Choornams & Powders

Read the route before you read the recipe

A choornam is simply a herb or a combination ground to powder, and that simplicity is why it appears everywhere in Kerala practice: the same powder can be swallowed with an anupana, tied into a kizhi bolus and pressed on warm, or rubbed over dry skin as udvartana. The form tells you nothing about the route.

This is the one shelf where that matters for safety rather than convenience. Kottamchukkadi Choornam and Kolakulathadi Choornam are fomentation powders — they belong in a cloth, warmed, against the skin, and they are not to be eaten. The body wash powders are soap substitutes. If a pack does not clearly state that it is taken internally, assume it is external and ask before doing anything else with it.

Three routes, and how to tell them apart

1. Internal choornams — Taken with an anupana the label names. These say so plainly on the pack; if yours does not, it is not one of them.
2. Kizhi and poultice powders — Tied into a cloth bolus, warmed, and pressed on. A therapy-room technique — understand it before ordering.
3. Udvartana and wash powders — Rubbed over the skin dry, or wetted and used in place of soap. Cosmetic in use, and gentle.

See also Herbal Powders and Bath, Body & Hair.

Always read the label and directions on the pack you receive, and speak with your physician before starting anything new — particularly if you are pregnant, nursing, managing a health condition or taking prescription medicine.