Description
Ashwagandha Powder — the dried, ground root of Withania somnifera — represents the most globally traded Indian medicinal plant preparation, with export value exceeding USD 30 million annually. Withania somnifera is a perennial shrub of the family Solanaceae, native to the arid and semi-arid scrublands of the Indian subcontinent — particularly Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat — and extending to the Mediterranean and East Africa. The dried root contains withanolides — steroidal lactones including withaferin A and withanolide D — the primary compounds driving its adaptogenic and pharmacological research interest. Documented as Ashwagandha and Balya-Vajikara in the Charaka Samhita across multiple formulation contexts including Rasayana, Vajikarana (aphrodisiac), and Brimhana (nutritive) preparations, the root is incorporated in Ashwagandha Lehyam, Ashwagandhadi Churna, and hundreds of proprietary formulations. Listed in the Ayurvedic Pharmacopoeia of India.
