Jatamansi or Spikenard

lat. Nardostachys jatamansi

Group: Grass and Green Components

Jatamansi or Spikenard Nardostachys jatamansi

Jatamansi or Spikenard has a woody fragrance which is astonishingly herbaceous and aromatic, warm and sensual. This fragrance is also a combination of sweet, resinous, spicy, and animal-fat odors. With Jatamansi, the essential oil is like an organic earthy scent.

jatamansi from biolaya.com

Botanical Names: Nardostachys jatamansi, Nardostachys grandiflora (Indian Spikenard), Valeriana jatamansi (Indian Valerian, Tagara)

Classical and Common Names: Musk-root, Indian Spikenard, Jatamansi, Balchar, Bhuutajatta, Tapaswini.

Family Name: Valerianaceae

Parts Used: Rhizomes, Roots, Rhizome oil

jatamansi root from snowlotus.org

History

Spikenard is one of the ancient incense utilized by the Egyptians. A description of spikenard is also mentioned in the Song of Solomon in the Holy Bible. “While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof" (1:12 Song of Solomon). The essential oil was also used by Roman perfumers.

Essential Oil Properties: Pale yellow in color with medium viscosity and a musky aroma.

Extraction Method: Essential oil is extracted from dried rhizomes of the plant using steam distillation

Habitat

N. grandiflora is found to occur between 3,300 and 6,000 m in the Himalayas: Kashmir (India), Uttar Pradesh (India), Nepal, Sikkim (India), Bhutan, South-West China including Tibet, Yunnan and southwest Sichuan. In nature, the plant is generally found clinging to steep rocky cliffs, stony and grassy slopes, and is rarely found as lithophytes. It is also reported from ravines of the rocks and crevices, small depressions, somewhat found in wet meadows and by the banks of the rivulets in the high valleys and peaks ranging from 3,000 - 4,000 m.

Botany

Nardostachys jatamansi (Jatamansi) is a perennial herb. It has a stout un-branched or sparsely-branched woody aromatic rhizome, covered with reddish-brown thick fibers of remnants, a petiole of withered radical leaves with a single long tap root, typically with 2-7 rhizomes but sometimes up to 15. The thickness and numbers of rhizomes per plant depends on the age of plant. The rhizome of the plant is so aromatic that when plants are uprooted from the soil by hand, their warm, sweet fragrance spreads out in air. The flowers are rose-purple to whitish in color and are found in dense head on terminal. Flowering time is July to August, while fruiting occurs in September to November.

Adulterants of Nardostachys jatamansi

For a long time, adulterants of Spikenard have been sold in the Indian market, such as the rhizomes of Selinum vaginatum, which is very much similar to Spikenard rhizomes and are sold knowingly and unknowingly under the name Bhutkeshi or "False Jatamansi."

false jatamansi by Monika Vats Purohit

Oil Blends Well With

The sweet-woody spikenard oils can blend well with other specific oils such as lavender, Vetiver, Lemon, Oak moss and spice oils.

Chemical Properties of Essential oil

Rhizomes, rich in sesquiterpenoides, yield jatamanshic acid, jatamansone, patchouli alcohol, nor-seychelanone, seychellen, and alpha and beta patchoulene. The essential oil yields several hydrocarbons, a new oxide, beta-cudesmol, elemol, angelicin and jatamansinol. In Indian medicine, rhizomes and rootlets of the plant are used in prescriptions for their sedative, antispasmodic, antiepileptic, antihysteric, hypotensive, anti-inflammatory and cardio-tonic properties.

Uses

Spikenard has been utilized since ancient times as a medicine for curing heart diseases, mental retardation, urine-related problems, insomnia etc. Famed Ayurvedic-healer Charaka and "Father of Surgery" Sushruta incorporated Jatamansi in many medicinal oils, which are prescribed for edema, hemorrhoids, arthritis, gout, fractures, and obstinate skin diseases, mostly for external application.

Essential oil of spikenard is also used in aromatherapy to remove tension and stress from the mind. In the case of excessive sweating, it can be effective as a deodorant. Jatamansi oil is useful when applied for smooth, silky and healthy hair. The oil can also be used efficiently as an ingredient of soaps, lotions, massage oils, scents, air fresheners, body fragrance, and aromatherapy products.

Images: snowlotus.org, biolaya.com

Author: Dr. Chandra Shekhar Gupta

Senior Research Fellow
Plant Quarantine Division
National Bearue of Plant Genetic Resources
Pusa Campus, New Delhi