Archive · 11 Dec 2025
Acharya Balkrishna's World Herbal Encyclopedia Redefines Botanical Research
Acharya Balkrishna, a co-founder of Patanjali Ayurved, has created a massive encyclopedia called the World Herbal Encyclopedia (WHE).
It's a huge collection of 109 volumes with 1,20,418 pages that talks about nearly 50,000 medicinal plants from all over the world.
The encyclopedia includes information from ancient texts, modern science, and the knowledge of over 2,000 indigenous groups.
It has beautiful drawings and paintings of plants to help people identify them.
The WHE also shares stories about how people have used these plants for healing.
It's like a big book that takes you on a journey through different forests and cultures, showing the importance of plants in our lives.
Acharya Balkrishna has authored the World Herbal Encyclopedia (WHE), a 109-volume work spanning 1,20,418 pages.
The encyclopedia catalogues nearly 50,000 medicinal plants from around the world, covering 7,500 plant genera.
WHE draws from over 600,000 sources, including ancient manuscripts, modern scientific papers, and the knowledge of 2,000+ indigenous groups.
It features 1.2 million vernacular plant names, 2,000+ languages and dialects, and 2,50,000 botanical synonyms.
The encyclopedia includes 35,000 scientific line drawings and 30,500 hand-painted illustrations to help identify plants.
- Who
- Acharya Balkrishna, co-founder of Patanjali Ayurved
- What
- World Herbal Encyclopedia (WHE), a 109-volume encyclopedia cataloguing 50,000 medicinal plants
- When
- Not specified
- Where
- Global, covering plants from various regions including the Amazon, Himalayas, and Africa
- Why
- To document and preserve plant knowledge, including traditional remedies and healing techniques, before it disappears
- Author
- Acharya Balkrishna
- Title
- World Herbal Encyclopedia (WHE)
- Volumes
- 109
- Pages
- 1,20,418
- Medicinal Plants Catalogued
- 50,000
- Plant Genera
- 7,500
- Research Sources
- 600,000+
- Languages and Dialects
- 2,000+
- Vernacular Plant Names
- 1.2 million
- Botanical Synonyms
- 2,50,000
- Scientific Line Drawings
- 35,000
- Hand-Painted Illustrations
- 30,500
- Traditional Remedies
- 2,200
- Healing Techniques
- 900
- Indigenous Groups Consulted
- 2,000+