Part 5 - Extraction of essence from Rasaka (calamine)

First process.

Kharpara is to be rubbed with one fourth its quantity of haridra, triphala, rala, saindhava, dhuma (soot), tankana, bhallataka, and a sufficient quantity of the amlas (sour vegetable juices), and made into a paste with which is to be painted the inner surface of a crucible, called “Brintaka-musha” (see page 291 vol. I). When dried, the crucible is to be covered with a lid placed lightly on the mouth. The crucible is to be heated until the rasaka gets smelted, and emits, through a hole in the crucible, a smoke of blue white colour. The inner crucible is then to be taken out and turned upside down on the ground, so carefully as not to te it break. All the essence, which has the appearance of tin, will thus be obtained by heating the crucible for two or three times. The essence, thus obtained, is no other than jasoda (zinc), but the drugs, (i.e., haridra, etc.) used in the extraction of the essence, imparts to it a quality which makes it much superior to ordinary zinc in point of medicinal properties.

Second process.

Rasaka discharges its essence, if rubbed with haritaki, laksha, earth worm, haridra, soot, and tankana, and heated by means of a muka-musha.^[1]

Rasaka is to be rubbed with the powders of laksha, gurh (molasses), white mustard, rala, and tankana, roasted with cow’s milk and ghee, and made into a ball. It is then to be confined in a Brintaka-musha and subjected to heat in the manner explained in the first process.

Essence from the ball may also be extracted in the following manner:—Place an earthen vessel full of water, inside a pit cut into the ground, and put an earthen basin full of holes upon the mouth of the vessel. The crucible containing the ball referred to above is now to be placed upside down upon the earthen basin, and charcoal fire to be placed all round the crucible. This will result in the essence of rasaka falling into the water in the vessel. This refers to what is called Patala-yantra, (see page 280, vol I), a correct description of which is given here:—

Patala-yantra.

In a pit in the ground, one cubit deep, place a vessel. Another vessel containing prescribed materials and having its mouth tightly covered with a basin, full of holes, is to be placed upside down upon the mouth of the first vessel. The joints are to be closed and the pit covered with mud. The apparatus is then to be heated by means of charcoal fire being placed all round the upper vessel, when cooled of itself, the essence, oil, or tincture, as the case may be, is to be taken out from inside the lower vessel.

Footnotes and references:

[1]:

Muka-musha (dumb crucible) and andha-musha (blind crucible) refer to the same kind of crucible—a crucible not provided with any passage for the entrance of air into it.