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Cow's
Urine
The
urine of man, cow, goat, sheep, buffalo, elephant, horse and
camel have been described
in Ayurveda for their medicinal properties.
Urine
aggravates pitta. It is sharp, ununctuous, hot, saline in
anurasa (subsidiary taste) and pungent. It cures krimi
(parasitic infection), sopha (oedema), udara (abdominal
disease including ascites), anaha (flatulence), sula (colic
pain), aggravation of kapha as well as vayu, gulma (phantom
tumour), aruchi (anorexia), visa (poisoning), suitra (leucoderma)
and kustha (obstinate skin diseases including leprosy).
"
Urine of the healthy cow should considered the best amongst
those of other
animals".
Traditionally, it is believed to be holy and pure when sprayed
in courtyards and homes
Properties:
Various authors have highlighted the
properties of Gomutra, which are: bitter, salty, warm, light,
Sweetish, earthy in flavour, bhedak, lekhan, etc. 1,2,3.
Physiological Effects:
Gomutra
has been found to be a good digestive, laxative and a
neutralizing agent against toxins. With regard to the
Ayurvedic concept of tridosha, Gomutra is said to be a
vitiator of kapha and is reported to alleviate vata and pitta
disorders.
Beneficial Effects:
Cow's urine has been described in Ayurveda
as a therapeutic agent. Gomutra is used as a cure for various
diseases such as anaemia 5.6, jaundice 7, rakta pitta 8, heart
diseases 9, piles 10 and hoarseness of voice II as the main
treatment or as anupan, i.e. as a base for other plant derived
drugs or minerals such as loha-bhasma or loha-churna. It is
interesting to know that cow's fermented urine is also used in
Africa as a treatment for malaria 12; cattle do not suffer
from malaria although there is babesiosis, an infection of red
cells.
Recent
Studies:
Emerging
data on cow's urine have reported its anti-fungal effects 13,
its role as
Plant growth stimulator 14 and in bio-gas reactors as a growth
substrate for methanogenic
Bacteria.
An observation made by Dr. A.D.B. Vaidya was
that when Shri Shamjibhai at Audiogram sprayed diluted cow’s
urine on mango flowers, it protected the plant form pathogenic
fungi, which destroyed the fruit crops of unsprayed trees.
Mostly, cow's urine is given orally directly
or indirectly in the form of pills along with other
ingredients. Thus, it becomes necessary to study the profile
of micro-organisms present in urine. As the urine is taken
orally, it should be devoid of any pathogen, preferably any
organisms and toxic chemicals.
The
anti-fungal or more specifically anti- Fusarium subglutinans
activity (in vitro) of cow's urine has been studied in Brazil
13. Our study of Gomutra was based on this study and has
successfully demonstrated that Gomutra is also inhibitory to
common human pathogens that were tested.The
study of Fusarium subglutinans reports only a decrease in
growth of the fungus (no inhibition) at less than 500/0
concentration of cow's urine.
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