1 Introduction

This work seeks to focus on the medical system of the tribals (Santals, Munda, Oraons, Sabar and Birhors) of Jungle Mahals in eastern India. Though it does not denote any administrative unit, the woodland region of south west Bengal is culturally known as Jungle Mahals. In terms of disease, medicine and health, recent scholars have been keen to realize the interactive process of the western and non-western counterparts (Arnold, 2000). The ‘folk’ medical practices (Bodding, 1986; Hembrom & Goel, 2005), as Mark Harrison notes, have been least discussed, though a few researches have been done on medical ‘systems’ of Ayurveda and Unani (Pati & Harrison, 2001, pp. 9–10). Following the line of anthropologists, the social historians of medicine seek to explore the non-western medical practices (Samanta, 2018) by studying the ethno-medicine of the tribals. The rich cultural heritage of the tribals which is very closely linked with the ecosystem, they live in, added much to the ethno-botanical reputation of Jungle Mahals. Valentine Ball (1869) for the first time had given the details of the flora of Manbhum and their ethno-medicinal uses. The existing studies have focused on traditional uses of plants in some of the specific diseases. But the ethno-botanists in their works, provide socio-cultural and ecological information and interpretation, which at times appear to be inadequate. Though the medical anthropologists provide systematic list of medicinal plants but their works are insufficient. Roy Ellen comments, ‘…many accounts of folk medicinal uses still lack serious consideration of local ethnographic context’ (Ellen, 2006, S10). There is huge list of medicinal plants in the vast body of literature. In this literature, as Elizabeth Hsu argues, there is a lack of technical details of drug preparation, social context of application, the reason for which these were collected. It also lacks detailed information and even does not acknowledge the sources (Hsu and Harris, 2010, p. 1). This study deals with the indigenous system of knowledge about the collection, preparation and practice of medicine and sheds light on the socio-cultural and ecological context of the medicinal plants. It further explores the process through which the tribal medical systems of culturally variegated groups meet and influence each other. The study was carried out under the sections like introduction; socio-geographical setting of Jungle Mahals; environmental changes and health hazard during colonial period; tribal concept of body, disease and methods of treatment; case studies in the Jungle Mahals region; termites, earth worms and mud daub wasps and their medicinal importance; veterinary diseases and medicine, inter- textuality between texts and oral accounts and findings and conclusion.

2 Results and discussion

The information about traditional medicinal floras was collected from 60 informants (healers) during the period of July 2019 to February 2021.The informants were both females and males, and they played an important part in the activities of collecting and using traditional medicinal plants. Females only had the special knowledge about leucorrhea and child diseases. Some of the healers are specialist as bonesetters. They are traditional orthopedics specializing in treating broken bones using their traditional indigenous medical knowledge. They are efficient in the management of fracture, dislocation, and congenital deformities. However, they also provide the primary treatment to patient suffering from chronic musculoskeletal conditions, such as, arthritis and post-polio residual paralysis.

The healers generally provide treatment for some of the diseases like cough, fever, cuts, wounds, dhāt, arthritis, snake bite, jaundice, tuberculosis, gastrointestinal disorder, dermatological complaints, migraine headache, joint pain, respiratory problems, leucorrhea, internal parasites, bone fractures and women diseases (pre- and post-delivery cases and pregnancy complaints). Shanta SabarFootnote 1(60 +), a female Sabar healer, informed us about the procedure for preparing the medicine for the treatment of dhāt with a combination of 18 plants. These are nīlkaṇṭha{Polygala arvensis Wild (Polygalaceae)}; roots of rāli{ Piper longum L. (Piperaceae), rāmdātan {Smilax ovalifolia Roxb. ex D.Don. (Liliaceae)}, kumārikā {Smilax ovalifolia (Smilacaceae)}; ṡwet̩-palāśa{(white variety) (Butea monosprma (Lam.) Fabaceae}; ṡwet̩ simula {Eriodendron anfractuosum DC. (Malvaceae)}; roots of circit̩i{Desmodium triflorum(L) DC.(Fabaceae)}; young shoot of t̩agara{Tabernaemontana divaricata (L.) R. Br. ex Roem & Schult. (Crepe Jasmine)}; padma{Nelumbium speciosum Gaertn (Nymphaceaceae)}; sansiyāri, pārijāta{Nyctanthesarbor-tristis L.(Oleaceae)}; roots of kedāra; root of caldhuwā; young shoot of kurci{Holarrhena pubescens(Buch-Ham.)Wall Ex G. Don (Apocynaceae)}; śweṭ ākanda{Calotropis gigantia L.(Asclepiadaceae)}; white dūrvā{Cynodon dactylon(L.) Pers (Poaceae)}; root of khaprāsaka {Trianthema monogyna Linn. (Aizoaceae)}. She also added combinations of jāyaphala{Myristica fragrans Houtt. (Myristicaceae)}, fried rābing{Piper nigrum L. (Piperaceae)} and pīpala{Piper longum L. (Piperaceae)} and it is fried in case of post-delivery mother as talāna (kaviraj’s ingredients) and two animals (monitor lizard, earthworm) combinations. After washing the collected ingredients, the medicine man grinds it on a flat stone (pāṭī) with the help of cylindrical stone (larhi) and makes a paste of big size. It is dried in sunlight for one day and prescribed as pills for one month. During the time of pounding the ingredients a mantra (incantation) is chanted three times (See Appendix A). The talāna is purchased from weekly market. As species are under extinction due to deforestation in the region, all the plants are not available in the area. If a patient urinates red like colour, red lotus flower and five onions are to be added. There is food restriction during the period of treatment. The patient should take vegetarian food, such as, boiled rice, pigeon peas and ridge gourd. The patient should also avoid fried food like puffed rice. In the case of scorpion bite, the healer prepared a paste from viśalyakaranī{Tridax procumbens L. (Asteraceae)}.

Santhal healer Bangsidhar TuduFootnote 2 (50 +) diagnoses the dhāt by applying the method of urine test and through the observation of the symptoms, such as, feeling of weakness, light fever and white stuff in urine. If ants are attracted to a place where a patient urinates, it implies that the patient is suffering from dhāt. He prepares the drug from eight plant species, i.e., leaves of bel{Aegle marmelos (L.) Corr. (Rutaceae)}; tuslī{Ocimum tenuiflorum (Lamiaceae)}; turmeric, mustā/nuṭ grass{Cyperus rotundus, (Nutsedges)}; roots of sāluka{Nymphaea nouchali Willd. (Nymphaeaceae); young shoot from karama tree {Haldina cordifolia Roxb.(Rubiaceae)}; roots from circiti{Desmodium trifloram(L) DC. (Fabaceae)}; bark from sāhrā tree{Streblus asper Lour. (Moraceae)}. He also adds powder extracted from quartzite rock. Along with these, he used to add thirty two kavirāji talāna as ingredients. After washing the collected materials, it is grinded into paste through flat stone (śila) and cylindrical stone(norā). This way pills are made and prescribed for 9–11 days. There is separate rule for taking the medicine in the first day. The śila and norā are washed and the washed water is collected and a piece of hot quartzite stone is put into the water. The patient is advised to take this water for the first day and from the next day the pills. The patient is also advised to avoid sour, stale and non-vegetarian food during treatment period.

Another healer belonging to Birhor tribe, Gurupada Shikari (62 +),Footnote 3 prepares drug for the treatment of dhāt with the combination of eight plant species i.e., white flower collected from pond; roots of jaundice; rāmdātan{Smilax ovalifolia Roxb.ex D. (Liliaceae)}; anantamula{Hemidesmus indicus (L.) R. Br. (Asclepiadaceae)}; bark of pichāli {Ventilago maderaspatana (Gaertner)}; lat̩āmurgā (Dalbergia volubilis Roxb.) and goigotra (monitor lizard). He also adds unrefined brown sugar and thirty two plant combination as kavirāji talāna. He prefers to collect it on the day of new moon. He does not generally collect these medicinal plants on Wednesday as this day is believed as the birthday of medicinal plants. After washing the collected ingredients, it is grinded it into paste and made into size of a big pea. It is dried for a day and  prescribed as pills for 3 to 7 days twice a day depending on condition of the patients. However, as there is food restriction the patient should take only vegetarian food during the period of treatment.

Haradhan Sabar of Jahanabaid, a well-known healer in the society prepares drug for arthritis with a combination of freshly harvested ten plants such as root of rāmdātan (Smilax ovalifolia); barahāmi; cot̩ohāmi; tālamūlī{Curculigo orchioides Gaertn.(Hypoxidaceae)}; flower of kālha{ Salvia uliinosa Buch-ham (Acanthaceae)}; fruits of śvetaśālmalī{Eriodendron anfractuosum DC. (Malvaceae)}; flower or bark of śvetapalāsa (white){Beuta Monosprma(Lam.) Kuntze. (Fabaceae)}; śvetajurgundā {(white) Chrysopogon aciculatus(Retz.)}; roots of cāldhuwā{Aerva sanguinolenta (L.) Blum (Amaranthaceae)}; flower of lāl sāluk{Nymphaea rubra (Mymephacea)} and two plants, jāyaphala (Myristica fragrnans Houtt.) and pīpala (Piper longum L.)] as talāna. Applied as ointment (external use), he prepares the medicine from oil extracted from freshly harvested banyan and gāub {Diospyros malabarica (Ebenaceae)} tree and fat extracted from cow or buffalo, hen and dhāminā snake (Ptyas mucosa). In case of leucorrhea, they prepare the drug from freshly harvested 21 plant species and eight types of salt. The combination is boiled till it is reduced to an amount of 1/5th of it’s original. The patient is advised to take the juice twice daily (morning and evening) for one week. The medicine is given to the patient after dedicating it to the Goddess Manasā. The medicinal plants are collected during night or amāvaśya (new moon). However, Lushu Murmu of Kashipur prepares the medicine for arthritis with combination of four medicinal plants bhuikambala{Pygmaeo premna herbacea (Roxb.) (Moldenke Verbenaceae)}; kānt̩akambala; swet̩saiya; root of khunt̩; salt and sulfur. Shanti Murmu, a Santhal woman has learned the medicinal knowledge from Laxmikanta Sabar, a Sabar healer. Shanta Sabar’s grand teacher, late Patu Sabar learned some of the mantras from a Brahmin. The efficacy of the medicine depends on how much a healer followed the rules and regulations for collecting and preparing the medicine. If the mantra fails, they applied medicine or if the medicine fails, they applied mantrās.

3 Process of collecting medicinal floras

As the plants are supposed to take rest or sleep after sunset till sunrise, the healers would not disturb them by harvesting them at night. They used to uproot some herbs in one breath. Accordingly, it indicates the will force of the ailing person. During the period of harvest, the healers prefer to collect the exposed roots only near the water-channel. They cut it by a single stroke in the absence of any person. The healers collect some rare medicines in early morning so that the work could be executed in absence of any person. The medicine men used to debark from a tree at one breath after cutting a branch from bottom to top, i.e. in an upward direction (Mahato, 2020, p. 75). Most of the informants generally belonged to age group of 51–60 years. The study recorded one hundred and eleven medicinal floras which are used for the treatment of thirty one ailments. The healers in the study area used different plant parts for the preparation of traditional drugs. Based on the data from informants, the majority of the traditional medicinal floras were harvested as a whole plant, followed by the roots, leaves, stems, bark, fruits, flowers and other parts.

4 Drug preparation

Like the pharmaceutical drugs, the usage of medicinal plants is a culture specific process. Their therapeutic efficiency depends on the timing of collection of plants, the technique of persuading plants to be effective, sometimes through spells and charms, sometimes by cunning actions and their mode of preparation (Mahato, 2020, p. 75). The modes of preparation may involve culturally specific forms of cutting, drying, cooking, fermenting and often mixing with culture specific products (Hsu and Harris, 2010, p. 5). Hsu writes, ‘Plant materials applied in medical practice are after all material culture: due to culture-specific preparations, they are turned into cultural artifacts’ (Hsu and Harris, 2010, p. 21). The healers prepare the medicine through the combination of plants, animals, lime, honey, soil from termite heaps, soil produced by earthworm and minerals ingredients. The medicine man prepares different types of drugs: pills, paste, powder, infusion, decoction, mixture, syrup and extracts them both in water and in alcohol, fresh juice by squeezing fresh materials, fermentation, medicated oil both from plant parts and from animal fats, massage balm, fumes, burning ash, plaster etc.

The mode of application of medicine is an important aspect of their healing process. Also the dosages and timing of application of medicine play an important role. Some of burning issues that they deal are, for example, at which period they apply the medicine during the course of illness and at which rate a medicine is applied in a day. These procedures need what Ignold (2000a, b) referred to as ‘enskillment’ and also take into account aesthetic aspect, cultural dispositions, culture-specific drug preparations and local-history.

Due to poverty, lack of medical and transport facilities, the tribal people are dependent on the medical services from traditional healers. The healers were very efficient in identifying the plants from the forest, cultivated areas, sacred groves and home gardens. Thus, the healers were not only concerned for the individual health but for the community as a whole. Foster and Anderson rightly argue that efficacy of such system could be assessed in such way that their ‘ability to successfully play roles that lie far beyond the cure of illness and maintenance of health’ (Quoted in Mathews, 1992, p. 9).

5 Conclusion

The Jungle Mahals region faced excessive pressure of over exploitation and the growing demand for forest resources resulting in biodiversity loss and species extinction. Though the Sabar became Hinduised, but their belief in animism help protect their sacred groves. This study found that there is low level of overlap in medicinal floras, even in the case of tribal communities however, they are linguistically, culturally, and ecologically closely related. Thus, the knowledge of the healers about many medicinal floras is greatly local. The efficacy of the medicine depends how much the healers properly followed the rules for the collection of the plants, drug preparation and application. The knowledge transmission about medicinal floras among different tribal communities is very healthy. The traditional system of medicine is very popular among the tribal communities as they could not access the facilities of western medicine because of their poverty and high cost of allopathic medicine. The traditional medicine is practiced at low cost in poverty stricken areas. Tarachand Hansda (40 years), a traditional tribal healer records the list of patients and case history of treatment episode. Like modern doctors, he gives prescriptions. According to his written records, he has treated more than 12 thousands patients during last ten years. This points to the fact that how much both the healer and the medical system are popular among the tribal communities.