Gotu Kola is one of my favorite herbs in the herb world.

I love it as a tincture and as a salad made according to the Sri Lankan traditional recipe. It has this crispy and crunchy texture to it while there is sweetness and a tinge of bitterness as an after taste. The salad has the perfect balance of all six flavors of sour (lime  juice), bitter, sweet, salty (sea salt), astringent and pungent (black pepper and green chilies). Apart from the taste, the health benefits are second to none especially for the upper area of the body.

This is an herb that grows in wet areas or where there is a constant level of water flowing into the soil. Most times it grows freely in gardens in Sri Lanka and can be harvested to make the salad or for juicing. The meaning is derived from the Sinhalese words “gotu” meaning cone shaped and “kola” means leaf. As a nation who includes a green leaf dish in every meal, Gotu Kola is one of the favorites to enjoy at least a couple of times a week in the Sri Lankan culinary world.

The Latin name is Asiatica centella.

There are varieties of Brahmi. There is another herb called Brahmi 2 called Bacopa monnieri. That is also used for similar uses but Asiatica centella has a sweeter taste. The English name is Indian Pennywort. The Sanskrit name for this is Brahmi, meaning goddess (female version of Brahma) due to the brain and nervous system benefits it brings as well as anti-aging aging properties it holds. Brahmi is another name for the goddess of knowledge Sarasvati, which fits well as this herb is a great memory enhancer and a brain tonic.

The spiritual aspect of this herb in Ayurveda is that it provides mental clarity

The perception of the mind is greatly enhanced as it helps with higher perception to help with meditation and yoga. It helps to clear the mental and emotional bodies to provide an unbiased view of reality. Other benefits are the improvement in memory, treatment of brain related issues such as dementia and Alzheimer’s and the treatment of eyes. It mainly acts as a tonic for the head area and nervous system while treating age related conditions.

Gotu Kola as a Coolant

It is also used as a cooling herb for its cooling properties. The herb’s use in Sri Lanka in the daily diet is mainly due to the effects on the brain, nervous system, eyes as well as for being a coolant. In tropical countries, most people are susceptible to increases in body heat or blood heat, especially during the dry season. This herb acts as a balancer to bring the heat levels down while delivering the nutritional value. Pitta related issues such as inflammations, fever, Pitta related skin issues like dry skin, dry scalp, scabies, itchy red spots, bleeding, etc. can be treated with this herb.

Pitta Related Issues

Pitta related issues or excess blood and body heat issues are as follows. Dry skin and dry scalp due to excess heat dispersing the moisture in the body. Another issue is eye inflammation. This is an easy way to know when the heat has increased in the body as the eyes will feel heated up, dry and be red in color. Small intestine (main site of Pitta) will also be affected as the gastric juices will be in excess leading to ulcers, intestinal bleeding and heat caused diarrhea. The body will appear to be reddish and flushed as well. Other issues hematuria, dysentery, etc. where body will show signs of bleeding. Gotu Kola helps to detox and treat these bleeding disorders. Tonsillitis and urinary tract infections are also treated with the help of this herb.

Scientific Studies

Contraindications

Overall, this herb can be used by many different age groups for the benefits it brings to the body and the mind. Some may have to take caution that this herb may produce high mental alertness so taking it before sleep may not be beneficial for them. In my personal experience, I take it as an anti-anxiety herb, sometimes before bed. This herb may have different effects on different people taking different doses.

This is taken as a preventative and tonic daily in small doses. This also increases heart rate so those with rapid heart rate issues and those who are pregnant must not use this. There are possibilities of having skin rashes, itchiness and photo-sensitivity. Best is to take a little bit and increase the dose as you see fit. Consult an herbalist or a natural medicine practitioner first before taking therapeutic doses.