Herbs, perennial, with a woody rootstock. Stems many from woody rootstock, 12-30 cm tall, densely papillate-glandular and long pilose. Leaves sessile, elliptic-lanceolate, 3-7 × 2-2.5(-4) cm, pilose and papillate-glandular, margin entire to obscurely dentate, apex acute-obtuse. Capitula usually solitary, terminal, 1.5-3 cm in diam. Involucre depressed semiglobose; phyllaries 4- or 5-seriate, regularly imbricate, outermost herbaceous-leaflike, lanceolate-oblanceolate, 4-6 × 2-3 mm, apex acute-obtuse, inner membranous, acuminate. Marginal florets radiate, 1-2 cm. Disk florets tubular, 6-7 mm. Achenes 2-3 mm, sericeous-villous. Pappus setae uniseriate, 20-22, pale reddish, 5-6 mm. Fl. Jun-Aug.

According to Fl. India (13: 20. 1995) and Fl. Pakistan (210: 21. 2003), Inula obtusifolia is fairly common in the Himalaya. J. D. Hooker and T. Thomson collected this species in W Xizang.

Rock crevices, dry cliffs, slopes, stony places; 2000-4500 m. W Xizang [E Afghanistan, India, Kashmir, Pakistan].