The short answer
Saraswata Churna is a herbal powder that the Ayurvedic Formulary of India lists for apasmara (epilepsy) and unmada (mania or psychosis). Ten herbs and rock salt are taken in equal parts, vaca (sweet flag) is added to match all of them together, and the powder is ground with brahmi juice. The only study we found gave it to ten people with daytime sleepiness, after therapeutic vomiting (vamana). Their sleepiness scores fell, but nobody was given a comparison treatment.
Since a 2023 correction to the formulary, vaca makes up half the powder by weight. It also contains pippali (long pepper); piperine, a pepper compound, raised phenytoin levels in people with epilepsy. If you take medicine for epilepsy or any psychiatric condition, tell the doctor who prescribes it before adding this powder.
What is in it
The official recipe is in the Ayurvedic Formulary of India, Part II, formulation 7:19, as corrected by the 2023 Amendment List-1.[1]
| Ingredient | Botanical name | Part used | Proportion |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kushtha (kuth) | Saussurea lappa | Root | 1 part |
| Ashwagandha (asgandh) | Withania somnifera | Root | 1 part |
| Lavana (saindhava, rock salt) | - | - | 1 part |
| Ajamoda | Apium graveolens | Fruit | 1 part |
| Shveta jiraka (white cumin, jeera) | Cuminum cyminum | Fruit | 1 part |
| Krishna jiraka (black cumin, kala jeera) | Carum carvi | Fruit | 1 part |
| Shunthi (dry ginger, saunth) | Zingiber officinale | Rhizome | 1 part |
| Marica (black pepper) | Piper nigrum | Fruit | 1 part |
| Pippali (long pepper) | Piper longum | Fruit | 1 part |
| Patha | Cissampelos pareira | Root | 1 part |
| Mangalyapushpi (shankhapushpi) | Convolvulus pluricaulis | Whole plant | 1 part |
| Vaca (sweet flag, bach) | Acorus calamus | Rhizome | 11 parts (1 part before the 2023 amendment) |
| Brahmi juice (brahmi rasa) | Bacopa monnieri | Whole plant | As needed for grinding (bhavana) |
Rows from the government e-book copy of Part II, with the 2023 amendment applied to vaca. We have not yet seen the printed Part II. Recipes on packs can differ, so read the label.[1]
Classical source
The formulary takes the recipe from the Bhavaprakasha, Unmada chapter (22.46-47). These lines name the ingredients and ask for vaca equal to all the others together. That is the amount the 2023 amendment wrote into the table: 11 parts of vaca against eleven single parts.[1]
What it is used for
- The formulary lists it for apasmara (epilepsy) and unmada (mania or psychosis).[1]
What the evidence says
Small clinical studyTen adults with excessive daytime sleepiness, at an Ayurveda college in Kerala, first had vamana (therapeutic vomiting) and then took Saraswata Churna for 30 days. Their average score on a sleepiness scale fell from 14.8 to 2.8. Everyone got both treatments and there was no comparison group, so the study cannot say what the powder did on its own. It was not a study of epilepsy or mania.[3]
Safety notes
- Vaca (Acorus calamus) is 11 of 22 parts, half the powder by weight, under the 2023 amendment. Under the earlier recipe it was 1 part of 12. We found no study of the safety of this amount of vaca.[2]
- Contains pippali and black pepper. In a small study of people with epilepsy, a single dose of piperine raised blood levels of phenytoin. That study used isolated piperine, not this powder. See Pippali and phenytoin.[4]
- Also contains ashwagandha and is ground with brahmi juice. Both herbs have their own pages, including Brahmi and epilepsy medicines and Ashwagandha and sleep medicines.[1]
Who makes it
Sold in India by makers including Baidyanath. We list names so you can match your bottle to this page. We do not recommend or sell any brand.
Withheld until review
Questions people ask
Is Saraswata Churna the same as Saraswatarishta?
No. Saraswata Churna is a dry powder from Part II of the formulary, built on vaca. Saraswatarishta is a fermented liquid from Part I, built on brahmi, and like other arishtas it contains alcohol made during fermentation.[1][5][6]
Can Saraswata Churna be used instead of epilepsy medicine?
We have not reviewed a study of it in epilepsy. The one human study we found was in daytime sleepiness, with ten people and no comparison group. Any change to epilepsy treatment is a decision for the doctor who prescribes it.[3]
Related
Pippali, black pepper and phenytoin
Piperine, the compound in pippali and black pepper, raised phenytoin blood levels in two small Indian studies. Phenytoin has a narrow safe range.
InteractionBrahmi and epilepsy medicines
Not tested in people. In rats, a brahmi extract raised carbamazepine levels about fourfold, and carbamazepine and phenytoin have a narrow safe range.
InteractionAshwagandha with sleeping pills and benzodiazepines
Not studied in people. Ashwagandha may have sedative effects that add to benzodiazepines and sleeping pills, based on preclinical work.
FormulationSaraswatarishta
A fermented brahmi tonic with gold leaf, listed for memory, speech, epilepsy and the mind. It contains alcohol from fermentation, plus sugar and honey.
Sources
- Ayurvedic Formulary of India, Part II. Sarasvata Curna, 7:19 (government e-book copy, pages 97-98; the printed edition has not been checked).
- Pharmacopoeia Commission for Indian Medicine & Homoeopathy. Amendment List-1 (2023) to the Ayurvedic Formulary of India, Parts I to III, item 16 (Sarasvata Curna: Vaca revised from 1 part to 11 parts), page 5.
- Menon A, Soman D, Chacko J, Anandaraman PV, Kundagol MC, Sreejith K. An exploratory single-arm open-label clinical study to evaluate the combined effect of Vamana and Sarasvata Churna in reducing excessive daytime sleepiness. J Ayurveda Integr Med. 2024;15(5):100960. PMID 39305812.
- Pattanaik S, Hota D, Prabhakar S, Kharbanda P, Pandhi P. Effect of piperine on the steady-state pharmacokinetics of phenytoin in patients with epilepsy. Phytother Res. 2006;20(8):683-686. PMID 16767797.
- Ayurvedic Formulary of India, Part I, 2nd revised English edition, 2003. Sarasvatarishta, 1:36, printed page 22.
- Ayurvedic Formulary of India, Part I, 2nd revised English edition, 2003. Asava and Arishta, definition, printed page 3.
Updated 4 November 2026
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