Did you know that Navara Rice a variety of Oryza Sativa, a special kind of rice grown exclusively in some districts of Kerala, is used in panchakarma treatment, the five therapeutic measures for complete Detoxification of body, called Navarakizhi?
Navara Rice is a special variety of Oryza sativa, an Asian rice, which is cultivated largely in Palakkad and neighboring districts of Kerala state. It is called Navarakizhi in Kerala and is known as Shashtikashali in Ayurveda and is a replenishing drink, called karkidakakanji, and is effective in curing fatigue.particularly famous as the critical ingredient of a Kerala panchakarma specialty treatment procedure, a traditional rejuvenation therapy, undertaken for complete detoxification of body. It is a unique grain grass plant in the Oryza group which originated somewhere in Kerala and regarded as endemic. By officially assigning it a geographical indication status (GI tag), in 2017, granted by Government of India, Navara and Palakkadan Matta varieties of rice are a mark of assurance of quality and distinctiveness derived from a defined geographical region.
This particular rice is mentioned in ancient Ayurvedic texts like 'Ashtanga Hridaya' and 'Susruta Samhita', as a 'pious grain' used on auspicious occasions. Navara also has religious significance and is sometimes used in temples for ceremonies. Navara is grown since ancient times, known as 'Shashtika rice' named so as as it takes a short span of 60 days to grow and mature. The field in which Navara is cultivated is known as 'Sastikyam'. It is of two kinds, the white glumed (hu sked) and black glumed (katalakam ). The 12th century Ayurvedic text, Ashtangahridayam, describes the white Navara as medicinally superior but the black glumed variety seems to be preferred by physicians today. It is a graismika (summer) variety of rice. Its use in Ayurvedic treatment is prescribed as a health food for people of all ages.
Grown mainly in Palakkad's endless vistas of green paddy fields in Kerala, the rice belt of Kerala, Navara is Kerala's indigenous medicinal cereal plant. Herbal healers have endorsed its rich medicinal properties. It is a unique cereal having high content of free amino acids.
Navara rice's claim to fame in Kerala as a special cereal, is its wide adaptation particularly in Ayurveda treatment for massaging human body using small hot pouches of clean cloth with small quantities of specially cooked Navara rice dipped in Kashayas (a decoction of the herb or tonics prepared with Navara Rice, Sid cordifolia (a perennial subshrub of the mallow family Malvaceae native to India called kurunthotti in Malayalam) powder, cows milk, and boiled with water) hyped to cure Arthritis, Rheumatoid Arthritis, paralysis and neurological disorders. Two masseurs use 8 pouches of Navara cooked rice, one masseur for the lower body and the other for the upper body knead the patients body - first four bundles are used for massaging and then the next four bundles dipped in Kashaya.
Consumed as cooled rice, it is said to promote the growth of Red Blood Cells (RBC ) in the blood and a helpful remedy for Anemia patient. The porridge of Navara grains in milk is prescribed as special food for invalids and infants. Boiled Navara is said to be a good weaning food for infants, particularly those with low weight. It is a replenishing drink, called karkidakakanji in Kerala, and is effective in curing fatigue.
The cultivation of Navara, being restricted to a limited area and an endemic crop, , is hailed as the 'gold with fragrance' as any famer with a stock of its seeds can earn a good price in any season.
- Narasipur Char
