Formularium Medicamentorum Soloensis Story of Indonesian Herbals

When the first men existed on this earth, their first attention was how to survive. How to get food became the first need. It made them observe their surroundings; what kinds of plants or animals were edible. Plants were easier to get. Later, plants were only for food but for medicine. From this point, the science of utilizing various kinds of plants for medicine was developed.

The science was spread out through mouth to mouth so that their offspring understood these kinds of plants for medicine science. When written communication invented, they started to make documents of all their knowledge on these raw materials, i.e. plants and mineral (pelican), and how those materials were proceeded. Since at that moment there were no papers, they made the documentation on the wet loam soil with the sharp metal such as nails. Then, it was dried under the sun. They also used the strong palm leaves as another medium.
As they knew papers, they used it for documenting the development in this field. Afterwards, they made it into books, such as “De Materia Medica”, written by Peanios Dioscorides and “Genera Plantarum” by Linnaeus. Then, Farmakope compiled all kinds of plants and its conditions. The development grew faster when computer and internet was invented. These instruments made all the information spread all over the world so that people in rural areas could also learn them. Galen (131-200 BC), a pharmacologist and also a doctor, innovated medicine from plants and animals.
The development also happened in Indonesia. Long time ago, our ancestors used plants for medicine. In 772, this history was noted in the oldest document, i.e. a carved relief of medicine on the Borobudur Temple. It was also found in Prambanan, Panataran, and Tegalwangi Temple.

In 991-1016, the medicine formulation, extracted from plants, was written on the palm leaves. It was called Lontar Usada in Bali. In South Sulawesi, there were also receipt writings called Lontarak Pabbura.
In Java, the writing of receipts was on Rontal (Ron: leaves). The Tal leaves were the same as Lontar (palm leaves). Several documents have been translated into Indonesian and other foreign languages. One of them was the translation of Lontar Usada in Dr. Wolfgang Weck’s book, Heilkunde und Volkstum auf Bali (: the Knowledge of Recovering and Behavior of Balinese). He was a Dutch doctor. Before the World War II, Dr. R. Goris often wrote about the Balinese Medical Literature for the magazines published in Indonesia and foreign countries.

In Indonesia, before its independence, two Dutch, J. Kloppenburg-Versteegh and Martha C. van Wijk-Fransz, had done the activity to gather data and information about the plants utilized for medicine. They finished the activity by publishing books, i.e. “Indische Planten en Haar Geneeskracht” (:Indonesian Plants and Their Usefulness for Health) and “Martha’s Indische Kruiden Recepten Boek” (: Indonesian Plants Receipt Book). Those books first translated into Indonesian in two volumes by Bethesda Hospital, Yogyakarta.

Indonesian Royals, for instance the Surakarta Royal Palace, the knowledge of medicine formulation from natural materials had been booked in “Kawruh Bab Jampi Jawi” (: the Knowledge of Javanese Herbs) and published in 1858. It consisted of 1734 herbs formulation. First, the plants were taken from the wild ones around the houses. As they became rarer and rarer, our ancestor searched them to farther places like forest. The plants’ different length of existence made the quality different. This raised the idea to cultivate them.
This cultivation made the same quality. The harvest time also took into consideration to maximize the quality. Rimpang was usually best harvested at the end of dry season when they stop growing; the leaves and branches started to be dry and yellow. The fat, fleshy roots were chosen. The best time to harvest was between 9 am until 11 am since recently it was known that during that time, the assimilation was maximum. It was better to harvest when it was flowering and before the fruit ripe. The leather of branches, based on the experience, was gathered in wet season, when they were sprouting. At that moment, they contented with the most quality. The flowers were best harvested before or when there were pulverizing; when butterflies or bees came. Then, fruits were best harvested before they were ripe (Javanese chili, kemukus, and black pepper) or when they were ripe (anise, white pepper). Finally, seeds were gathered when fruits were ripe.

When Dutch occupied Indonesia, the western knowledge entered. It shifted society’s natural medicine knowledge slowly so that they were lack of it. Moreover, they were reluctant to use it since it was determined as old fashioned and not qualified enough. In fact, the natural medicine was capable of curing diseases.

Eventhough Dutch invasion had ever decreased our belief in natural medicine, it was not totally disappear. In the war to be independent, the doctors used plants as an alternative medicine. To imitate the passion spirit to the natural medicine showed by Prof. Dr. M. Sardjito, Dr. Ramali innovated the compilation of the natural medicine formulation, “Formularium Medicamentorum Soloensis” in Solo. When western countries spreaded “Back To Nature”, actually Indonesian had already utilized the natural medicine. Now, we still fight for the existence of the natural medicine in the medical environment.