Gifts for Winter: Frankincense and Myrrh

Today it is snowing a light dry powdery snow that skiers wish for and children love to brush their bulky knit mittens through; it is a beautiful winter wonderland outside. I am inside struggling with a chest cold an in an effort to make me feel better, I put some frankincense and myrrh in my vaporizer. The fragrance from these resins fills the air with an ancient spicy warmth.

Frankincense (left), Myrrh (right),
combined in vaporizer, just needs a bit of water;
can be reused until gone

The gum from these small trees or shrubs were widely used in Egypt, India, China, and North East Africa near the Red Sea Region and considered to be as valuable as gold. Frankincense and Myrrh is well known as two of the three gifts of the Magi, gifts from the Three Wise Men to the infant Jesus. The tree gums were made into an essential oil by mixing with oil or water. These plants from the Cradle of Civilization have come with us as treatments for ailments. I don't know if anyone knows how essential oils in aromatherapy works as a treatment but they have been used for millenniums.  

I didn't really think about possible uses of frankincense and myrrh until I started using essential oils. Myrrh has many uses as a therapeutic essential oil, commonly used for menstrual problems, haemorrhoids, as well as for amenorrhea, leucorrhea, pruritis and thrush. Frankincense is associated as a treatment for cystitis, dysmenorrhea, leucorrhea and metrorrhagia. When I first read that they were treated for women's genito-urinary systems, I thought, maybe the gifts weren't for baby Jesus but for postnatal Mary.

Of course these wonder gums have many other uses, one of my favourite is that they work on the respiratory system, helping to calm colds and the flu. Now every December, I bring out the frankincense and myrrh and put it in the vaporizer to not only ward off or to treat illness, but to also fill the air with the rich, ancient smells of the Middle East. I associate the smell with a connection to the rich history of mankind's ancient wisdom. It comforts me to have the same fragrance in the air that women like Cleopatra might have had. It quite simply makes me feel connected to women throughout history and I like that.

a clay vaporizer,
heated with a small votive candle

Well it wasn't until I started writing this out that I have such a strong link between scent and meaning, but there it is. I know a lot of women have strong pulls to scent; look in any product marketed to women and it will be heavily scented. Given that many artificial scents are not healthy and are sometimes even damaging, I hope that you might recognize your pull to scent and become a conscious and safe consumer of cosmetic and medical products.

Myrrh should not be used during pregnancy; avoid use around pregnant women. 


This information is not to be taken as medical advice; readers must take responsibility for their own healing, consulting a qualified practitioner when needing medical attention. 

Sources:
Lacroix, Nitya, The Scented Touch, Sebastian Kelly, Oxford UK, 1994.
Lawless, Julia, The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Essential Oils, Element Books, Inc. Rockport, MA, 1995.