Centella asiatica (Gotu kola) is a well-known medicinal herbal drug traditionally used in folklore Indian Ayurvedic medicinal system and in other parts of Asia for more than a hundred years to treat many ailments. In the current study, we commercially obtained a concentrated extract of Centella asiatica containing 20% asiaticoside and used it to elucidate the neuroprotective and antioxidant action against well known pro-oxidants and neurotoxin in two neuronal cell lines. In addition, we also investigated the molecular mechanisms related to neuroprotection as well as mnemonic activities in the hippocampal neuronal cell line H19-7. In addition to preliminary characterization of the current extract, the neuroprotective action of Centella against hydrogen peroxide was also studied in hippocampal cell line. These results were found to be reproducible in the other neuronal cell line PC12. Reactive oxygen species were found to be effectively reduced in in-situ as well as homogenized samples of H19-7 cells. Caspase activity was also found to be greatly reduced in presence of Centella extract. We also found Centella to increase the phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and CREB by itself at different doses and affect the NMDA receptors in differentiated and un-differentiated hippocampal neuronal cells. Similar observations were found when cells were treated with hydrogen peroxide in presence or absence of two concentrations of Centella. Thus, the current study describes anti-caspase, antioxidant actions of Centella namely attributing to its asiaticoside concentration. Modulation of glutamatergic receptors and stimulation of ERK1/2-CREB-BDNF pathway was found to be one of the putative mechanisms involved in synaptic strengthening shown by the Centella.