As modern science revisits traditional herbal medicine, indigenous medicinal knowledge in Nagaland and the Northeast is gaining renewed attention for its healing potential and centuries-old community wisdom
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As modern science revisits traditional herbal medicine, indigenous medicinal knowledge in Nagaland and the Northeast is gaining renewed attention for its healing potential and centuries-old community wisdom
Monalisa Changkija
There is this story—unverified, of course—that a well-off Naga man suffering from relentless diabetes decided to travel all the way to China after reading about a wonder plant in that country that cures the disease. After his return, friends, relatives, and neighbours visited him to enquire about his well-being and his trip—a typical Naga custom.
He was cheerful and optimistic about his recovery and, after regaling his visitors with stories of his sojourn to China, he proudly showed them the dried leaves of the wonder plant he had brought back.
A look at the dried leaves evoked an incredulous reaction. “You fool,” a neighbour said, naming the plant. “Don’t you know that it grows wild all over the place here and in your garden too? It grows so abundantly that we feed it to the pigs.”
There are several perspectives to this narrative. Pertinent among them are:
(1) We are often so single-mindedly focused on problems that we forget most solutions are found abundantly in our own backyard.
(2) We prefer ‘modern’ and ‘foreign’ medicines or cures and discount the rich indigenous plants, herbs, fruits, and vegetables that grow abundantly in our land.
Never has the grass looked greener on the other side than when we are desperate. While traditionally we have had a rich food culture—the major components being our indigenous plants, herbs, fruits, and vegetables—somehow they were relegated to the background in the face of newer arrivals that are propagated as not only healthy but also commercially lucrative.
Thankfully, we have not totally lost our traditional food culture, although our younger generations seem to prefer ‘modern’ food served in cafes, lounges, and restaurants. Our indigenous foods may not be cure-alls, but there is certainly much to be said for them considering they have kept our ancestors healthy and nourished for centuries. Moreover, they have no or minimal side effects.
Besides, pharmaceutical companies would not be exploring our indigenous plants, herbs, fruits, and vegetables if they did not possess nutritional and medicinal value.
Indubitably, we cannot disregard modern medicines, remedies, and treatments—human health indices and longevity are evidence of the powers and miracles of modern medicine. However, while they are mainly curative, many of our indigenous plants, herbs, fruits, and vegetables possess both curative and preventive properties besides their nutritional value.
The advantage of modern medicines is that we are advised of the exact amount and time for consumption. Unfortunately, with regard to our indigenous plants, herbs, fruits, and vegetables, we have lost the knowledge of quantity and sometimes the mode of ingestion, thereby posing a threat to our well-being.
Hence, the increasing impetus on scientifically revisiting indigenous medicinal knowledge is a welcome step, keeping in mind that numerous preventive and curative measures exist in the abundant foliage in our backyards and forests.
One such research study titled “Scouting and Documentation of Local Grassroots Innovators and Traditional Herbal Practices in Tuensang District, Nagaland” is now being undertaken by the Head of the Department of Environmental Studies at Fazl Ali College, Mokokchung. The study is conducted under the guidance of the National Innovation Foundation (NIF), an autonomous institution under the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India.
According to reports, the research focuses on recording indigenous medicinal practices, traditional herbal healing practices and identifying grassroots innovators among tribal communities in Eastern Nagaland. The survey includes interactions with herbal practitioners, village elders, innovators and community leaders to document the medicinal uses of forest plant species.
The findings indicate that rural communities continue to rely heavily on herbal remedies to treat fever, stomach and skin disorders, wounds, and infections in areas with limited modern healthcare facilities. Several grassroots innovators with unique traditional knowledge and practices related to herbal medicines and natural resource utilisation were also identified, indicating livelihood opportunities for small-scale enterprises with proper scientific support.
Reports also note that several medicinal plants in Eastern Nagaland remain scientifically unexplored, underscoring the need for systematic documentation, conservation efforts, and collaboration among communities, academic institutions and national research bodies.
This study aims to build a comprehensive database of indigenous herbal practices, grassroots innovations and medicinal plant resources in Eastern Nagaland. However, the objectives would be a steep uphill climb because practitioners of herbal knowledge lament that declining medicinal plants—due to deforestation, environmental degradation and changing climatic conditions—are affecting regeneration.
There is obviously little time to waste in salvaging our depleting herbal resources, as the rapid pace of climate change has degraded and destroyed huge natural resources globally. It is bad enough that Nagaland and the rest of the Northeast have not been spared from an abused and violated Nature’s fury.
Another obstacle in the path of revisiting indigenous medicinal knowledge and practices is the increasing resistance to them, especially among ‘modern’ people. Despite perceptible changes in attitudes and mindsets regarding indigenous medicinal knowledge and practices, the habit of popping pills due to convenience and fast relief remains.
For one, these pills and syrups are easily available, and over-the-counter medicines save a trip to the doctor. We have also come to expect instant relief and remedies, failing to realise that any medicine requires time to do its job. In other words, we are unwilling to let time and nature heal us.
However, it is also possible that our minds have been so differently shaped by the ‘modern’ that, despite positive findings on indigenous medicinal knowledge and practices—as well as on our cultures, traditions, and various knowledge systems—we resist and reject our heritage because of our colonial history that introduced us to modern science and technology.
Ironically, it is the very same modern science and technology that are leading us onwards, back to where it all began across the Northeast.
(Monalisa Changkija is a Dimapur-based veteran journalist, poet, and former Editor of Nagaland Page. Published in the March 15, 2026 issue of North East Now)