A warm and welcoming fragrance greeted us at the Muscat airport as we landed in this country for the first time.
The scent,
unmistakably of frankincense, transported us to the religious services on
festive occasions in our native country. It had a celestial quality and it made
us fall in love with this Arabian country.
Later, as we
explored Muscat, we found frankincense burnt in censers in hotels, mosques,
offices, homes, shopping malls, and even at the local grocery counters.
Frankincense
has powerful spiritual connotations. There are records of it been used for more
than 5000 years. In ancient times, it was highly valued as the gift of kings
and was precious than gold. The incense trade was at its height about 2000
years ago. The three Magi travelled with gold, myrrh, and frankincense to see a
baby in the stable led by a star. These were sacred gifts with mystic meaning. On
January 6, the Feast of Epiphany or the Day of the Three Magi, Queen Elizabeth
II still offers these sacred gifts in the Chapel Royal.
The
frankincense smoke that rises to heaven creates a visual image of carrying
prayers to god. Research shows us that in an Egyptian pyramid text,
frankincense is called the ‘stairway to heaven’. It is mentioned twenty-two
times in the Bible. It is said to be the ‘veiled presence of god’. Burning
frankincense is an important part of Christian, Greek and Russian Orthodox
rituals.
At the
height of the incense trade, frankincense was popular in Europe, and all the countries
along the Silk Route. The nations which had sea links to Oman also contributed
to this prosperous trade.
In some
countries, such as Israel, incense replaced animal sacrifice to gods. The
thurible, which is used in many churches, is a swinging censer, hung from
chains – its openwork construction allowing clouds of sacred smoke to stream
out. The custom of burning a candle on entering a church or during prayer
relates directly to the role of incense smoke forming a pathway for prayer.
Frankincense
is not only a ‘holy smoke’ but it has medicinal properties too. It is used in
the treatment of psychological conditions such as stress and depression, as
well as physical ones such as asthma and rheumatic pain. As a fumigant, it gets
rid of mosquitoes and flies. In Ayurveda, frankincense is used as a fumigant
and to deter disease. It is applied locally as an astringent and to relieve
swelling. It also has antiseptic and anti- inflammatory properties.
The Middle
East has a fragrance-conscious culture. Frankincense is liberally used in most
Arabian nations. In Oman, people scent their clothes with frankincense by
placing their clothes on a special rack which is placed above the incense
burner. The men spray its perfume on the tassel of their dishdasha so
that wherever they go, the scent follows them. In a region with scarce water,
frankincense sweetens the smell of well-worn clothes and bedding as it is
wafted through them, hung on special stands.
Frankincense
is defined as the crystallised sap from resin ducts under the bark of the Boswellia
tree. There are varieties of frankincense such as Boswellia sacra, Boswellia
serrata, Boswellia papyrifera, among others. The purest yield of silver frankincense
among all these varieties comes from the Boswellia sacra species which
is native to the Dhofar region of southern Oman.
In Dhofar,
there was an ancient natural harbour called Khor Rori. The fortress town of
Sumhuram, stood above this harbour. This was where the frankincense trade
flourished. UNESCO has declared Wadi
Dhowkah as The Land of Frankincense and it is a World Heritage Site. It was
selected because of the density of the frankincense trees and its proximity to
the National Highway from Salalah to Muscat.
Frankincense
has a glorified halo surrounding it but the tree that produces it is low,
bushy, and rather scrubby. These trees have
firm grey-green coloured leaves, tiny flowers, and a peeling, papery bark. Folklore
and stories have grown around these trees and the incense trade. One of them
tells of the ‘flying snakes’ that guard these trees. These are tiny red vipers
which coil and jump as high as a man’s thigh to attack. The traditional harvesters
fumigate the area with frankincense to get rid of these snakes before they
begin the harvest season. The harvesters use their tools to pare back the bark.
The milk-like gum resin oozes out in little globules within minutes of cutting
and immediately releases its fragrance. It is then dried for a few weeks and
sorted before being carried to the markets.
The
international aromatic trade has a grading system for frankincense depending on
size, colour, degree of transparency, and fragrance. The local souqs or markets
stock different varieties such as Hujari, Hasiki, Aajdi, and so on.
Among these, Hujari is called the royal incense and is famed for its
characteristic woody and sensual note.
The people
of Oman have built a landmark near the Sultan Qaboos Port at Muttrah to
commemorate the ancient incense trade. The huge incense burner that greets
ships entering this port, reminds us of the days of glory when this nation was
renowned for spreading fragrance around the world.
As I write
this today, ethereal white ribbons of the divine smoke rise up from the incense
censer in the corner of our living room. As they move heavenwards, they invoke
the literary muse.
(This post was first published in Outpost Muscat Newsletter, Jan-Feb 2014.)
