Sandalwood (चंदन): From day-to-day usage to spiritual benefits

By Vijai Singhal

Indian sandalwood (Santalum album) and Australian sandalwood (Santalum spicatum or Fusanus spicatus) are considered two of the most coveted varieties. Sandalwood paste (चंदन) is revered in India in Hindu worship. Sandalwood is native to Southern Indian States of Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Kerala. It is also grown in Sri Lanka, Timor Leste, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and in norther Australia. The heartwood contains sandalwood’s healing and aromatic properties. Indian sandalwood has a long and sacred history of many thousands of years to calm the mind and relieve anxiety. Due to its high value, there is over-exploitation. Indian sandalwood demands higher value due to its high santalol content. It is estimated that 90% of Indian sandalwood in the marketplace is sourced from illegally harvested wood in India and Indonesia. Indian sandalwood is now grown in Northern and Western Australia by Quintis Sandalwood.

The perfume extracted from sandalwood is used in the preparation of incense sticks, toilet soaps and powders. Sandalwood carvings of gods and goddesses form part of artistic skills of Indian craftsmen. Sandalwood is very sacred in the Hindu wholistic medical system of Ayurveda. Sandalwood oil has been used as an antiseptic and astringent, and for the treatment of headache, stomachache, urinary and genital disorders, and for the treatment of inflammatory and eruptive skin diseases to help soothe anxiety and sleeplessness.

Australian Sandalwood has also been used for thousands of years by the Aboriginal communities, Noongar people for its therapeutic and spiritual benefits. The Aboriginal elders chewed on the nuts to release the active ingredients and create a paste, which was applied to skin to treat ailments, protect, and heal superficial skin wounds and to soothe aching joints. The elders also ingested the paste considering it as good for health. They burned the wood of the tree to create a natural mosquito repellent, inhaling its beautiful scent to holistically heal the mind, body, and spirits. According to the National Aboriginal Health Strategy, Aboriginal health is viewed as “not just as the physical well-being of the individual, but emotional and cultural well-being of the whole community.”

There are so many similarities between Indian and Australian use of Sandalwood. We also share many spiritual and cultural similarities between the Australian Indigenous people and people of Hindu faith as we know that there was migration from India to Australia over 4,320 years ago according to the Max Planck Institute Research published in 2013.

References: 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Santalum_album

https://quintis.com.au/q-lab-knowledge-centre/blogs/sovereign-wisdom/