Is Indian Oud really ‘fecal’?

If you’re a seasoned connoisseur who won’t wear anything but Indian Oud, no. In your book, Indian Oud is ‘Oud’ and ‘Oud’ is ‘Indian Oud.’

Many agarwood maniacs will swear by what a newbie may term ‘fecal’ in Indian Oud. To the agarwood oil partisan, Oud is Indian – and the fecalness of Indian Oud is sheer Heaven.

One thing to remember is that Oud wood was only discovered on the island of Papua in the 1990’s. Indonesian Oud is relatively new – and with it, all the cool, green, minty, honey-like notes of your favorite Borneo and Papua oils (Borneo Kinam, Malay Royale, etc.)

By contrast, Indian Oud has been around for millennia. Records as ancient as the “Song of Songs” in the Old Testament sing the praises of ‘Aloes’ from Assam.

So for 3000 years at the very least, the world has known ‘Oud’ as the wild pastoral substance originating in the barnyards (oops, jungles) of Assam. It will be very difficult for the cooler, lighter notes of Indonesian Oud to compete with that.

Moreover, the supposedly ‘fecal’ fragrance of Indian Oud is not unsupported by scientific data. In this case, chemistry offers an amazing explanation as to why ‘fecal’ is good. Scientists discovered indol – the chemical that gives jasmine and orange blossom their aphrodisiac scent – in (guess where?) – human feces! Gross, isn’t it?

Well, not if you consider the fact that the only factor that makes jasmine and neroli pleasant and human feces foul is the amount of indol found in them! The florals contain only slight amounts of the stuff whereas poop – well, poop’s loaded.

An interesting comparison to the fecal, animalic notes of Indian Oud would be the four ‘exalting fixatives’ used in classic perfumery, namely the animal aromatics; deer musk from the Himalayan muskdeer, ambergris from the sperm whale, castoreum from the male beaver, and civet from the civet cat.

Foul and strange in very high concentrations, these are the most heavenly aromatic substances on the perfumer’s palette – without which there would be no perfume.

An unearthly emission of the fungus-attacked Aquilaria tree, Indian Oud is a substance just as otherworldly, transcending the limits of everything we know and expect from fragrance; moving us beyond mere sensory enchantment to realms only the spirit can attain.

The Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) stated that Indian Oud contains the cure for seven diseases.

Anyone who is accustomed to the scent of Indian Oud will attest to the curative properties of this blessed oil. Whether it be boredom, stress, fatigue, uneasiness, or even anxiety and dispiritedness, a swipe of genuine Indian agarwood oil will go a long way to lift your spirits.