Plants of India: Mitti
Mitti-The Fragrance of the Earth
by Christopher McMahon
Part 1--Monsoon in Rajasthan
"I am the taste in the water, the light of the sun and the moon,
the sound in the ether, the ability in the man, the fragrance of the
earth, the life of all that lives, the strength of the strong, the intelligence
of the intelligent, and the original seed of all existences."
Bhagavad Gita(c. BC 400)
 In
the Bhagavad Gita, when Lord Krishna reveals his true idenity to Arjuna,
he uses the lovely phrase, "the fragrance of the earth", to describe
his essential nature. This fragrance is very dear to the Indian people as
it is associated with the coming of the monsoon rains which is the life-giver.
In many places there is no other water source for irrigating the crops than
that which comes from the sky. When the monsoon season approaches the farmers
throughout the country search the horizon for signs of the moisture-laden
clouds with fervent prayers that this years rains will be sufficient to
grow the crops which will feed their families, communities and country.
The feelings that get awakened at that time are very intense and one must
realize that the entire livelihood of millions of people is tied up with
the amount of rain that falls in any given year. When the first drops of
rain fall upon the parched earth, it gives off an intoxicating aroma that
is inhaled by the country folk in deep satisfying draughts. It is a cause
for singing, dancing, and tears of joy because if all goes well in a few
short months the fields will be full of nourishing crops.
When I was in my early twenties, I went to live on a small farm in South
India that became my home for six months a year from 1971-1976. Living amongst
the simple farming people my life underwent a gradual change where I began
to sense the powerful effect nature exerts upon those who have lived in
close proximity to her for thousands of years. In the hearts of the current
generation of rural Indians live the feelings, emotions and experiences
of all their ancestors. It is a collective awareness based upon certain
commonly shared values that have changed little in the course of the centuries.
The coming of the monsoon rates as one of the most important events of the
year and the hearts and minds of the people become united with the intense
longing to see, taste, hear, smell and feel the benefits of the rain. Indeed
it may be said that the identity of the people is so closely linked with
the earth that they feel what the earth might feel when finally it is reinvigorated
with the the raindrops falling from the sky.
This July, I had the opportunity to visit Rajasthan as the monsoon season
approached. It was very exciting to be moving through the countryside sharing
in the intense feelings of the farming people once again. As my eye drank
in the sublime beauty of that ancient landscape, I became so grateful that
my life had become intertwined with a part of India that is little known
to people from other parts of the world. I was traveling with my fragrance
mentor, Mr. Ramakant Harlalka of Mumbai, and we were exploring another dimension
of the great aromatic traditions that are dear to the hearts and minds of
the Indian people. The countryside was alive with activity in spite of the
tremendous heat which proceeds the rains. The earth had been or was being
plowed so that the broken crust could easily receive the precious drops
of rain. Plows were being mended, hoes sharpened, shovels made, for the
intense work that would follow should nature be kind and the rains abundant.
But most of all one could feel the call of the earth and all her creatures
for the rains to come.
It was the best possible time to understand the importance of "mitti"
attar which is still being made in North India today. An attar is an Indian
perfume having a sandalwood base in which one or several essences of botanical
origin become absorbed through hydro-distillation. The "mitti"
or "earth" attar is that perfume which is actually a distillation
of the earth. In some past time, the perfumers of Kannauj put their attention
on producing a fragrance that would portray the odor given off by the earth
when first touched by the monsoon rains as it was loved so much by the people.
I had found mention of this attar in perfumery literature some years before
and instantly became interested in finding out more about it. In February
1995 I had the opportunity to visit a distillery in Kannauj where this attar
was being produced and since that time with the help of my Indian colleagues
had made a good photographic documentation on this perfume.
The real significance of the attar was only revealed to me though when
we were in Rajasthan as it had been many years since I was in India during
the monsoon season. Seeing the sun baked earth upturned and waiting to receive
the rains and feeling the longing of the people for the return of the monsoon
connected me once again to the"reason" behind the existence of
the attar. This odor was for the people a reminder of one of the most sacred
and important events of their lives. Ramakant also explained to me that
from the scientific level when the earth becomes depleted of moisture the
soil organisms, numbering 10 million to the teaspoon, become inactive but
as soon as the soil receives the rain they are activated again and this
activity is most likely the cause for the sublime aroma that is dear to
those who love the earth. This exquisite rich, deep, mysterious smell created
by the activity of the micro-organisms, invisibly charges the air with its
positive influence and one can easily imagine that the earth is in turn
thanking the clouds and rain for showering their cooling draughts so that
life can return to the land and all nature can rejoice.
Updated: 5/26/2006
Copyright (C) 1998 by Christopher McMahon. All rights reserved. Queries to: somanath@aol.com
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