Ayurveda Initiative For Global Health

Sambrani (Styrax Benzoin) or Devadhupa malacca  Did you know that Sambrani or Styrax Benzoin or gum Benjamin, a common ingredient in incense-making and perfumery used throughout many cultures, is known by two common types of benzoin - Benzoin Siam and Benzoin Sumatra of Indonesia? Sambrani, with scientific name Styrax Benzoin or Devadhupa malacca in Sanskrit, is Benzoin gum, also known as benzoin resin and gum Benjamin. The resin is obtained from the Benzoin tree, a species of tree native to Sumatra, Indonesia, member of the Styrax genus in the family Styracaceae, and is also native to rainforests of many countries of Southeast Asia. The naturally occurring resin is Sambarni or Paal Sambrani, a Tamil name, while it is called Loban in Hindi, and its lighted smoke is an ancient tradition that has been followed for several centuries in India due to it’s amazing benefits to dry hair by women and for babies, and also as mosquitoe repellant.   In...