Turmeric: Spiritual and Medicinal Uses in Ancient Cultures

You’ve probably tasted the aromatic flavor of turmeric in curry dishes, seen its distinctive yellow color, and perhaps even used it for its powerful anti-inflammatory properties. But there’s a whole other side of turmeric you may have never considered: its thousands of years of historical use.

Since ancient times, and especially in Ayurvedic culture, turmeric has been valued for its medicinal, culinary, spiritual, and cultural uses. As turmeric made its way from India to the rest of the world, its powerful benefits inspired other cultures. A closer look at this beloved ingredient reveals a fascinating history.

What Is Turmeric?

From the same family as ginger, turmeric is a tropical plant originally found in warm, humid forests in Southern Asia. Though it’s believed that turmeric was first used in India, forests in countries like Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Fiji, and Hawaii can all support the growth of turmeric.

Though the turmeric plant has large, broad leaves and beautiful blossoms, its value lies in its tuberous root (1). Nowadays, most people are familiar with turmeric root in its powdered form, where it becomes a spice that lends a warm, earthy flavor to curry dishes.

Turmeric in Ayurvedic Culture

To trace the use of turmeric in human culture, go back 4,000 years to the Vedic culture in India. Archaeologists have found evidence of pots near New Delhi, India, that contained traces of turmeric dating back all the way to 2,500 BC. By 500 BC, turmeric was used in Ayurveda (an ancient system of healing and medicine) in a variety of ways (2).

Medicinal Uses

To Ayurvedic healers, turmeric was considered a powerful healing plant that was made into an ointment, consumed as a juice, and even burned and inhaled. Among other things, it was thought to:

•  Alleviate congestion

•  Heal wounds and bruises

•  Sooth chickenpox, smallpox, and shingles

•  Improve digestion and relieve gas

•  Treat arthritis

•  Treat respiratory conditions like asthma and sinusitis (3)

Cultural & Spiritual Uses

Used extensively by Ayurvedic healers, turmeric was also invaluable to the common people in ancient Indian culture. It was considered a symbol of good luck and fertility, as well as being a delicious and irreplaceable spice.  It had many cultural and spiritual uses throughout ancient India:

•  Spiritual festivals. The unique yellow properties of the turmeric plant were used to dye clothing for special spiritual purposes. For example, children were given robes dyed with turmeric for the Onam Festival (4).

•  Weddings. Turmeric was an important part of wedding festivals. In some cases, the couple-to-be would be covered with turmeric paste days prior to the wedding in an attempt to ward off evil spirits (5). In others, brides were given a turmeric-dyed necklace called a mangal sutra prior to the wedding that was worn for the rest of the woman’s life (6).

•  Birth & death. In certain places, like Tamil Nadu, turmeric was used on the deceased during funeral customs (4). In others, it was used to welcome newborns into the world (5). 

Turmeric in Other Ancient Cultures

Though it’s not certain how turmeric made its way from India to the rest of the world, this unique plant quickly took on significance in whatever culture it reached.

For example, when it reached China around 700 AD, it became an important feature in Chinese medicine, used to treat arthritis, cancer, and abdominal pain (7). 

Known as olena in Hawaii, turmeric has been used by Hawaiian healers for purification purposes and to treat medical issues like ear aches (8).

Turmeric is also revered in Buddhist culture, used by monks to dye their robes the traditional yellow color (9). 

Turmeric Today

From India, to China, to Hawaii, and beyond, the powerful spiritual and healing significance of turmeric has been appreciated by human beings for thousands of years. Only recently have multiple scientific studies delved into the powerful medicinal properties of turmeric, such as its use in countering inflammation (10), that have been known to ancient cultures since at least 2,500 BC.

Sources:

1. encyclopedia.com/plants-and-animals/plants/plants/turmeric

2. pbs.org/food/the-history-kitchen/turmeric-history/

3. ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK92752/

4. books.google.com/books?id=P2ykHQi6RvMC&pg=PA7&lpg=PA7&dq=onan+festival+turmeric+dyed+clothes&source=bl&ots=OVR4ibWk__&sig=ACfU3U3fY4WYPFn_M4sq6Xn0b4PZR5SCUw&hl=en&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjEwOTitMniAhWPiOAKHaKWCIcQ6AEwFHoECBMQAQ#v=onepage&q=onan%20festival%20turmeric%20dyed%20clothes&f=false

5. atlasobscura.com/articles/how-turmeric-became-a-cureall-product-in-india

6. culturalindia.net/weddings/wedding-traditions/mangalsutra.html

7. scmp.com/lifestyle/health-beauty/article/1983991/turmeric-wonder-food-should-be-every-hongkongers-cup-tea

8. ikigaiglobal.com/articles/turmeric-the-golden-spice/

9. classroom.synonym.com/the-religious-significance-of-turmeric-12086453.html

10. arthritis.org/living-with-arthritis/treatments/natural/supplements-herbs/guide/turmeric.php