In the past it used to be the custom in the country to carry out a programme of cleansing the blood every spring. People would gather fresh leaves from blackberry and raspberry bushes, strawberry plants and ribwort (ribgrass), coltsfoot flowers and, where possible, cowslip. They would pour boiling water over these young green shoots and flowers and drink the infusion in the morning and evening. Honey was added to sweeten it.
This ’spring tea’ is still recognised for its pleasant effect on our well-being. Those who take it regularly are convinced that it purifies the system, purging it of the winter’s metabolic wastes and infusing the new energies of spring. Some medical practitioners may turn up their noses, discarding the idea of blood-cleansing as being erroneous and unscientific, but there is no doubt that such herbal cleansing stimulates the body’s mechanisms and in this way achieves an overall cleansing effect.
According to the views held in ancient India, the blood and the circulatory system can and should be purified from time to time. Rasa is the ancient Indian word for the blood or body fluids, and Rasayana Kalpa is the name used for a blood-cleansing programme following the model and method of the ancient Indians.
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