Cuts and Pokok Jepun Leaves

With the ease of 'search' on the Internet, it is now that I want to look back and search for the things that we did before, not knowing what we were doing then, except following the actions of our elders. One of them is the treatment of abrasion and cuts by 'Pokok Jepun' leaves. The Internet mentioned that the scientific name is "Eupatorium odoratum Linn" and locally known as 'Pokok Kapalterbang', 'Pokok Jepun' or 'Pokok Jerman'. This plant grows wild everywhere - near roadsides, bushes, on plantations and everywhere else.

There was once when we were bud grafting small rubber plants that Abah Rahman cuts his fingers with the small sharp pen knife that we used to do the job. Blood was fusing out of his fingers. As the owner of the plantation was there; and his house happen to be near the rubber plantation, he rushed home to get some cotton buds and some gentian violet to take care of the gushing blood from the finger. However it does not stop the gushing.

As I remembered then that the 'daun jepun' may be able to handle the bleeding; I immediately grab some young 'daun jepun' crumpled it on my palm with my thumb and then applied it to the wound. Immediately the bleeding stops; and Abah Rahman was very pleased with my action! I may not forget this kind of incidences, which actually happens many times before; however to us kampong folks it is considered normal to treat cuts, wound, and abrasion that way - especially to stop gushing blood oozing out of small cuts. That's the way it was.