Aoud Devotion
In an effort to stay current with what’s happening in the world of perfume, I am often scanning popular Social Media platforms and various articles to see what the folks are forecasting to be the next ‘new’ trend. I came across several comments recently that read, “Aoud is out. Powdery scents are the new rage in fragrance.”!
Now, I understand that the human being is a fickle animal whose loyalties can shift in the blink of an eye, but I feel compelled to come to the defense of Aoud and its fading status within the disposable attitude of the general public, and here’s why:
The evidence of a agarwood(Aoud) and its magnitude, both monetarily and spiritually, has been well documented since as early as the 3rdCentury A.D. Indigenous to South East Asia, these large Evergreen trees are only considered valuable after they’ve been infected with a specific type of mold, which, in turn, causes the tree to produce a resin to combat the infection. The resin is dark and extremely aromatic and is used to make Aoud Oil. Over the centuries, the wild agarwood population has been significantly depleted from merciless harvesting and scarce resources.
It is rumored that wealthy investor’s plant scouts along the edges of forests where infected agarwood trees are suspected to be to keep an eye on what’s coming out of the jungle. It is also reported that several people have been shot at the borders of certain South East Asian countries trying to smuggle out agarwood. There is often no price a person could offer a “collector” to purchase the equivalent of 2.2 liquid pounds of pure Aoud Oil. It is frankly considered priceless.
So why this scent? Why all the mania about this particular odor? Aside from its current rarity, what is it about the smell of Aoud that could have nations warring (and I do mean the perfume industry, as there is no way to synthetically reproduce the smell of Aoud ) when the supply grows even closer to extinction?
I often watch people’s faces rather than listen to their words when I introduce them to a scent. Aoud always, and without exception, elicits a look of recollection … and surprise, as if the person can’t believe what they smell, because they know it… and they don’t…
I believe that anyone who has ever smelled Aoud has instantaneously been given olfactory insight to the world of spirit. It is a déjà vu from a lifetime past. The smell of a pact made with the secret sound of God’s laughter. The epicenter of the human storm where there is zero separation between self and everything… all… oneness…
That bridge, that medium, that gift… it is priceless and knows no other conduit on this earth than the scent of Aoud.
So capricious creatures bring on you Iris, your Amber, your Vanilla’s, Tonka’s and Sandalwood’s…
But know thy Aromatic Gods, and please, do not dismiss them without proper reverence!
By Paula Goldstein
