952 INDIAN MEDICINAL PLANTS. 



911. Sesamum indieum, DeC. h.f.b.i., iv. 387. 



Syn. : — S. orientale, Linn. Roxb. 491. 



Sans :— Tila. 



Vern. :— Mitha til, krishna-til (Hind.) ; Til (Beng.) ; Simsim 

 (Arab.) ; Kunjad (Pers.) ; Wal lenney, yelloocheddi, (Tam.) ; 

 Manchimine nuvuln (Tel.); Barik til (Deo; Kasi, Khasa 

 (Uriya.) 



Bug : — Gingelly ; Sesame. 



Habitat :— Cultivated throughout the warmer parts of India. 



Erect annual herbs, l-2ft. high, pubescent or puberulous. 

 Leaves 3-5in., variable on the same plant, upper often narrowly 

 oblong, sub-entire, middle ovate, ovate-toothed, lower lobed or 

 pedatisect. Petiole |-2in. Pedicels Jin., solitary, rarely 2-3-uate. 

 Flowers with a strong, unpleasant odour. Sepals Jin., lanceolate. 

 Corolla ljin., pubescent, whitish or with red, purplish or 

 yellow marks. Capsule tetragonous, oblong, 1 by Jin., erect, 

 scabrid pilose, the same width, from top to bottom, usually 

 shortly acuminate ; 2-valved half-way down, or sometimes to 

 the base or ultimately 4-valved. Seeds brown, smooth. There 

 is a black-seeded variety. 



Uses : —In Hindu medical works, three varieties of til seeds 

 have been described, — black, white and red. The black kind 

 is the best suited for medicinal use. " Sesamum seeds are 

 considered emollient, nourishing, tonic, diuretic and lactagogue. 

 They are said to be especially serviceable in piles, by regulating 

 the bowels and removing constipation. Sesamum seeds ground 

 to a paste with water are given with butter in bleeding piles. 

 Sweetmeats made of the seeds are also beneficial in this disease. 

 A poultice made of the seeds is applied to ulcers. Both the 

 seeds and the oil are used as demulcents in dysentery and 

 urinary diseases in combination with other medicines of their 

 class " {Hindu Mat. Med.) " In decoction the seed is said to 

 be emmenagogue ; the same preparation, sweetened with sugar, 

 is prescribed in cough ; a compound decoction with linseed is 

 used as an aphrodisiac ; a plaster made of the ground seeds is 

 applied to burns, scalds, &c; a lotion made from the leaves is 

 used as a hair-wash, and is supposed to promote the growth of 



