Soap is an integral part of today's humanity. We all know that soap is used in daily life for cleaning clothes, bathing and washing kitchen utensils etc.
What might have been used as soap in ancient times, before the use of artificial soaps containing chemical compounds that we use today? (Ancient civilizations such as the Babylonians produced a soap-like substance by mixing animal fat, vegetable oil, plant ash, and salt.)
According to the Mahavamsa, when Prince Vijaya landed in Sri Lanka in the 5th century BC, Princess Kuveni was cutting cotton under a tree. So, what did our ancestors and the aborigines use to wash these clothes and clean their bodies?
Did you know that these ancient people used plant parts as soap? Here we find a very important plant known as soap tree. Commonly known as soap tree, there are many species and they are found in many countries including India, Nepal, Indonesia, China, Japan, North and South America. Ancient Asian peoples as well as Native Americans used the fruit of this plant for washing and cleansing.
Plants belonging to the genus Sapindus in the genus Sapindaceae are commonly known as soap trees. Sapindus emarginatus (Sapindus emarginatus) and Sapindus trifoliatus (Sapindus trifoliatus) are 2 species that can be seen in the dry zone as well as in the intermediate zone of Sri Lanka.
Locally they are known as Gus Penela and Kaha Penela respectively. However, it is the first one, the gus penela plant, that has been used most for purification purposes. Tree Penela is a tropical, medium to large deciduous tree growing up to 18 m tall with a trunk girth of 1.5 m.
In the fruit of this plant, the pulp is the main source of a natural compound called saponin. The Latin word "sapo" means soap in Sinhala. Saponin foams when dissolved in water. It removes dirt particles and odor from the surface. Even today, saponins are used in the production of soaps and detergents. It is used as a substitute for soap when washing clothes (especially baby clothes and natural fabrics) and also as a shampoo.
In addition, it is also used to remove tarnish and restore gold and silver jewelry and accessories.
After harvesting, the seeds are dried. The dry seeds are black to brown in color. The seed of the dry seed is removed and only the fruit is collected. The dried fruit is soaked in water and it foams when squeezed. This liquid is used for cleaning purposes.
Natural soap tree
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