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Guide To Agarwood Essential Oil and Its Benefits and Uses

Agarwood essential oil (Aquilaria malaccensis or Aquilaria crassna) is rare and expensive. It's a very thick oil that also goes by other names, including aloeswood, eaglewood, kyara, oud, or oudh.

Wild agarwood trees are endangered but sustainable plantations grow the trees. If you buy this oil, make sure it's from a sustainable source.

Aromatherapy supplies with the words Guide To Agarwood Essential Oil and photo of an agarwood tree.

Plant family: Thymelaeaceae

Production: Steam distilled from wood infected with a particular type of mold. The tree reacts to the mold by producing a dark, scented resin that's absorbed by the wood.

Aroma: Bittersweet, woody.

Perfume/Aromatic note: Base. The essential oil is often used in high-end perfumes.

Is agarwood safe to use during pregnancy? Consult a professional.

Is agarwood essential oil safe for children? For kids age 2+, according to Eden's Garden. Consult a professional for details.

Cautions: Because agarwood oil is one of the rarest and most expensive oils, it's frequently adulterated.

Agarwood Essential Oil Benefits and Uses

Aromatherapy: A Complete Guide to the Healing Art: In ayurveda, agarwood is primarily used as a religious incense. The oil is a bitter digestive tonic that relieves indigestion. The essential oil is also a skin tonic and useful for easing joint, muscle, and nerve pain.

Salvatore Battaglia: Agarwood may help alleviate anxiety, nervous tension, and restlessness. In Traditional Chinese Medicine, the cooling nature of this essential oil suggests it calms the Heart and soothes agitated Shen. The scent is spiritually elevating and reminds us that we are not alone on our journey. 

Suggested essential oils to blend with agarwood:

  • To soothe and relax: vetiver, spikenard, sandalwood, patchouli, or lavender
  • To promote courage and resilience: sandalwood, ginger, atlas cedarwood, or yakusugi
  • To ground and nurture: vetiver, spikenard, patchouli, atlas cedarwood, or myrrh
  • To connect with nature: vetiver, patchouli, oakmoss absolute, lavender, or galbanum
  • To connect with the divine: spikenard, sandalwood, myrrh, or frankincense

Essential Oils in Spiritual Practice: Agarwood is a catalyst for introspection, revelation, and deep wisdom. The oil supports the second and fifth chakras. The oil's vibration helps the mind perceive circumstance and environment as a whole and also promotes open-mindedness and positive boundaries. This balancing essential oil helps you take inventory of your personal reality with the intention to understand your emotions.

Use the essential oil to support communication, effective listening, and expression and also to purify inharmonious emotional states, access timeless wisdom, and support artistic expression.The oil also supports wholeness in mantra, prayer, and meditation practices.

Floracopeia: Agarwood oil is hypnotic, calming, and meditative. In both Chinese and ayurvedic medicine, the oil is pungent, bitter, and warming and may help relieve pain and nausea.

Healing In The Bible With Essential Oil: Agarwood is uplifting and may help relieve anxiety, stress, and depression. The fragrance is grounding and useful for meditation and may work as an aphrodisiac. The oil may also help relieve menstrual problems, nervous tension, and skin problems.

Agarwood Blends

To use agarwood on your skin, make a 1% dilution by blending 6 drops of the essential oil into 2 tablespoons high-quality carrier oil. Use this blend as a body oil, facial serum, or cologne. (Eden's Garden)

Grounding Roll-on Blend

  • 2 teaspoons carrier oil
  • 4 drops agarwood essential oil
  • 2 drops frankincense essential oil
  • 2 drops myrrh essential oil
  • 2 drops patchouli essential oil

Mix together all the oils in a glass bowl. Pour into a roll-on bottle. Label. Use as needed. Source: JennScents

Inhaler Meditation Blend 

  • 2 drops agarwood essential oil
  • 4 drops frankincense essential oil
  • 4 drops copaiba essential oil
  • 4 drops bergamot essential oil
  • Blank aromatherapy inhaler

Place wick in the inhaler. Drop essential oils onto the wick. Put on the end cap. To use, place under nose and inhaler the aroma.

Source: Loving Essential Oils

Relaxing Bath Blend

  • 1 teaspoon rosehip oil
  • 2 drops agarwood essential oil
  • 3 drops jasmine absolute
  • 5 drops ylang ylang essential oil

Blend all ingredients. Stir blend into bath water.

Source: Miracle Botanicals




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Photo Credit: Yercaud-elango, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons