My teacher and mentor Vaidya Rama Kant Mishra had an encyclopedic knowledge of over 700 herbs. In fact, he was sent to America to develop formulas for one of America’s first Ayurvedic herbal companies, Maharishi Ayurvedic Products International (MAPI).
But of all the 700 herbs he used in his prize-winning formulations, his absolute favorite, and the herb he spoke about in the most hushed tones, was Guduchi, or Tinospora Cordifolia. He referred to it as divya aushaudhi or divine plant. In all of Ayurvedic medicine it is categorized as one of the 3 amrit or ambrosia plants.
The 16th century Ayurvedic treatise Bhava Prakasha, by Bhava Mishra, one of Vaidya Mishra’s ancestors, named it chinnodbhava which means “able to grow when cut.” Vaidya elaborated on this further stating that Guduchi possesses amrit siddhi, which means that it is so full of life energy that it has the ability to grow without soil or water in much the same way as the great rishis could live without food or water and instead subsisted on the pranic energy found in nature.
Let’s see why this herb is given such an elevated status as a sacred herb.
First of all, it is considered a great rasayana, which means that it can rejuvenate the body. Guduchi has the capability of rejuvenating all 7 bodily tissues, organs and organ systems as well as the mind.
It has an amazing property, known as jivanti which means it can restore life back to lifeless bodies. According to Hindu mythology during the war between Ravana and Lord Rama, Ravana killed the entire mighty army of monkeys that assisted Rama in the battlefield. But finally, when Ravana was killed at the hands of Lord Rama, Indra, the God of Rain and Thunder got pleased and brought the entire army back to life by showering them with drops of nectar. It is believed that the nectar drops that fell from heaven on the ground gave rise to the Guduchi herb, blessing it with incredible rejuvenative properties.
So what do you think these words mean? Jivanti, restoring life back to lifeless bodies, or this story about nectar drops giving rise to the Guduchi herb?
It’s always hard to wonder what the ancient sages meant when they used parables to describe certain concepts. Now that I’ve used Guduchi for over 35 years I can give you my up to date version of what they might have been trying to convey.
Remember, they didn’t have the modern medicinal terminology that we use today. But think about this, cancer is one of the most serious diseases we see today, responsible for millions of deaths each year. Now we know Guduchi contains high amounts of berberine, which has been researched extensively since it can prevent cancer from metastasizing. And it can attack and weaken cancer cells.
And right up there with cancer is heart disease and diabetes. It turns out, according to the Sloan-Kettering website, berberine is used to control cholesterol levels and diabetes, supporting healthy blood sugar, cholesterol and triglyceride levels. And they even go so far as recommending that people who can’t tolerate statin drugs to lower cholesterol take berberine instead. Now we know that sugar feeds cancer so some oncologists are starting to use the diabetes drug metformin in the fight against cancer because it lowers the blood sugar, which prevents cancer from growing. But it’s important to note that the herb berberine can do everything that metformin can do…and even more.
In fact berberine reduces glucose production in the liver and is as powerful as both metformin and glimepiride in controlling blood glucose levels. It also helps in losing weight. Blood sugar levels and excess weight are both linked to increased cancer risk and recurrence.
It has anti-inflammatory benefits, inhibiting Cox-2 expression, which means it inhibits the growth of cancer. Metformin does not exhibit this benefit.
Berberine has so many actions in the fight against cancer that it is being used in many of the protocols given by even mainstream medical doctors which they create for their cancer patients.
Now in Ayurveda, we don’t recommend the pharmaceutical approach of extracting the active ingredient out of an herb, since it will give side effects. Which is why the whole herb of Guduchi is given for cancer, diabetes and heart disease, instead of isolating out its berberine.
Since cancer, diabetes and heart disease are killing off a major part of the population, and if Guduchi has effects on treating these three, maybe this was why the ancient doctors said it could lift someone out of the clutches of death?
Vaidya Mishra always taught us that Guduchi is unique in that it is the only herb which can go into the very deep tissues, such as the bone marrow, brain and nerve tissue and clean it out.
The chemicals in many of the vaccines we receive go straight into the bone marrow. Once toxins arrive there you can develop chronic fevers, that could persist or come and go. I’ve seen so many children in my practice who get these recurring fevers after receiving too many vaccines, sometimes up to 7 in one day. Their poor bodies can’t tolerate such an influx of chemicals and many of these chemicals go straight into the bone marrow.
The ancient doctors said that if toxins were to get stuck in the bone marrow you could have recurring or persistent fevers. And sure enough this is what I see in the children I treat. And like a miracle, once we give them Guduchi, either the herbal memory nectar drops or transdermally through a cream on the skin because they are too young to take the actual powerful crude herb of guduchi, their fevers, most of which had been going on for months or even years, disappear immediately!
Many of the modern toxins, such as air pollution, pesticides and pharmaceuticals can also go into the brain and nerve tissue, since these types of chemical toxins tend to get stored in the fat tissue — and all the brain and nerve tissue contains lots of fat and cholesterol. And when toxins get into the brain you can get diseases such as Parkinson’s, Alzheimer’s, dementia and MS. So again, Guduchi comes to the rescue, as it can clean out the toxins in the brain and nerve cells.
Vaidya Mishra was emphatic in stating that guduchi was the absolute best herb for autoimmune diseases since it has the capability of cleaning both the liver and the bone marrow, two very important parts of the immune system which when compromised can cause autoimmune tendencies.
And whenever someone has had to take repeated doses of antibiotics or has been on a medication for a long time, such as birth control pills, statin drugs, and acid reflux medicines, Guduchi comes to the rescue to clear these fat-soluble chemicals out of the fatty tissues of the body, such as the brain, the bone marrow, liver, kidneys and fat cells.
When Covid made its way to India all the Ayurvedic doctors immediately started stockpiling Guduchi in its various forms since it is highly prized in modulating the immune system, which means that it helps the immune system behave the way it should. And sure enough, it’s been especially useful in treating the Covid virus because what is killing most people is the cytokine storm. This happens when an infection triggers your immune system to flood your bloodstream with inflammatory proteins called cytokines. But if too many are released they can kill tissue and damage your organs. Guduchi is famous for preventing a cytokine storm because it keeps the immune system functioning intelligently, preventing this hyper reaction from occurring.
And finally, Guduchi is the best herb for treating leukemia since its origins begin in the bone marrow. But you should work with an Ayurvedic practitioner before going on Guduchi if you have been diagnosed with leukemia. They can decide the best way for you to take it, depending on own your unique imbalances.
And in general, it’s always best anyway to be under the care of an experienced Ayurvedic physician who knows how to use the various herbs so they can determine what you can and can’t tolerate, and when it’s best to introduce a new herb to your protocol.
This is especially true if you want to take Guduchi. The Guduchi Satwa is made from the stem of the plant which is very starchy and alkaline.But the leaf of the plant is very heating. So you have to make sure your liver can handle it because if your liver is already hot and angry the leaves create a very strong detox reaction which could overwhelm your liver resulting in digestive upset or a skin rash. Even Guduchi Satwa, the more mild version can give some side effects if you have lots of toxins which have been stored through the years. In this case your practitioner may decide to start with the memory nectar drops or the transdermal version of it, both of which are just the vibration or the intelligence of what Guduchi does. This way you can let your body get used to it before you start the actual crude herb.
You also have to prepare the body’s physical channels before using an herb like Guduchi, so they can handle all the toxins that will be pouring out into the bowel movement, urine and sweat channels. Again, your practitioner will know how to do this.
Learning about Guduchi is highly recommended as it is definitely one of the most important herbs for promoting a long healthy life.
Thank you