Tulsi - worshiped as a goddess...

In India Tulsi is worshiped as a goddess,due to its medicinal value and there is nothing to argue on this issue as the medicinal values of  Tulsi are scientifically proved which gives a boost to the indian beliefs.here you can find some facts about Tulsi.

Botanical Name: Ocimum sanctum, O. tenuiflorum

Family: Lamiaceae

Common Names: Tulsi (Hindi), Tulasi (Hindi), surasa (Sanskrit), sacred basil

Part Used: Herb

Properties: Adaptogen, antibacterial, antidepressant, antioxidant, antiviral, carminative, diuretic, expectorant, galactagogue (promotes the flow of mother’s milk), and immunomodulator

Constituents: Essential oils such as eugenol, carvacol, linalool, caryophylline, and methyleugenol as well as triterpenes such as ursolic acid and flavonoids.

History:

Tulsi is sacred to the Hindu god Vishnu and is used in morning prayers to insure personal health, spiritual purity, and family well-being. Strings of beads made from the plant’s stems are used in meditation to give clarity and protection.Tulsi is classified as a rasayana, an herb that nourishes a person’s growth to perfect health and promotes long life. For perhaps 3000 years, Tulsi has been considered one of India’s most powerful herbs. The daily use of this herb is believed to help maintain the balance of the chakras, (energy centers) of the body. It is acclaimed as possessing sattva (energy of purity) and as being capable of bringing on goodness, virtue, and joy in humans. In the Puranas (a sacred Hindu text), everything associated with the plant is holy, including water given to it and the soil in which it grows as well as all its parts, among them leaves, flowers, seed, and roots.

In Indian medicine, the leaves of the Tulsi plant are brewed in a tea that is used as an expectorant to treat people with excessive bronchial mucus and bronchitis. The tea also is used for people with upset stomach, biliouness, and vomiting. The powdered/dried leaves have been used as a snuff for nasal congestion, and the juice of the fresh leaf is put in the ear for earaches. A decoction made from the root is used to lower malarial fevers, and a poultice made from the fresh roots and leaves is applied to bites and stings from wasps, bees, mosquitoes, ants, and other insects as well as leeches.

Modern Uses:

There has been a significant amount of both animal studies and human clinical research on the benefits of Tulsi. Today, we know this versatile plant is an adaptogen with antioxidant, neuroprotective, stress reducing, and radioprotective effects.animal studies provided preliminary evidence that holy basil lowers blood sugar levels, helps prevent gastric ulcers, and enhances antibody production while inhibiting the symptoms of allergies.There have been a few human studies. In one, Tulsi was found to help reduce asthma symptoms, and in another, patients with type 2 diabetes had significant reductions in blood sugar levels while fasting and smaller decreases in blood sugar levels and cholesterol levels after eating.Tulsi is used to treat people with allergic rhinitis and allergies to animal dander and mold. Combined with reishi and a solid extract from blueberries, it can reduce the symptoms of hay fever and allergic asthma.