The Mahatma Gandhi Museum of Canara Educational Institutions in Mangaluru is bringing long-awaited recognition to three traditional Konkani vaidyas (botanical experts), whose expertise in medicinal plants played a crucial role in the creation of one of the earliest botanical texts, Hortus Indicus Malabaricus (Garden of Malabar in India), published around 350 years ago.
Payyanur Ramesh Pai, director of the museum, shared with TOI that the museum now displays a rare Konkani testimonial written in Devanagari script, dated April 20, 1675. This document, authored by Vaidyas Appu Bhat, Ranga Bhat, and Vinayak Pandit, was included in the first volume of the groundbreaking 12-part Latin treatise. While Malayali Vaidya Itty Achuthan and Fr. Mattheus, a Christian priest, also contributed to the project, Pai noted that the latter left midway.
The Konkani Vaidyas played a pivotal role in collecting plants, identifying their medicinal properties, and contributing valuable knowledge about the diverse flora of the Malabar region (now the West Coast of India). Pai explained that this monumental project was initiated by Dutch Commodore Henrik Van Rheede during his tenure in Kochi. The result was Hortus, a remarkable collaboration that bridged Indian and European botanical knowledge. The work cataloged over 742 plants, with 794 illustrations, listing their names in four languages—Latin, Malayalam, Arabic, and Konkani. This made it the first exhaustive botanical record of its kind, and it marked the first instance of block printing in Malayalam and Konkani.
“This was no ordinary book. It was the result of an extraordinary multicultural, multidisciplinary team,” said Pai. Under Van Rheede’s leadership, Hortus brought together European physicians, Indian Vaidyas, engravers, artists, and local rulers. The Vaidyas’ knowledge was instrumental in cataloging medicinal plants, and each specimen was collected, labeled, and sent to Amsterdam for further research. Notably, out of the 794 copper engravings of plants in Hortus, 634 were named in Konkani, which was then known as Lingua Antiqua Bramanica (Ancient Language of the Brahmans).
To commemorate the 350th anniversary of these contributions, the museum plans to host awareness programs highlighting the lasting impact of these Vaidyas on global herbal medicine. Pai also noted that India’s diverse plant species, approximately 15,000 in total, contribute significantly to traditional healing practices, with nearly 8,000 varieties used in medicinal formulations.
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