Medicine Traditions
  • Home
  • About
  • Resources
    • Brief Overview of Traditional Medicine
    • Timeline
    • Authors and Sources
    • Glossaries
    • Articles on Traditional Medicine
    • Photos
    • Medicine Pictures
    • Substitute Medicines
  • Theory
  • Materia Medica
    • Ayurvedic Materia Medica
    • Chinese Materia Medica
    • Tibetan Materia Medica
    • Unani Materia Medica
    • Materia Medica of Herbal Medicine FREE
    • Materia Medica of Herbal Medicine PRO
    • Mineral Materia Medica
    • Animal Materia Medica
    • Chinese Classification
    • Western Classification
    • Humoral Medicine
    • Herbal Combinations
  • Formulas
  • Treatment
    • Types of Treatment in Traditional Medicine
    • Treatment of Specific Conditions
    • Diseases and Formulas
  • Patient Resources
  • Links & Texts
  • Contact Us
  • Store
  • Blog
Sentry Page Protection
Please Wait...

Tourmaline

Schorl is the black variety
Vaikranta (Sanskrit)
Di Qi Shi (TCM)

Picture
Photo: Rob Lavinsky, iRocks.com

Minerological name:
Tourmaline; Boron aluminosilicate

Parts used:
Prepared stone
There are various colored Tourmaline but only black is used in medicine.

Temperature & Taste:
Cool, dry. Pungent, Bitter, Salty. Tourmaline is said to have all 6 tastes in Ayurveda.

PROPERTIES:
Crystal system: Trigonal
Color: Black
Streak: Colorless
Cleavage: None; prismatic faces striated vertically
Fracture: Uneven
Luster: Vitreous
Tenacity: Brittle; sometimes friable
Hardness: 7-7.5
Specific Gravity: 3-3.2
Has Pyroelectric and Piezoelectric properties.
Not affected by acids

Constituents:
Sodium iron aluminum boro-silicate hydroxide (Na(Fe,Mn)3Al6B3Si6O27(OH)3(OH,F))
It can have traces of various other minerals including calcium, potassium, magnesium, lithium

Uses:
1. Nourishes Yin, Benefits Essence:
-In Ayurveda it is classed as a Rasayana (Tonic to the 7 Body Tissues) and said to alleviate all 3 Dosas (Humors)
-used as a substitute for Diamond Bhasma in Ayurveda.
-makes the body strong; good for diseases of old age.
-Weakness, Anemia, Chronic and obstinate Illnesses including Tuberculosis.
-Sterility, Seminal disorders
-Obstinate Urinary diseases including Diabetes.

2. Clears Heat and Damp, Rests Poison:
-Fever.
-Jaundice, Syphilis and Gonorrhea
-Obstinate Abdominal Diseases including Ascites

3. Benefits the Lungs, Relieves Cough:
-Cough, Bronchitis, Dyspnoea;
-Chronic Lung disease including Tuberculosis.
    
4. Calms Mind and Spirit:
-eases Nervousness, calms the Mind
-aids Concentration, Intellect and Wit.
-traditionally used for a sense of Dread.
-traditionally used to Protect from Evil


DOSE:
125–250mg of the Bhasma (Ayurveda)

COMMENT:
Tourmaline is often found in Diamond mines, and when turned into Bhasma, it is used for similar purposes to Diamond Bhasma. In modern times Tourmaline is often used as a substitute for Diamond Bhasma in Ayurveda.

PREPARATION:
It is used in the form of Bhasma.
To purify Tourmaline: It is boiled in Dola Yantra for 3 hours with a Decoction of Dolichos biflora. It is then submitted to Bhasma.

Main Combinations:

Cautions:
1. Standard cautions for using Gem stones.
2. According to the Ayurvedic Pharmacopeia of India it should not contain more than the following limits of Heavy metals and Arsenic: Lead 11 ppm; Arsenic 4 ppm, Cadmium 2ppm.

Main Preparations used:

Home
ABOUT
RESOURCES

materia medica – FREE
Materia Medica – PRO
Classifications


Diseases & Formulas
Links & Texts
Patient Resources

Shop
Texts for Sale
Contact us

TERMS OF USE

PRIVACY POLICY

Copyright © 2015–2020
  • Home
  • About
  • Resources
    • Brief Overview of Traditional Medicine
    • Timeline
    • Authors and Sources
    • Glossaries
    • Articles on Traditional Medicine
    • Photos
    • Medicine Pictures
    • Substitute Medicines
  • Theory
  • Materia Medica
    • Ayurvedic Materia Medica
    • Chinese Materia Medica
    • Tibetan Materia Medica
    • Unani Materia Medica
    • Materia Medica of Herbal Medicine FREE
    • Materia Medica of Herbal Medicine PRO
    • Mineral Materia Medica
    • Animal Materia Medica
    • Chinese Classification
    • Western Classification
    • Humoral Medicine
    • Herbal Combinations
  • Formulas
  • Treatment
    • Types of Treatment in Traditional Medicine
    • Treatment of Specific Conditions
    • Diseases and Formulas
  • Patient Resources
  • Links & Texts
  • Contact Us
  • Store
  • Blog