Offerings of flowers, leaves, fruits, cereals, foods and drinks to the Gods have been spoken about to a great extent in ancient Hindu scriptures such as Puranas and Vedas. These substances also have replete with significant medicinal values. ' Mahamrityunjaya Mantra Japa' means Great Death-conquering Mantra, is a verse (sukta) of the Rigveda. This mantra is addressed to Shiva for warding off death and bestows longevity. Lord Shiva idolizes with some astonishing substances like Bilva Patra, Bhang Patra, Arka Puspa and Ganga Jal in Mahamrityunjaya Mantra Japa'. Medicinal properties like, antimicrobial, antiviral, antifungal, Anti-inflammatory, Analgesic, Anticancer, Antioxidant property of these have been reported by recent researches. In the future, In vitro and In vivo studies on these items of worship show that these may be an answer to non-treatable diseases like autoimmune disorder, viral infection and cancer etc., as these substances have anti-inflammatory, immunomodulation and antimicrobial properties. Exploration of the text of Traditional and complementary medicine might be useful in research of new drug molecules.

Asparagus racemosus Willd belongs to the plant family Asparagaceae and one of the well-known medicinal plants used in indigenous systems of medicine of Sri Lanka. It has abundant medicinal effects such as aphrodisiac, antioxidant, immunostimulant, antihepatotoxic, antibacterial, antidiabetic, anticarcinogenic, antidiarrheal, antiulcerogenic, antioxytocic, etc. Local suppliers for A. racemosus cannot meet the country requirement and therefore, mainly depends on imported A. racemosus grown in India. Therefore, an attempt was taken to evaluate the physico-chemical, phytochemical and nutritional profile of A. racemosus grown in India. Results revealed that 6.2 0.1% of total ash, 1.9 0.0% of water-soluble ash and 1.7 0.0% of acid insoluble ash were contained in roots of A. racemosus grown in India. Total phenolic content, total flavonoid content and total saponin content were 14.0 ± 0.1 mg gallic acid equivalents/g of extract 7.1 ± 0.2 mg quercetin equivalents/g of extract and 4.5±0.2 % respectively for A. racemosus grown in India. Twelve prominent spots bearing Rf values of 0.07, 0.09, 0.12, 0.20, 0.25, 0.28, 0.36, 0.48, 0.54, 0.71, 0.89 and 0.93 were present in Indian origin A. racemosus. Heavy metals such as Hg, As, Cd and Pb and microorganisms including Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli, Coliforms, Salmonella and yeast and moulds were not detected in A. racemosus roots. Energy value of A. racemosus grown in India was 22 kcal/100g. In conclusion, present study illustrates a clear idea of physico-chemical, phytochemical and nutritional properties of A. racemosus grown in India.

Background: Aging is a normal process in the life of all living beings. It is a multidimensional process of physical, psychological, and social change. Some dimensions of ageing grow and expand over time, while others decline. The study looks at effect of MSRT a yoga technique in elderly to improve cognitive functions like attention, concentration, short term memory and executive functions. Materials and Methods: Elderly subjects were recruited based on inclusion and exclusion criteria (n = 30) for a single group interventional pre-post study design: MSRT (a relaxation technique) was given for a period of 1 month (30 days). The subjects were assessed on day 1 pre and post intervention on day 30 on Six Letter Cancellation Test (SLCT), and Trail Making Test-B (TMT-B). Results: After one month of MSRT practice showed significantly better performance in the SLCT test compared to baseline by Paired sample t test (P < 0.0001) and TMT-B scores (P < 0.0001). Conclusions: The results of this study establish that MSRT can be used as a technique to enhance cognition and prevent cognitive decline in the elderly.

For decades, Nigella sativa has been used as herbal medicine. Thymoquinone is a main ingredient isolated from Nigella sativa and has wide range of pharmacological activities, such as protection from oxidative stress, inflammation and infections. This is also suggested that most of the therapeutic effects of Nigella sativa are because of the presence of thymoquinone that's the most bioactive constituent of the Nigella sativa. The crude and thymoquinone extracted from its seeds and oil are effective against non-communicable diseases (hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, cancer, etc.) and communicable diseases (malaria, AIDS, hepatitis C virus, fungal, viral, and parasitic infections etc.). The literature studies were preliminary and scanty; however the results revealed that Nigella sativa (black seed) plants have a possible therapeutic impact for wide range diseases. Such results are encouraging for the incorporation of those plants in treatment of both communicable and non-communicable diseases.

Objectives: To compare the phyto-chemical and physico-chemcial differences between green leaves monotype (MT1) and purple leaves monotypes (MT2) of Ocimum sanctum Linn grown in selected provinces of Sri Lanka. Methods: Essential oil was extracted by hydro-distillation using Clevenger type apparatus and analyzed by Gas Chromatography technique. Physico-chemical investigations were done according to WHO guidelines. Results: Highest amount of essential oil content was present for both MT1 and MT2 of O. sanctum collected from Southern Province. Moreover, methyl eugenol was present in O. sanctum in a range of 0.2 – 66% and compared to the MT1 methyl eugenol content was higher in MT2 of O. sanctum collected from all selected provinces. The highest percentage of eugenol was contained in MT2 of O. sanctum and there is no significant dependency of the location. Further, it is very interesting to note that percentages of germacrene- D and β-elemene were both higher in MT2 of O. sanctum in WP and SP respectively. However, there was no significant difference in terms of total ash or water soluble ash or acid insoluble ash between MT1 and MT2 collected from four provinces of Sri Lanka. Conclusion: Overall results revealed that MT2 of O. sanctum collected from SP is more versatile in terms of oil content and chemical constituents.