Kalonji or Black seed, a nature’s remedy

The plants of Kalonji are found throughout the Subcontinent in the form of bushes. The height of the plant is approximately half a meter. It possesses blue flowers. It originated from Turkey and Italy. Later on, it was brought to this side of Asia by muslim physicians who cultivated this plnt in this region. Now a days, it is cultivated throughout this area, whereas it is wildly grown too. Seeds are triangular in shape, black in colour and possess a severe pungent smell, contain a considerable amount of oil. It is perceived that Arabs learnt its use from Greeks. It’s therapeutic use was initiated after the advent of Islam, since, Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) mentioned its therapeutic efficacy and potential of cure. In Arabic cultures, black cumin is so known as Habbatul barakah, meaning the "seed of blessing." It is also believed that the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) said of it that it is "a remedy for all diseases except death." Hazrat Abu Hurairah States - “I have heard from Rasool Allah (Pbuh) that there is cure for every disease in black seeds except death and black seeds are shooneez.”                                                                  

Salim Bin Abdullah narrates with reference to his father Hazrat Abdullah Bin Omar that Rasool Allah (Pbuh) said, “Let fall these black seeds upon you, these contain cure for all diseases except death.”


Khalid Bin Saad states that he was travelling with Ghalib Bin Jabr, when fell ill during the journey. Ibn Abi Ateeq (nephew of Hazrat Aisha) Came to meet us. On seeing the patient, he took 5 or 7 seeds of Kalonji and ground it, mixed it in olive oil and dropped in both nostrils, Hazrat Aisha told us that Prophet Muhammad (Pbuh) stated that there was cure in black seeds for all ailments except sam. I asked him, what was sam? he told “Death”. Ghalib Bin Jabr became healthy with that treatment. Observations of the scholars of Hadith reveal that shooneez is equally effective for the diseases due to heat and cold. Zahbi states that kalonji removes the obstruction of any part of the body, expels the gases and strengthens the stomach. It is Emmenagogue, Lactogogue and Diuretic. It is an Anti-Helminthic, if taken with vinegar. It is useful in chronic cold. Inhalation of its smell is useful in common cold. The oil of Kalonji is effective in Alopecia. Half tea-spoonful, if boiled in water and taken, is helpful in Asthma and diffuses the toxic effects of Bee and Wasps. Continuous use of kalonji is effective in mad dog biting. Fumigation of kalonji is useful in respiratory diseases. It is useful in paralysis, Facial Palsy, Migraine, Amnesia and Palpitation. It is also an expectorant and antipyretic. It mormalises the secretions of stomach and pancreas. This phenomenon is very much effective and significant in the treatment of Diabetes Mellitus. It expels the kidney and urinary bladder stones, if taken with the syrup of honey. It is effective in jaundice also if taken with milk. It’s powder if taken with water is effective in Haemorrhoids. If Kalonji seeds are boiled in vinegar and this solution is applied on Gums and Teeth, it removes the inflammation of the gums and relieves the pain also. It is also reported that its fine powder is effective if applied in early stages of cataract. Kalonji is also used in skin disorders. The oil of the seeds is also effective in ear-ache.

Chemical Composition - seeds contain 1.5% volatile oil, while 37.5% Non volatile oil. In addition to this Albumen, Sugar, Organic acids, Glucoside Melanthin Metarbin and bitter substances are also found. The Glucoside is toxic in nature, hence the use of Kalonji in large doses and prolonged use might be harmful.


If it is taken with Qust Sheering after breakfast and Dinner, it is effective in chronic dysentery and Asthma. Qust Sheering is a good medicine for sexual debility, but if it is taken with Kalonji seeds and Habburrashad, it becomes more fortified. Modern upto date trials have proved that Kalonji seeds alone or in combination with other drugs are highly effective in Diabetes Mellitus, vitiligo and other skin ailments.


The earliest recorded of its cultivation and use come from ancient Egypt. Black seed oil, in fact, was found in Egyptian pharoah Tutankhamun's tomb, dating back to approximately 3,300 years ago. The Queen Nefertiti was praised for her exquisite complexion always, she had been a regular user of black seeds in the oil form. Her potion used to be made up of crushed black seeds, mixed with vinegar & honey. Applied like a paste this potion was excellent for the maintenance of skin as well as it worked as a remedy to snake bites and scorpion stings.


Black seed is a complex substance of more than 100 compounds, some of which have not yet been identified or studied. A combination of fatty acids, volatile oils and trace elements are believed to contribute to its effectiveness. As for all the benefits packed into this tiny seed waiting to be discovered, ongoing research will have to judge. Throughout the world this little seed has different names which are as follows:


English = Nigella, love-in-a-mist, fennel flower, black cumin, black caraway, black coriander, black seed English, Old (also in King James Version of the Bible) = Fitch
Finnish = Neidonkuka
French = Cheveux de venus, Nigelle or Faux cumin
German = Schwarzhuemmel, later protvurz or brotchrut
Greek, Ancient = Melánthion or meláspermom
Hebrew = Ketzah
Hindi and Urdu = Kalonji
Indian = Nutmeg flower
Italian = Nigela
Persian = Schonaiz
Sri Lankan = Kaladuru

There are over 40 health conditions that may be benefited from the use of this herb, including over 20 distinct pharmacological actions it expresses, such as:

·         Analgesic (Pain-Killing)

·         Anti-Bacterial

·         Anti-Inflammatory

·         Anti-Ulcer

·         Anti-Cholinergic

·         Anti-Fungal

·         Ant-Hypertensive

·         Antioxidant

·         Antispasmodic

·         Antiviral

·         Bronchodilator

·         Gluconeogenesis Inhibitor (Anti-Diabetic)

·         Hepatoprotective (Liver Protecting)

·         Hypotensive

·         Insulin Sensitizing

·         Interferon Inducer

·         Leukotriene Antagonist

·         Renoprotective (Kidney Protecting)

·         Tumor Necrosis Factor Alpha Inhibitor

Black seed has been researched for very specific health conditions; this research has been done by the Green med information. Some of the most compelling findings include:

·         Type 2 Diabetes: Two grams of black seed a day resulted in reduced fasting glucose, decreased insulin resistance, increased beta-cell function, and reduced glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) in human subjects.

·         Helicobacter Pylori Infection: Black seeds possess clinically useful anti-H. pylori activity, comparable to triple eradication therapy.

·         Epilepsy: Black seeds were traditionally known to have anticonvulsive properties. A 2007 study with epileptic children, whose condition was refractory to conventional drug treatment, found that a water extract significantly reduced seizure activity

·         High Blood pressure: The daily use of 100 and 200 mg of black seed extract, twice daily, for 2 months, was found to have a blood pressure-lowering effect in patients with mild hypertension.

·         Asthma: Thymoquinone, one of the main active constituents within Nigella sativa (black cumin), is superior to the drug fluticasone in an animal model of asthma. Another study, this time in human subjects, found that boiled water extracts of black seed have relatively potent antiasthmatic effect on asthmatic airways.

·         Acute tonsillopharyngitis: characterized by tonsil or pharyngeal inflammation (i.e. sore throat), mostly viral in origin, black seed capsules (in combination with Phyllanthus niruri) have been found to significantly alleviate throat pain, and reduce the need for pain-killers, in human subjects.

·         Chemical Weapons Injury: A randomized, placebo-controlled human study of chemical weapons injured patients found that boiled water extracts of black seed reduced respiratory symptoms, chest wheezing, and pulmonary function test values, as well as reduced the need for drug treatment.

·         Colon Cancer: Cell studies have found that black seed extract compares favorably to the chemoagent 5-fluoruracil in the suppression of colon cancer growth, but with a far higher safety profile. Animal research has found that black seed oil has significant inhibitory effects against colon cancer in rats, without observable side effects.

·         MRSA: Black seed has anti-bacterial activity against clinical isolates of methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus.

·         Opiate Addiction/Withdrawal: A study on 35 opiate addicts found black seed as an effective therapy in long-term treatment of opioid dependence.
(Research courtesy: Green Med Info)

Sometimes the biblical reference to 'faith the size of a mustard seed moving mountains' comes to mind in connection with natural substances like black seeds. After all, do seeds not contain within them the very hope for continuance of the entire species that bore it? This super-saturated state of the seed, where life condenses itself down into an intensely miniaturized holographic fragment of itself, promising the formation of future worlds within itself, is the very emblem of life's immense and immortal power.

If we understand the true nature of the seed, how much life (past, present and future) is contained within it, it will not seem so far-fetched that it is capable of conquering antibiotic resistant bacteria, healing the body from chemical weapons poisoning, or stimulate the regeneration of dying insulin-producing beta cells in the diabetic, to name but only a fraction of black seed's experimentally-confirmed powers. The greatest difference, of course, between a seed and a patented synthetic chemical (i.e. pharmaceutical drug), is that Nature (God) made the former, and men with profit-motives and a deranged understanding of the nature of the body made the latter.