chronic Medicine for evry disese
Chronic medicine
Smoke of frankincense (myrrh) floats in the air of the crowded winding streets of Muskrat Soak Bazaar in Muscat.
The savory scent of this smokey musk has been so mixed in the cities of Oman and the culture here that you can go anywhere, you cannot get away from this smell.
The scent emanating from the frankincense in the silver censer hanging outside the shops hypnotizes.
Spices, frankincense and dates are stacked in some small shops under the open sky.
Women wearing full length black abaya and silk colored scarves and shawls, and men wearing white dishdasha and embroidered beautiful Kuma hats at the ankle look at pebble-shaped frankincense.
They are light yellow, light brown and cream colored. These magical and captivating pictures of Muscat are also mentioned in the Bible.
Three gifts of jesus
Muttarah Sok is one of the few places in the world where I can buy gold, mur (myrrh) and frankincense together.
According to Christian traditions, the three Magi brought the same three gifts to Baby Jesus.
Two millennia ago, these three gifts were considered the most prized. In those days the price of frankincense was equal to gold of the same weight.
6,000 years ago frankincense was used as a perfume and panacea. In Old French, franca insence meant pure sunlight.
Frankincense is an aromatic resin extracted from trees of the genus Boswellia. These trees range from the Horn of Africa (North East Africa) to India and southern China.
Most supplies are from Somalia, Eritrea and Yemen. All these countries have been struggling in recent years, which has affected the production of frankincense.
But there is peace in Oman and the best and most expensive frankincense is produced here. Ancient Egyptians called it "sweat of the gods".
Boswellia Sacra tree grows in inaccessible areas of Dofar, the southern province of Oman. The price of frankincense is determined by its color, size of resin and the concentration of oil in it.
The most valuable quality is known as frankincense hosiery, which occurs in the dry environment of the Dofar hills. Monsoon winds do not reach there.
World heritage
The frankincense trees, convoy paths and the fourth-century BC port have been designated as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
According to UNESCO's description, "frankincense trade in this region for many centuries was one of the most prominent trading activities in the ancient and medieval world".
The convoys of thousands of camels and slaves laden with frankincense used to go on a difficult journey of about 2000 kilometers in the Arabian desert.
They shipped their goods to Egypt, Babylonia, Greek and Roman Empire. Water vessels laden with tar used to travel to China.
The Roman scholar Pliny the Elder (23 BCE to 79 AD) wrote that it was this trade that made the people of southern Arabia the richest on earth.
Panacea
Like aspirin, penicillin, and Viagra, frankincense was considered a panacea for all diseases, from hemorrhoids to menstrual pain and melanoma (cancer).
Greek military doctor Pedanius Dioscorides described frankincense as a magical drug.
He has written that its sticky resin can heal ulcers and heal body wounds.
In Egypt, the most prominent document of medical knowledge, Ebers papyrus mentions that frankincense cures asthma, bleeding, throat infection and vomiting.
Egyptians used to import it in large quantities to keep scent and moths away.
To remove the foul smell of dead bodies, a paste of frankincense was applied to it. In 1922, when Tutankhamen's tomb was opened, frankincense ointment was also found in it.
It was burnt for purification, giving a feeling of divinity. Its smoke rings were believed to go straight to heaven.
Nizwa Fort
Local guide Amur bin Hamad al-Hosni took me to Ad Dakhiliya area in northern Oman where the Nizwa fort is of the 17th century.
Many major trade routes passed through it, hence it was once known as "Pearl of Islam".
Bin Hamad al-Hosni says, "We burn frankincense to drive away snakes."
Maitha al-Zahra Nasser al-Hosni, the sales clerk of the gift shop inside the fort, "burns it to keep away evil spirits." Frankincense oil, perfume and lotion are also available in this shop.
While in Oman, I was amazed to learn how frankincense has become an integral part of the culture here.
In the city of Nizwa, I saw Oman chewing on people with resin to keep their breath fresh.
Pregnant women eat it in the hope that frankincense can cause their child to be born intelligent.
Frankincense also produces medicines to improve digestion and improve skin.
The people of Oman burn it to ward off mosquitoes. It is considered a sign of good hostility to rotate frankincense incense after eating.
Who is using what kind of frankincense, it shows both status and honor.
"The people of Oman describe Jabal Samhan or Haasik's white frankincense as the best," says Trigwe Harris, the mistress of the infrared store, referring to frankincense in southeastern Doffer.
"It is considered the purest and has the most precious smell. But what I like most is the black frankincense of Al Fajiyah."
Harris engaged me in a room where frankincense oil was filled in a large copper alloy.
They extracted some frankincense resin. It had cream and dark brown beans.
The color of the resin changes from soil, weather, even at the time of harvest. Generally, the more white the resin, the higher the price.
In summer, Harris also makes frankincense jalato (ice cream). This instant is sold as soon as the stall is put in the Muscat Soak.
Seek frankincense
Harris first came to Oman in 2006. He had a fragrant oil shop in New York, for which he needed frankincense.
"I got only Somalia oil in Oman, not the best oil in Oman. Nobody used to distill it to sell, not even amouge."
Amouge is Oman's top perfume company that makes the finest perfumes from frankincense. A 100 ml amougé perfume bottle prepared from frankincense is available for 283 pounds.
Harris moved to Salah in the capital of Dofar in 2011 and formed Inflerage.
She now lives in Muscat and sells high quality frankincense oil to small perfume companies and retail buyers.
She produces 2 to 3 kg of Boswellia Sacra oil every day, which costs 555 pounds per kg.
Almost the entire frankincense of Oman is found in the Boswellia Sacra tree, which is in the Doffer desert. They are owned by local tribe tribes.
Crop preparation
The work of extracting frankincense resin starts in April as the juice of the tree comes out easily as the heat rises.
Workers make small cuts in the bark of trees. From there comes a juice like white milk which comes out and sticks to the tree like wax.
On leaving it for 10 days, it dries and becomes like glue. After extracting it separately, the farmers again cut in the same place.
They repeat this process many times. The last crop that comes in winter is the most luxurious and the most expensive resin.
After extracting frankincense resin continuously for five years, the tree is left for the next 5 years.
In recent years, due to increasing demand, there has been a crisis on the rare Boswellia Sacra trees of Oman.
Botanist Joshua Islamameh says, "The pressure on natural Boswellia trees has increased due to increasing international demand for aromatic oils from frankincense and medicines made from it."
Boswellia sacra has been placed on the red list of trees in danger. It is close to elimination.
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