Pattimugam: A Treasure of Health Benefits. A Reminder to Decolonize The Mind. And Ancestral Grace.
What starts as orangish woodchips in a boiling saucepan, unleashes a glorious flood of red. Held up to the light, the deep wine red colour is startling, so pure red it is almost unreal… You raise it to your lips. There’s a hint of sweetness, a curl of sour, a faint smoky taste. No, we are not wine-tasting, but herb tasting…
As I sip at Pattimugam infusion, I follow the trail of aura energy. Studying where it brightens and stimulates. The obvious effect is at the heart area. Then fainter is an effect at the navel area, either side of navel areas. And yes the root. And fainter still the Bindu. Definitely good for us.
That done I delve into the medicinal benefits. Known to Ayurveda and traditional herbalists for centuries, the effects marry beautifully with what the aura has revealed to us.
- It is positive for the heart.
- Good for digestion.
- Positive for acne.
- Is good for Epilepsy.
- Helps with Allergies.
- And has an anti-microbial effect.Pattimugam comes from The Sappanwood Tree, also called the East Indian Rosewood. A traditional herbal health booster from Kerala and Tamil Nadu, we however have not encountered it in Kerala at a grandma’s kitchen. Repeat NOT. Instead we encounter it in Jan 2021. It’s a gift from Vasu returning from Waynad.
And as we pause here, we realize that there are a host of lessons.
First, we need to PROTECT BIODIVERSITY: there are an incredible host of goodness we can receive from nature. We can, if we preserve and value the gifts of the green. There are innumerable such herbal plants and knowledge in every part of the world.
Second, VALUE TRADITIONAL HERBAL KNOWLEDGE. Even though a Keralite, I Tarun had not heard of Pattimugam. Ever. I have heard of a related herbal prophylactic KaringyalliVellam. But never of Pattimugam. And I should have, for it clearly has a host of goodies… from being good for the heart to being an allergy fighter…
Third, SHAKING OFF WESTERN BLINKERS. So why have I never heard of Pattimugam? Partly because most of my education is from ‘Western Schools’ {Like most reading this}. And partly because in our modern world, vitamins are trusted more than ancient folklore. And partly because my immediate family, while very much a part of Kerala culture, has spent most of our ‘Government’ life away from Kerala. And partly because, my cultural heritage of Syrian Christian, has a slight bias away from more traditional mores, and healing practices. Often when people talk down of westernization, it’s easy to look at that as just obscurantism being praised. Here we see how much we can lose if we continue to follow Western Science's bias against the herbalist, the witch doctor, non-lab wisdom.
Fourth, TRUST YOUR AURA SENSING. The aura pointers we got are clearly useful. Pattimugam has an effect on the Heart, Navel, Root, & Bindu areas. Which means that functions connected with those areas will show some effect. Clearly aura sensing can be useful, when dealing with unknown foods, or situations. That said we are not saying that aura sensing is all-revealing. Let’s examine this closer shall we?
Our Aura Scan of someone drinking Pattimugam revealed a green glow at the heart area. This covers both the heart, and lungs, but a closer inspection eliminated the Lungs. How exactly does it help the heart? That will take deeper research, psychic and otherwise. At least for Tarun this will be The No 1 Benefit.
The aura positives at the navel area reveals both positives in absorption, but also offers defensiveness. Now Pattimugam offers wideranging benefits, including diarrhea…
Drinking Pattimugam has a slight effect on the root chakra/ area. But that centre covers a wide spectrum. So what would auras say we focus on… When looked closely, the area stimulated at the root was in a sector that dealt with outward appearance.
Next the energy sensed at the Bindu gave a slight shivery feeling. Again The Bindu deals with a range of functions from memory to strokes, etc., The only giveaway that Pattimugam may help with epilepsy is a slight shivery feeling.
Looked at like this you understand both the strengths and limitations of Aura Sensing. It can offer vital clues. But is it all-revealing?
Fifth, CHALLENGE YOURSELF PSYCHICALLY. As you saw above, aura sensing requires us to listen deeply to intuition’s voice. And so how can one strengthen it? By listening, testing, practicing.
Celia & I personally had no clue as to what The Sappanwood Tree looks like. Frankly till a day or two ago we hadn’t even heard it exists. This gave us an opportunity: We performed a very interesting experiment to test our aura-sensing. We asked ourselves what The Sappanwood Flower looks like. Both Celia & I independently got a Yellowish-Orange. Precisely what the internet confirmed.
Sixth, SPIRITUAL GIFT: ANCESTRAL CLEANSING. We have covered a number of foods and herbs like Chocolate and Cauliflower, and in each case we have formally acknowledged that each creature plant, mineral, animal, is a spiritual entity and so can enrich our lives. So how can Sappanwood?
Basically, Pattimugam helps keep ancestral voices and compulsions under check. Psychically we get that with prolonged consumption it seems to help regulate gene expression dealing with stress and anger.
Vasu’s Waynad Holiday has gifted us a bounty. Let us treasure it. Share it. Will Pattimugam become as famed as Champagne? It should. It’s far better for us.
By Celia & Tarun Cherian.
Other 'Healing' Food Articles!
15 Amazing Health, Mental & Spiritual Gifts of Palm Fruit. May 2017
Healthy Chocolate, Spiritual Chocolate. July 2017
The Incredible Health & Psychic Benefits of Cauliflower. Jan 2018, Masters, Tarun & Celia Cherian talk about The Generous Cauliflower.