Botanical Name

Bauhinia variegata L

Family

Fabaceae/Leguminosae

Synonyms

Bauhinia chinensis (DC.) Vogel, Bauhinia decora Uribe, Bauhinia variegata var. chinensis DC, Bauhinia variegata var. variegata, Phanera variegata (L.)Benth.

Regional Name

English : Mountain Ebony, Hindi :Kachanar, Kanchanar, Kachnar, Sanskrit :Kancanaraka, Punjabi :Kanchnar, Urdu : Kanchnal Burmese, Bwaycheng, Bwechin, Assamese :Kancan, Kanchan, Bengali :Kanchana, RaktaKanchana,Gujrati :Champakati, Kanchnar, Kachnar, Kannada :Keyumandar, Kanchavala, Kashmiri : Kalad, Malayalam : ChuvannaMandharam, Marathi : Kanchana, Raktakancana,Oriya :Kachana, Kaniara, Tamil :Sigappumandarai, Sihappumantarai, Telugu : Deva Kanchanam.

Part Used

Stem Bark.

Description

Kachnar is found in South and Southeast Asia, from southern  China, Burma,  India,  Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka.Within India, it is found throughout, ascending to an altitude of 1300 m. in the Himalayas. It is a small to medium-sized tree growing to 10–12 metres (33–39 ft) tall. Leaves are split at the tip dividing the leaf into two halves, broad, rounded, 10-20 cm long.Flowers conspicuous, bright pink or white, 8-12 cm diameter, with five petals, fruit pod 15-30 cm long, containing many seeds.  Phytoconstituents Kachnar bark contains tannins and a brown coloured sticky gum like liquid.

Ayurvedic Properties

Rasa - Kasaya, Guna - Laghu, Ruksa, Virya - Sita, Vipaka - Katu, Karma -  Dipana, Grahi, Tridosahara, Gandavrddhihara.

Ayurvedic Applications

Apaci, Gandamala, Krmiroga, Vrana, Gudabhramsa.

Medicinal Uses

The bark and buds of tree are alterative and astringent. It is used for treating leprosy, Scrofula, Ulcers, mouth disorders, tumours, intestinal worms, wounds, inflammations, skin diseases, protoptosis, haemorrhoids, haemoptysis, goiter, galaganda, cough, and other diseases. It is used to treatment of menorrhagia and bleeding disorders such as abnormally heavy or prolonged menstruation, bleeding piles, blood in urine.