Ashwagandha Vs Ginseng, Rhodiola, Holy Basil, Maca, and Brahmi (Comprehensive Breakdown)

If you ever find yourself rifling through the scientific and historical literature on Ashwagandha, get ready for some unexpected astonishment.

There really is just so much to be impressed by.

From its numerous health benefits, like supporting the immune system, treating anxiety, and relieving stress, to its foundational importance within Ayurvedic medicinal practices, (where ancient Hindu scholars wrote at length about the herbs curative powers); Ashwagandha is truly a gold standard nootropic herb.

Ashwagandha Overview

In Hindi, the term Ashwagandha is a combination of the words ashva (horse) and gandha (smell) — the smell of a horse.

This fairly bizarre name was coined from the odor that Ashwagandha’s roots emit, which apparently smells somewhat horse-like.

Ashwagandha is an Adaptogen

A term that you will be running into A LOT if you spend any time researching ‘relaxing herbs’.

In the most basic sense, an adaptogen is any non-subversive, non-toxic substance that stabilizes psychological processes or reduces stress and anxiety in some way.

The term is thrown around without any universal agreement on precisely what it means.

Many of the herbs covered in this post are considered adaptogens: Holy Basil, Maca, Ginseng…