agave

 

a tincture adds a katu rasa, whereas a fermentation adds amla

further, tinctures are usually filtered, and thus the net result is a

product devoid of its "body"

but since arishtams are also filtered and decanted, they also lack the

body of the herb

 

to get the body in a tincture one must prepare a spagyric tincture by

calcifying the marc (i.e. the exhausted herb) and returning this back

to the tincture

Herbalist and Alchemist is a company in New Jersey that specializes in

spagyrics

 

natural fermentations such as asavam and arishtam are excellent

remedies, but the dosages are higher, and because they usually taste

bad, compliance can be an issue

 

also, b/c the alcohol content is low, sometimes they may go bad on you

so its best to use them up within a few weeks after opening

 

that said, i have some musta arishtam i bought in India in 1997 that

appears to be ok

i bet if i cultured it tho, i could get some creatures growing...

 

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> Also how does the potency of an arishtam compare with a decoction or

> an infusion?

 

the amla rasa increases the bioavailability, and adds an ushna virya

 

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> Also someone mentioned to me that according to the classical texts,

> preparations of aristhams are to commence on a certain day in the

> lunar calender(I think it the full moon), is this true? Have there

> been studies comparing the potency of preparations made on the full-

> moon vs. a preparations made on a non-full moon day?

 

herbalists all over the world observe lunar cycles when preparing

medicines

not sure about arishtams, but western herbalists traditionally prepare

a medicine on the new moon and press it out on the full moon, such that

the energy of the moon has infused the remedy with power, and has added

to the extractive properties of the solvent

Caldecott

phyto

http://www.wrc.net/phyto