Ocimum tenuiflorum, commonly known astulasi,tulsi, orholy basil, is an aromaticperennial plant in the familyLamiaceae.[2][3] It is widely cultivated throughout theSoutheast Asiantropics.[1][4][5] It is native to tropical and subtropical regions of Asia, Australia and the western Pacific.[1] This plant has escaped from cultivation and hasnaturalized in many tropical regions of the Americas.[3][6] It is an agricultural andenvironmental weed.[3]
Tulasi is cultivated for religious andtraditional medicine purposes, and also for itsessential oil. It is widely used as anherbal tea, commonly used inAyurveda. It has a place within theVaishnava tradition ofHinduism, in which devotees perform worship involving the plant or its leaves.
Holy basil is an erect, many-branched subshrub, 30–60 cm (12–24 in) tall with hairy stems. Leaves are green or purple; they are simple,petioled, with anovate blade up to 5 cm (2 in) long, which usually has a slightly toothed margin; they are strongly scented and have adecussatephyllotaxy. The purplish flowers are placed in close whorls on elongatedracemes.[7]
The three mainmorphotypes cultivated inIndia andNepal areRam tulsi (the most common type, with broad bright green leaves that are slightly sweet), the less common purplish green-leaved (Krishna orShyama tulsi) and the common wildvana tulsi (e.g.,Ocimum gratissimum).[8]
The leaves of holy basil, known askaphrao in theThai language (กะเพรา), are commonly used inThai cuisine for certain stir-fries and curries such asphat kaphrao (ผัดกะเพรา) — a stir-fry of Thai holy basil with meats, seafood or, as inkhao phat kraphao, with rice. Two different types of holy basil are used in Thailand, a "red" variant which tends to be more pungent, and a "white" version for seafood dishes.[14][15]Kaphrao should not be confused withhorapha (โหระพา), which is normally known asThai basil,[16] or withThai lemon basil (maenglak;แมงลัก).
Holy basil (inMinangkabau language andIndonesian language are known asruku-ruku [id]) is also widely used forMinangkabau dishes, particularly for itsgulai variety, which involves fish as the primary source of protein.[17] These Minangkabau fish gulais that commonly use holy basil such asgulai ikan mas (carp gulai),gulai ikan kakap (red snapper gulai),gulai kepala ikan kakap (red snapper's head gulai),samba ikan gadang orpangek (braised fish gulai),[18] andgulai telur ikan (fish roe gulai). Holy basil leaves are used to enhance flavour.
Phat kaphrao mu – Thai holy basil with pork – a common dish in Thailand.
A plate of gulai kepala ikan (fish head's gulai) accompanied by ruku-ruku, slices of blimbi wuluh (Averrhoa bilimbi) and green cabai rawit (bird's eye chilies).
Tulasi may be planted incourtyards of Hindu houses or temples toHanuman.[21] The ritual lighting of lamps each evening duringKartik includes the worship of thetulsi plant.[22][23] Vaishnavites are also known as "those who bear the tulsi around the neck".[21]
^Staples, George; Michael S. Kristiansen (1999).Ethnic Culinary Herbs. University of Hawaii Press. p. 73.ISBN978-0-8248-2094-7.
^Warrier, P K (1995).Indian Medicinal Plants. Orient Longman. p. 168.ISBN978-0-86311-551-6.
^"Ocimum tenuiflorum". Integrated Taxonomic Information System. 26 June 2023. Retrieved26 June 2023.
^Warrier, P K (1995).Indian Medicinal Plants. Orient Longman. p. 168.ISBN978-0-86311-551-6.
^Kothari, S. K.; Bhattacharya, A. K.; Ramesh, S.; Garg, S. N.; Khanuja, S. P. S. (November–December 2005). "Volatile Constituents in Oil from Different Plant Parts of Methyl Eugenol-Rich Ocimum tenuiflorum L.f. (syn. O. sanctum L.) Grown in South India".Journal of Essential Oil Research.17 (6):656–658.doi:10.1080/10412905.2005.9699025.S2CID95551382.
^"Holy basil". Drugs.com. 1 February 2022. Retrieved26 June 2023.
^Sundaram, R. Shanmuga; Ramanathan, M; Rajesh, R; Satheesh, B; Saravanan, D (2012). "LC-MS Quantification of Rosmarinic Acid and Ursolic Acid in Theocimum Sanctumlinn. Leaf Extract (Holy Basil, Tulsi)".Journal of Liquid Chromatography & Related Technologies.35 (5): 634.doi:10.1080/10826076.2011.606583.S2CID95225535.
^Soepono, Sri S (2004).Ensiklopedi makanan tradisional Indonesia: Sumatera(PDF). Jakarta: Proyek Pelestarian dan Pengembangan Tradisi dan Kepercayaan. pp. 133–5.Archived(PDF) from the original on February 10, 2026. RetrievedFebruary 10, 2026.
^Biswas, N. P.; Biswas, A. K. (2005). "Evaluation of some leaf dusts as grain protectant against rice weevilSitophilus oryzae (Linn.)".Environment and Ecology.23 (3):485–488.
^NIIR Board, National Institute of Industrial Research (India) (2004).Compendium of Medicinal Plants. 2004. National Institute of Industrial Research. p. 320.ISBN978-81-86623-80-0.
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