Oday Kodariyah, Reminder of the Uses of Medicinal Plants

KOMPAS/SAMUEL OKTORA

Oday Kodariyah

Having lived with cervical cancer made Oday Kodariyah, 64, slowly fall in love with various medicinal plants from across the archipelago. She shows her love by preserving 900 types of medicinal plants and spreading their uses to the world.

“This is called pegagan [Centella asiatica]. Know the morphology and shape of the leaves. Plant this at home because the uses are extraordinary,” said Oday enthusiastically to 50 guests from Jatipamor village, Majalengka regency, West Java, in early December.

Located in Bukit Primadona, Cibereceuk, Cukang Genteng village, Pasirjambu district, Bandung regency, West Java, the medicinal plant plantation looks lush. This plantation really became her favorite.

Among the cold air of the area, Oday excitedly said pegagan could grow well in the highlands. This plant has active substances that are good for brain development. Pregnant women are recommended to consume it for the health of the fetus and child later.

“I really hope the new knowledge the people get after coming here can be spread again to other people closest to them later. For too long, medicinal plants have not got a place because we don’t know their uses,” Oday said.

Jatipamor village chief Yayan Heryana said he and a number of residents had come to the plantation because they wanted to learn about Oday’s medicinal plants. He hopes the medicinal plants can help bring good health to the people of Jatipamor.

“We hope the village community learns know more about the types and properties of the medicinal plants. Health is expensive, but we can maintain it from the yard,” said Yayan.

Learning

Oday is a real life example. She was in critical condition while fighting cervical cancer in 1993-1999. Oday was hospitalized several times. She fainted due to bleeding and could not bear the pain. She had tried consuming various chemical drugs, but none had succeeded. Instead of being cured, the disease is actually resistant.

Until finally she found ciplukan (Physalis angulata) and dewandaru (Eugenia uniflora). In traditional societies, both are known as nutritious plants. Ciplukan is claimed to be effective in treating cancer and Dewandaru has high antioxidants.

“After consuming both [plants] regularly, this body is much healthier. Although not completely separated from cervical cancer, there are many good things that I can freely do,” she said.

One of Oday’s busy activities is promoting the greatness of the archipelago medicinal plants. She wants many people to feel the same way. In addition to Dewandaru and Ciplukan, she planted many other plants on a 5-hectare plantation on Primadona hill, which was named the Garden of Natural Medicinal Plants. In addition to Bandung, which is suitable for highland medicinal plants, she also opened land in Sukabumi for middle-land plantation and Cirebon for lowland plants.

More than just planting, she also studied everything about the medicinal plants, both traditionally and scientifically today. For example, when she produces medicine based on her parents’ recipes, she would follow the naktu or calculation, which can be used by traditional people to determine the right day.

“There are different counts for each leaf. For example, for leaves with low toxin levels, such as pegagan, the dosage can be nine leaves. While

leaves with high toxins, such as mimba, we usually use three pieces per dose,” she said.

To add to her provisions, she also underwent further training. She learned everything, starting from the different types of medicinal plants, medicinal classes of medicinal plants, diagnosis of diseases by means of herbal medicine classes, and concocting herbs according to medical diagnosis.

It all led her being granted the title of herbalist in 2002. Now, with her husband, Djadjat Sudradjat, who is also an herbalist, and daughter, Delvi Tri Apriantini, a pharmacist, Oday runs the Medicinal Plant Clinic (KTO), which is about 2 kilometers from her garden.

KTO, said Oday, has become an information center for consultation and treatment of medicinal plants in Indonesia. It has also opened a consultation center for cancer patients. “Within a day, we provide services for five patients. Patients not only come from Indonesia, but also Japan, Australia and Sweden,” she said.

“Through the collection of medicinal plants, the production plant and the clinic, I applied three functions at once, namely preservation, development, and at the same time the use of medicinal plants. I want people to know the process from the beginning to the end to get a healthy life,” she said.

Big plan

The state also recognized Oday’s toughness and perseverance. In mid-2018, she was named the Kalpataru award recipient from the Ministry of Environment and Forestry as a pioneer in environmental preservation.

“For me, this award is the most beautiful bonus. The process or work carried out diligently will not betray [the result]. This award is also a mandate to serve the environment and society,” she said.

She doesn’t just talk. In the future, she has many big plans, starting from establishing a health consultation center about various types of diseases

to building an herbarium so that medicinal plants can be more beneficial for many people.

“Hopefully, even though I will be gone later, the next generation will still easily obtain knowledge about medicinal plants and their benefits," Oday said.

Oday Kodariyah

Born: Bandung, March 28, 1954 Education: Vocation school STM on Chemical in Bandung (graduated in 1973)

Awards:

- Award from the Agriculture Minister in 2010 on her initiative in developing food security in the region

- Award from National Commission on Natural Genetic Resource for sustaining agriculture plants in 2016

- Raksa Prasada Award for the friend of the environment in 2017

- Kalpataru Award 2018 for pioneering in medicinal plants conservation