The Sacred Plant
Encyclopedia

Entry 001 · Tier 1

Haoma

هوم (Hom)

Ephedra spp. (E. vulgaris, E. procera, E. intermedia)

Vohu Manah

Chief of all medicinal plants. King of the pharmacopoeia. Both a physical plant and a divine being (Yazata). The Bundahishn (24.18) states: 'Haoma which is out-squeezed is the chie...

respiratory cardiovascular nervous immune

Sacred Core — Named in Avesta Full Entry →

Entry 002 · Tier 1

Pomegranate

انار (Anār)

Punica granatum

Ameretat

Primary companion plant in the Haoma preparation. Source of Baresman twigs. Fruit, leaves, twigs, bark, and rind all used medicinally. The fruit of Paradise — the word 'paradise' i...

cardiovascular digestive immune nervous integumentary

Sacred Core — Named in Avesta Full Entry →

Entry 003 · Tier 1

Espand (Wild Rue)

اسپند / اسفند (Espand, Esfand)

Peganum harmala

Asha Vahishta

Sacred fumigant. Burned on coals to produce purifying, psychoactive, antimicrobial smoke. The most widely surviving Magi practice in modern Persian culture. Carried by Zoroastrian ...

nervous respiratory immune musculoskeletal

Sacred Core — Living Tradition Full Entry →

Entry 004 · Tier 1

Garlic

سیر (Sir)

Allium sativum

Haurvatat

One of the fundamental medicinal plants of ancient Persian medicine. Used continuously for cardiovascular, antimicrobial, and immune support for over 4,000 years. Mentioned in the ...

cardiovascular immune digestive respiratory integumentary

Sacred Core — Named in Avesta Full Entry →

Entry 005 · Tier 1

Saffron

زعفران (Za'farān)

Crocus sativus L.

Khwarshed

The Red Gold. The most precious spice on earth by weight. Iran produces over 90% of the world's saffron. One of the most pharmacologically potent plants known — with documented ant...

nervous cardiovascular digestive visual reproductive

Sacred Core — Persian Heritage Plant Full Entry →

Entry 006 · Tier 1

Basil (Sweet Basil)

ریحان (Reyhān)

Ocimum basilicum L.

Shahrevar

Named in the Avesta among medicinal herbs. One of the Bundahishn's sacred plants. Basil-Royal is specifically designated as the flower of Shahrevar (Desirable Dominion — guardian o...

digestive nervous respiratory cardiovascular integumentary

Sacred Core — Named in Avesta Full Entry →

Entry 007 · Tier 1

Sweet Violet

بنفشه (Banafsheh)

Viola odorata L.

Mithra

Named in the Avesta among medicinal herbs. All violets are designated as flowers of Mithra in the Bundahishn. A foundational plant in Traditional Persian Medicine, used continuousl...

respiratory nervous integumentary digestive cardiovascular

Sacred Core — Named in Avesta Full Entry →

Entry 008 · Tier 1

Chicory

کاسنی (Kāsni)

Cichorium intybus L.

Haurvatat

Named in the Avesta among medicinal herbs. A fundamental liver and digestive medicine in Traditional Persian Medicine. Avicenna classified it as cold and dry in temperament. Used f...

digestive hepatic cardiovascular urinary nervous

Sacred Core — Named in Avesta Full Entry →

Entry 009 · Tier 1

Peppermint

نعنا فلفلی (Na'nā Felfeli)

Mentha × piperita L.

Tishtar

Named in the Avesta among medicinal herbs. One of the most widely used medicinal plants in Persian and world medicine. Classified as Cold-Moist in Traditional Persian Medicine. Pri...

digestive respiratory nervous musculoskeletal integumentary

Sacred Core — Named in Avesta Full Entry →

Entry 010 · Tier 1

Frankincense

کندر (Kondor) / لبان (Lobān)

Boswellia sacra / B. serrata / B. carterii

Atar

Sacred resin burned in Zoroastrian fire temples and Persian households since antiquity. One of the Magi's primary aromatic offerings to the sacred fire. Classified as Hot-Dry in Tr...

musculoskeletal respiratory nervous digestive immune

Sacred Core — Magi Temple Offering Full Entry →

Entry 011 · Tier 1

Myrrh

مر (Morr / Mur)

Commiphora myrrha / Commiphora molmol

Asha Vahishta

Sacred resin — classified in the Bundahishn among 'scented' plants (bod). Burned in Persian households alongside frankincense to purify air and repel disease. One of the oldest con...

integumentary oral respiratory immune digestive

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Scent Classification / Zoroastrian Fumigant Full Entry →

Entry 012 · Tier 1

Rose (Damask Rose)

گل سرخ (Gol-e-Sorkh) / گل محمدی

Rosa damascena Mill.

Spenta Armaiti

Sacred flower of the Iranian homeland. The Bundahishn assigns jasmine and myrtle to Ahura Mazda, white jasmine to Vohu Manah, and in the broader Zoroastrian flower-correspondence s...

cardiovascular nervous reproductive integumentary immune

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Flower Correspondences / Nowruz Tradition Full Entry →

Entry 013 · Tier 2

Black Seed (Nigella / Black Cumin)

سیاه دانه (Siyah Daneh) / شونيز (Shuniz)

Nigella sativa L.

Ameretat

Universal medicine of the ancient world. Known in Persian tradition as 'the seed that heals everything except death.' Avicenna (Ibn Sina) devoted a dedicated section to Nigella sat...

respiratory immune cardiovascular endocrine nervous

Tier 2 — Pahlavi & Classical Persian Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 014 · Tier 2

Licorice Root

شیرین بیان (Shirin Bayan) — 'Sweet Speech'

Glycyrrhiza glabra L. / Glycyrrhiza uralensis

Sraosha

The healer of voice and speech. Named 'Shirin Bayan' (Sweet Speech) in Persian — a plant whose medicinal power is named after its most immediate observable action. Central to Persi...

respiratory digestive endocrine nervous immune

Tier 2 — Pahlavi & Classical Persian Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 015 · Tier 2

Turmeric

زردچوبه (Zardchubeh) — 'Yellow Wood'

Curcuma longa L.

Asha Vahishta

The golden root. Called 'yellow wood' in Persian — the color itself is medicine. Turmeric arrived in Persia via ancient trade routes from India and became deeply embedded in Persia...

musculoskeletal nervous hepatic digestive immune

Tier 2 — Pahlavi & Classical Persian Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 016 · Tier 2

Ginger

زنجبیل (Zanjabil)

Zingiber officinale Roscoe

Atar

The warming root. One of the most universally used medicinal plants across all traditions that intersected with Persian medicine — Indian Ayurveda, Greek Hippocratic, Arabic Unani,...

digestive musculoskeletal cardiovascular respiratory reproductive

Tier 2 — Pahlavi & Classical Persian Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 017 · Tier 1

Fennel

رازیانه (Razianeh)

Foeniculum vulgare Mill.

Haurvatat

The herb of sight and digestion. Native to the Mediterranean and endemic across the Iranian Plateau, fennel was one of the most commonly used daily medicinal plants of Persian medi...

digestive reproductive visual respiratory urinary

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Garden Herb Classification Full Entry →

Entry 018 · Tier 1

Cumin

زیره سبز (Zireh Sabz) — 'Green Cumin'

Cuminum cyminum L.

Ameretat

The seed of digestion. Among the oldest continuously cultivated spice-medicines in human history — cumin seeds have been found in Egyptian archaeological sites and are documented i...

digestive endocrine immune cardiovascular hematopoietic

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Spice/Garden Herb Classification Full Entry →

Entry 019 · Tier 1

Coriander (Cilantro)

گشنیز (Gishniz)

Coriandrum sativum L.

Haurvatat

The cooling seed. One of the few plants named directly in the Bundahishn — 'torn shoots of the coriander' are specifically listed as part of the salad (terak) category: 'Whatever i...

nervous digestive cardiovascular hepatic hematopoietic

Sacred Core — Directly Named in the Bundahishn Full Entry →

Entry 020 · Tier 1

Tamarisk

گز (Gaz) / شورگز (Shur-Gaz)

Tamarix spp. (T. aphylla, T. gallica, T. ramosissima)

Ameretat

The tree of salt and sacred fire. The Bundahishn explicitly names tamarisk in its classification of perennial trees: 'as the cypress, the plane, the white poplar, the box, [the gra...

hepatic digestive integumentary immune hematopoietic

Sacred Core — Directly Named in Bundahishn / Assigned to Ameretat Full Entry →

Entry 021 · Tier 1

Myrtle

مورد (Moord) / آس (As)

Myrtus communis L.

Ahura Mazda

Sacred bridal and healing shrub. The Bundahishn assigns myrtle to Ahura Mazda alongside jasmine: these are the Lord's own plants. Also assigned to Spandarmad (Spenta Armaiti) in so...

respiratory digestive integumentary nervous endocrine

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Assignment to Ahura Mazda / Baresman Plant Full Entry →

Entry 022 · Tier 1

Jasmine

یاسمن (Yasaman) / یاس سفید (Yas-e-Sefid)

Jasminum officinale L. / Jasminum grandiflorum L.

Vohu Manah

The flower of the Good Mind. The Bundahishn Ch. 27 explicitly assigns white jasmine to Vohu Manah — Good Mind, the first and greatest of the Amesha Spentas, the principle of clear ...

nervous reproductive integumentary immune hepatic

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Assignment to Vohu Manah Full Entry →

Entry 023 · Tier 2

Aloe Vera

صبر (Sabr) / آلوئه ورا

Aloe barbadensis Mill. (Aloe vera)

Haurvatat

The succulent physician. Native to the Arabian Peninsula and widely cultivated across the Middle East and North Africa. Aloe vera entered Persian medicine through ancient trade rou...

integumentary digestive immune endocrine oral

Tier 2 — Pahlavi & Classical Persian Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 024 · Tier 2

Fenugreek

شنبلیله (Shanbalileh)

Trigonella foenum-graecum L.

Ameretat

The bitter gift of the earth. Fenugreek is one of the oldest cultivated plants in recorded history — seeds found at Halaf culture sites (6000 BCE) and in Tutankhamun's tomb. Native...

endocrine digestive reproductive cardiovascular musculoskeletal

Tier 2 — Pahlavi & Classical Persian Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 025 · Tier 1

Henna

حنا (Henna)

Lawsonia inermis L.

Asha Vahishta

The dye of sacred protection. The Bundahishn classifies plants used for dyeing clothing under 'rag' (dye-plant category): 'Whatever one can dye clothing with, as saffron, sapan-woo...

integumentary immune nervous hematopoietic oral

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Dye-Plant Classification Full Entry →

Entry 026 · Tier 2

Wormwood / Mugwort (Persian Wormwood)

درمنه (Dermaneh) / افسنتین (Afsantin)

Artemisia absinthium L. / Artemisia annua L. / Artemisia aucheri (Persian wormwood)

Asha Vahishta

The medicine of fever and parasites. The Artemisia genus contains over 500 species, many native to the Iranian Plateau and Central Asia. In Persian medicine, 'dermaneh' refers to t...

immune digestive hepatic hematopoietic nervous

Tier 2 — Pahlavi & Classical Persian Medicine / Iranian Native Medicinal Flora Full Entry →

Entry 027 · Tier 1

Thyme

آویشن (Avishan)

Thymus vulgaris L. / Thymus kotschyanus (Iranian wild thyme)

Asha Vahishta

The herb of the heart and the voice. The Bundahishn makes a specific and extraordinary statement about thyme: 'from the middle of the heart thyme for keeping away stench.' In the Z...

respiratory immune digestive oral integumentary

Sacred Core — Directly Named in Bundahishn / Heart Plant Full Entry →

Entry 028 · Tier 2

Chamomile

بابونه (Babooneh)

Matricaria chamomilla L. (German chamomile) / Anthemis nobilis L. (Roman chamomile)

Spenta Armaiti

The gentle healer. Chamomile is among the most widely used medicinal plants in both the Western and Eastern medical traditions. Native to Europe and western Asia including the Iran...

digestive nervous integumentary immune reproductive

Tier 2 — Pahlavi & Classical Persian Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 029 · Tier 1

Walnut

گردو (Gerdoo)

Juglans regia L.

Vohu Manah

The brain-shaped nut of the mind. The Bundahishn Ch. 24 lists walnut in its fruit-tree (mivak) category: 'The produce of everything welcome as food of men, that is perennial, as th...

cardiovascular nervous endocrine digestive immune

Sacred Core — Directly Named in Bundahishn Full Entry →

Entry 030 · Tier 1

Fig

انجیر (Anjir)

Ficus carica L.

Ameretat

The sweetest medicine. The Bundahishn Ch. 24 names the fig explicitly in its fruit-tree category: '...the peach, the fig, the walnut, the almond...' The fig is among the oldest cul...

digestive respiratory cardiovascular integumentary endocrine

Sacred Core — Directly Named in Bundahishn Full Entry →

Entry 031 · Tier 1

Date Palm

خرما (Khurma / Khorma) / نخل (Nakhl — the tree)

Phoenix dactylifera L.

Ameretat (Amordad)

The Tree of Life. Phoenix dactylifera has sustained civilization for 6,000+ years. Its very genus name — Phoenix — links it to the immortal bird of Persian and Egyptian mythology: ...

metabolic reproductive cardiovascular digestive nervous

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Principal Tree / Zoroastrian Paradise Plant Full Entry →

Entry 032 · Tier 1

Frankincense (Sacred / Kondor)

کُندُر (Kondor / Kundur) / لُبان (Luban)

Boswellia sacra Flück. (primary sacred species) / B. carteri / B. serrata (Indian frankincense)

Asha Vahishta (Ardibehesht)

The Sacred Smoke. Entry 010 covered frankincense in its cosmological and ritual aspect. This entry extends the pharmacological depth with emphasis on boswellic acids — one of the m...

immune nervous respiratory digestive integumentary

Sacred Core — Zoroastrian Fire Temple / Magi's Primary Resin Full Entry →

Entry 033 · Tier 2

Valerian

وَلِریان (Valerian) / سنبل الطیب (Sunbul al-Tayyib — 'Good Spike/Fragrant Spike')

Valeriana officinalis L. (and V. sisymbriifolium, V. hardwickii on Iranian Plateau)

Spenta Armaiti (Spandarmad)

The Sleep and Peace Plant. Valerian's Persian name — Sunbul al-Tayyib (Good Spike) — reflects its long history in Persian and Islamic medicine. Avicenna documented it extensively i...

nervous cardiovascular reproductive digestive

Pahlavi & Classical — Named in Canon / Iranian Plateau Native Full Entry →

Entry 034 · Tier 1

Fig

انجیر (Anjir)

Ficus carica L.

Vohu Manah (Bahman)

The Ancient Fruit of Wisdom. Ficus carica is one of the first plants ever cultivated by humans — archaeological evidence from the Jordan Valley dates fig cultivation to 11,400 year...

digestive respiratory metabolic integumentary cardiovascular

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Principal Fruit Tree Full Entry →

Entry 035 · Tier 1

Walnut

گردو (Gerdu / Gerdoo)

Juglans regia L.

Vohu Manah (Bahman)

The Brain Nut. Juglans regia — the Persian walnut, the Royal Walnut — originated in the region stretching from the Balkans through the Caucasus and into Central Asia, with its cent...

nervous cardiovascular metabolic immune integumentary

Sacred Core — Bundahishn Principal Nut Tree / Nowruz Sacred Fruit Full Entry →

Entry 036 · Tier 2

Lavender

اُستوخودوس (Ostokhodus) / لَوَند (Lavand)

Lavandula angustifolia Mill. (L. officinalis Chaix)

Spenta Armaiti (Spandarmad)

The Brain Broom. Persians, Indians, and Tibetans named lavender 'the broom of the brain' — a medicine that sweeps the mind clear of agitation, grief, and confusion. In Traditional ...

nervous cardiovascular respiratory integumentary immune

Pahlavi & Classical — Named in Canon / Avicenna / Iranian Plateau Native Full Entry →

Entry 037 · Tier 2

Cinnamon

دارچین (Darchin — 'Chinese Wood') / قِرفه (Qerfe)

Cinnamomum verum J.Presl (= C. zeylanicum Blume) — Ceylon/True Cinnamon

Asha Vahishta (Ardibehesht)

The Royal Bark. Listed among the top 14 'simples' — single-plant medicines that can be used alone — in Avicenna's Canon of Medicine (Volume 2). Also in Hippocrates, Dioscorides, an...

metabolic cardiovascular digestive nervous immune

Pahlavi & Classical — Listed among Avicenna's Top 14 Simples Full Entry →

Entry 038 · Tier 1

Persian Black Cumin / Mountain Cumin

زیره سیاه (Zireh Siah — 'Black Cumin') / زیره کرمانی (Zireh Kermani) / شاه زیره (Shah Zireh — 'Royal Cumin')

Bunium persicum (Boiss.) B.Fedtsch.

Shahrevar (Khshathra Vairya)

The Royal Cumin of Iran. Bunium persicum is native to the mountainous regions of Iran, Afghanistan, Central Asia, and northern India — growing wild in the Alborz mountains, Zagros ...

digestive respiratory nervous immune metabolic

Sacred Core — Iranian Plateau Native / Makhzan ul-Adwia Core Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 039 · Tier 2

Cardamom

هِل (Hel) / هِیل (Heil) / قاقُله (Qaquleh)

Elettaria cardamomum (L.) Maton

Vohu Manah (Bahman)

The Queen of Spices. Cardamom is second only to saffron and vanilla in value per weight — and unlike either, it is consumed daily across the entire Persian world. Every cup of Pers...

digestive respiratory cardiovascular nervous oral

Pahlavi & Classical — Core Persian Advieh / Daily Medicine Full Entry →

Entry 040 · Tier 1

Pomegranate Rind & Leaf Medicine

پوست انار (Pust-e Anar — 'Skin of Pomegranate') / برگ انار (Barg-e Anar — 'Leaf of Pomegranate')

Punica granatum L. (see Entry 002 for full botanical)

Haurvatat (Khordad)

The Extended Pharmacopoeia of the Sacred Fruit. Entry 002 established pomegranate fruit's role in Zoroastrian medicine and its ellagitannin chemistry. This entry documents the equa...

digestive immune metabolic integumentary oral

Sacred Core — Vendidad Named Plant / Extended Pharmacopoeia Full Entry →