Name - रक्तार्कः

Botanical name - Calotropis procera

Description - A shrub resembling Calotropis gigantea but not over 1.20 m high; leaves opposite, simple, oblong, cordate, usually suddenly, often sharply acute or submucronate; peduncles often paired, tomentose, and often branched; flowers about 12 mm, having lobes erect, white with purple blotch on the upper half, coronal process with a purple tinge, obtuse, muticous tip and fleshy upturned white base; follicles recurved, somewhat sausage-shaped, outer and inner coats with fibrous tissue between; seeds ovate, ± 6 mm, smooth with long comas.

Chemical Constituents- Leaves and stalks contain calotropin, calotropagenin; African plant contains voruscharin. Latex contains uzarigenin, syriogenin, proceroside, triterpene taraxasteryl acetate, terpenol ester. Root bark contains benzoylinesolone and benzoylisolinelone. Flowers contain calotropenyl acetate, steroidal hydroxyketone procesterol, multiflavenol, cyclosadol, Beta-sitosterol, alpha-amyrin, Beta-amyrin, stigmasterol. Plant contains cardenolide proceragenin

Use - Traditional use : LODHA : Latex : in toothache, in extracting thorn or spine-inserted deeply in any muscle, in fever caused by spleen disorder; MUNDA : (i) Latex: to mothers lacking milk, (ii) Leaf (fomented): against abdominal pain; ORAON : Latex: on rheumatic swellings; SANTAL : Leaf (fomented): to swellings due to sprain.