Sandalwood is the heartwood of the small deciduous tree in the Santalaceae family. It has the effects of nourishing the heart and warming the middle, as well as stimulating appetite and relieving pain. Agarwood has the effects of regulating qi and relieving pain, and is often used to treat symptoms such as rebellious qi and chest fullness. So how do we differentiate between agarwood and sandalwood?
【Common Points】
Both agarwood and sandalwood have a pungent and warm taste, and they both belong to the spleen and stomach meridians. They both have the function of regulating qi and relieving pain, and can be used to treat symptoms of cold stagnation and qi stagnation. It is suitable to take them in decoction after other ingredients.
They can be used to treat symptoms of cold stagnation and qi stagnation.
【Differences】
Agarwood also has a bitter taste and enters the kidney meridian. Its heavy and sinking nature can descend qi to warm the middle and stop vomiting, regulate qi and relieve asthma. It is warm without being dry, and promotes movement without causing leakage. It is good at treating symptoms of cold vomiting, lower abdominal coldness, and kidney qi deficiency causing asthma.
Sandalwood also enters the lung meridian and is good at regulating various qi in the chest. It can regulate the spleen and lung, promote digestion, relieve chest pain, and treat symptoms of chest and abdominal cold pain, chest congestion and pain, epigastric cold pain, and hiccup.
【Identification of Sandalwood】
Sandalwood is the core part of sandalwood, excluding the sapwood (which has no fragrance and is white). Sandalwood belongs to the Santalaceae family and is a semi-parasitic small deciduous tree. It can grow up to 8 to 15 meters tall, with a trunk diameter of about 20 to 30 centimeters, and smaller ones are only 3 to 5 centimeters.
It is originally from the Ganges River basin in India, south to the state of Mysore and Indonesia, and to the provinces of East Nusa Tenggara and West Nusa Tenggara, as well as East Timor. In addition, sandalwood is also produced in Australia, Fiji, other South Pacific islands, and Hawaii in the United States. China also has a history of introducing sandalwood for nearly a hundred years.
The use of sandalwood in China should have a history of about 1500 years. Sandalwood is generally used for carving Buddha statues and other crafts, medicinal purposes, or extracting sandalwood oil. When collecting or appreciating sandalwood and sandalwood carvings, the following basic features should be grasped.
Sandalwood is generally yellow-brown or dark brown in color. Over time, the color may become slightly darker. It has a good luster, but the patina is not as obvious as that of rosewood or huanghuali.
The texture is hard, fine, smooth, and feels good. The air-dry density is 0.87 to 0.97 grams per cubic centimeter. The texture is straight or slightly wavy, and the growth rings are obvious or not very obvious.
The fragrance is mellow and long-lasting. Over time, it may become less noticeable, but when scraped with a knife, it still emits a strong fragrance. Compared with the pungent fragrance of camphor and agarwood, sandalwood has a slightly lighter and more natural aroma.
Some people use artificial fragrance to soak or spray wood to imitate sandalwood, but the fragrance usually has a noticeable medicinal smell and is not long-lasting.
【Identification of Agarwood】
To identify fake agarwood, one must rely on long-term experience in playing and smelling fragrances to find certain patterns. Traditional Chinese medicine emphasizes observation, smelling, questioning, and palpation. When playing with agarwood, observation, smelling, touching, and burning are emphasized.
Observation is to observe its appearance. Agarwood is the resin produced by the tree in the Aquilaria genus during its growth process, which adheres to the wood. Regardless of the amount of resin in agarwood, there is a clear distinction between the fragrance and the wood, commonly known as patterns or resin lines. Genuine agarwood beads or pieces have obvious patterns, while fake agarwood has almost no change in appearance, without strong or weak variations. The artificially made patterns are extremely consistent, making it easy to tell that they are fake, and they will fade when played with.
Smelling is to smell the fragrance in front of the nose. Agarwood is a top-grade fragrance, with a unique fragrance that can be described as refreshing and elegant, or high and distant. However, its fragrance is always fragrant. Generally, when smelling agarwood, the aroma is initially reminiscent of a familiar medicinal smell, but upon closer inspection, it is difficult to identify exactly what it smells like. The main method to judge the fragrance of agarwood is through "drilling". The fragrance of genuine agarwood is like drilling into the nose along the thread-like path, and the feeling is in waves. When agarwood is packed tightly in a bag, the fragrance can still seep through the bag.
Touching is another way to identify agarwood. Good agarwood may appear oily, but it is not sticky to touch and does not leave oil on the hands. If it is fake, the applied oil will leave dirty marks on the hands. By repeatedly touching and rubbing, genuine agarwood will emit a clear and faint fragrance.
Burning is another direct method of identification. Genuine agarwood will emit a clear and faint fragrance when burned, which is stable and refreshing. If it is agarwood beads or pieces, you can heat a needle and use it to sniff the scent without damaging the object. After burning, the scent of fake agarwood is generally strong and stimulating, the fragrance is short-lived, and the aroma is mixed and unpleasant.
