Agarwood, also called aloeswood or oud, is a dark, resin-rich heartwood. It forms in certain Aquilaria trees when they are infected by a fungus. The tree answers the infection by producing a resin, and that resin gives agarwood its deep, sweet, woody scent.
A long history in ritual
The Vedic texts of ancient India, which date to roughly 1500 to 1000 BCE, are often cited as the earliest written mention of agarwood, where it appears as a fragrant offering to the gods.
By the early centuries CE it was traded into China, where it became a staple of temple incense and of scholars’ studies. In Japan, agarwood (called jinko) is at the heart of kodo, the “way of incense”, a quiet practice of listening to scent that took shape in the Muromachi period. Across the Middle East the same material is known as oud and burned as incense and worn as perfume.
Why it is burned in meditation
Agarwood smoke is slow, soft and deep. For that reason it has long been burned in meditation halls, tea rooms and quiet studies, where the aim is to settle the room and the mind rather than to perfume the air.
A rare material
Wild agarwood is scarce, because only some infected trees ever produce resin, and trade in it is regulated in many countries as wild trees are under pressure. Whatever its form, agarwood is best treated as something to use slowly and sparingly.
At The Forest Origin
We offer agarwood as a fine incense powder, made to be burned on charcoal in a small burner. See the collection or read how to burn powder.