Lehyam Explained

Lehyam,^[1] also referred to as Lekiyam refers to a traditional Indian electuary or confection.^{[2] [3]}

Classification

Classified as a product of Siddha medicine, lehyam is regarded to be a healthy body tonic, consumed to resolve digestive and respiratory problems, comprising ingredients that are easily absorbed by the body.^[4]

Ingredients and preparation

Lehyam is prepared using powdered medicine, jaggery, sugar, honey, in an aqueous medium of water. Ghee is often added as a preserving agent, and after preparation, the food may be rolled into small balls and left to harden within a vessel, edible for up to a year.^[5]

Variations and uses

Various forms of lehyam exist, and are named for their ingredients, and offer different properties. For instance, in Tamil Nadu, inji lekiyam, for which the salient ingredient is ginger, is offered to a new mother shortly after her delivery.^[6] Thaneervittan (type of asparagus called shatavari) legiyam and sowbhagiyasundi (dry ginger powder) legiyam are used similarly. Nellikai lekiyam, for which the salient ingredient is star gooseberry, is offered to children to boost their immunity.^[7]

In South India, lehyam is often prepared and purchased on the occasion of Deepavali to aid the digestion, and counteract the effects, of eating sweets during the festival.^[8] According to The Hindu, Deepavali legiyam, or Deepavali marundhu, is popular in Chennai, and made in many households at festival time.^[9]

Ciṭṭukkuruvi lēkiyam, prepared from sparrow meat, was once consumed for aphrodisiacal purposes.^[10]

See also

• Traditional medicine of India

Notes and References

1. Web site: www.wisdomlib.org . 2018-05-27 . Lehya, Lēhya: 12 definitions . 2022-10-21 . www.wisdomlib.org . en.
2. Book: Weiss, Richard S. . Recipes for Immortality: Healing, Religion, and Community in South India . 2009-02-19 . Oxford University Press, USA . 978-0-19-533523-1 . 85 . en.
3. Book: Rao, Saligrama Krishna Ramachandra . Encyclopaedia of Indian Medicine . 2005 . Popular Prakashan . 978-81-7154-255-0 . 92 . en.
4. Book: Sen . Saikat . Herbal Medicine in India: Indigenous Knowledge, Practice, Innovation and its Value . Chakraborty . Raja . 2019-09-10 . Springer Nature . 978-981-13-7248-3 . 17–18 . en.
5. Book: Hollen, Cecilia Van . Birth on the Threshold: Childbirth and Modernity in South India . 2003-10-16 . University of California Press . 978-0-520-22359-2 . 259 . en.
6. Book: General, India Office of the Registrar . Census of India, 1961 . 1962 . Manager of Publications . 9 . en.
7. Book: MD(S) . Dr P. Mirunaleni . TRADITIONAL PARENTING - PARENTING IN A SIDDHA WAY . B.S.M.S . Dr S. Dhivyabharathi . MD(S) . Dr B. Shalini . 2021-01-19 . Darshan Publishers . 978-93-86739-51-3 . 16, 31 . en.
8. News: 2016-10-28 . Making of the legiyam . en-IN . The Hindu . 2022-10-21 . 0971-751X.
9. News: Srinivasan . Shenbagalakshmi . 2015-11-05 . How to make… Deepavali legiyam . en-IN . The Hindu . 2022-10-25 . 0971-751X.
10. Susainathan, P. . 1921 . Bird friends and foes of the farmer. Bulletin No. 81 . Department of Agriculture . 22 . P.S. Nathan . Madras.