How Does This Ayurvedic Food Improve Wellness?

CLINICAL AYURVEDIC REVIEW

Figs are sweet. They clean the mouth and remove foul taste. Figs are a natural tonic for energy and vitality. Rich in ojas and sugars, they are useful for rejuvenation after hard labor or child birth. Supplemented with other ojas building fruits like almonds, dates and ghee figs are useful in treatment of sexual debility.

High Fiber Laxative
Figs are high in fiber. Their tiny seeds stimulate peristaltic movements of the intestines. Their emollient quality softens and soothes the inflamed skin lining the intestines. Figs reduce straining. Soak overnight in water then drink and consume figs in the morning.

When fecal matter clogs the intestines your body can become toxic and inflamed. Inflammation in the rectum may cause external swelling and become a hemorrhoid. Straining against hard, impacted fecal matter causes the rectum to protrude externally, causing prolapse of the rectum. Ayurveda prevents these conditions and provides relief for hemorrhoids and protrusion by facilitating regular, easy evacuation of the bowels. Figs cooling nature is very soothing to the delicate tissues of the colon.

About Figs

Figs are a heavenly and blessed fruit. Buddha achieved enlightenment under the bodhi tree, a large and old sacred fig tree (Ficus religiosa). In Genesis, Adam and Eve hid their nakedness with fig leaves. The prophet Muhammad exclaimed, "If I had to mention a fruit that descended from paradise, I would say this is it because the paradisical fruits do not have pits."

The holiness of figs is not circumstantial; figs were the first plant cultivated by humans as early as 9400BC. Their cultivation predates wheat, barley and legumes by at least a thousand years. The ensuing agricultural revolution changed the lifestyle and consciousness of humans forever. Given the central role of fig trees in the agricultural revolution, their sacredness in our holy texts is not a surprise. Figs remain an important food crop in modern times.

Native from Afghanistan to Greece, figs are in the same family as mulberry. They are not actually a fruit but a flower. The type of flower is known as an inflorescence. It is called a 'multiple fruit' because the flowers and seeds grow together in a single mass. Figs ripen twice a year. Once in the spring and once in late summer or fall. The late summer and fall crop is usually the largest and best tasting.

Buying & Preparation

Figs eaten fresh are divine but most figs are dried. The ripe fruit does not keep for long once picked. It is soft and does not transport well. Fresh figs should be stored in dry containers because moisture makes them rot more quickly. In Roman times, Cato convinced the senate to destroy Carthage by importing a box of fresh figs. The fresh figs imported from Carthage showed its proximity and thus threat to Rome.

Cooking Figs

Dried figs should be soaked overnight before eating. To eat fresh figs hold the stem and cut the base in quarters revelaing the soft, sweet flesh.

Figs can be used as a sugar substitute in pies, pastes & jams. Prepare dried figs similarly to dates and prunes.Browse Recipes