When I arrived in Malang in the fall of 2024 for my Boren Scholarship, I had a rough first few weeks of adjustment. It was a new city, with new food, and a new set of germs my immune system was not accustomed to. I came down with something that felt like a bad cold mixed with general exhaustion, and my host mother introduced me to some of the natural medicine that is used in Indonesia. She gave me one of the common over-the-counter versions of this obat alami (natural medicine), Tolak Angin. It is about as popular in Indonesia as something like Advil is here.
Tolak Angin is one of the most recognizable products in Indonesian herbal medicine, and it is part of a broader medicinal tradition surrounding jamu. Jamu is Indonesia's version of traditional herbal medicine, and it has been around for centuries. Before there were pharmacies on every corner of Malang, there were women called penjual jamu who would walk through neighborhoods every morning carrying baskets loaded with bottles of dark liquid made from roots, bark, leaves, and spices. When I was there, there were still some penjual jamu, but they have become less common in bigger cities as tolak angin and commercial jamu has taken over. In Malang I would occasionally see them on quieter streets outside the city center in the early morning.
The tradition varies significantly across Indonesia's different islands and ethnic groups, but the core idea is the same everywhere. Plants are not just food or decoration, they are medicine, and knowledge about which plants treat which conditions has been passed down through families and communities for generations. Turmeric, ginger, galangal, tamarind, and bitter herbs like sambiloto all show up repeatedly in jamu recipes, often combined in ways that reflect a traditional indonesian understanding of how the body responds to illness and imbalance.
Tolak Angin is the modernized version of this and is sold in a small liquid sachet that you can buy at any minimarket or warung across the country. The name roughly translates to "reject the wind," which reflects how Indonesians refer to illness. When someone gets a cold, it is called masuk angin, meaning something like "wind enters the body." It describes a state of feeling generally unwell or run down. Tolak Angin is specifically made to address it.
The formula contains a mix of traditional ingredients including ginger, fennel, cloves, and several other herbal extracts. It tastes like tumeric and ginger and it gives you an immediate feeling of warmth. I was skeptical the first time my Ibu Kos handed it to me, but it really did clear up my symptoms. It is an interesting example of how different cultures have produced different kinds of medicine. Not all of the methods they use in Indonesia work in my opinion-- one time i got sick and my host dad used a spoon to break the top layers of skin on my back and neck, in order to let the "bad blood out." Just like how European doctors drained blood to balance the humors until the last century or two, there are some practices that may be counterproductive. But tolak angin and jamu are generally very helpful in my opinion.
I still use Tolak Angin now. I brought a box of sachets back with me, and whenever I feel run-down, I tear one open. It works, or at least it feels like it works, clearing up my sinuses and making me feel better for a few hours. The next time one of my friends comes back from Indonesia I will make sure they bring me another box.
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