Incense in The Wind: Halmaddi

The tree from which halmaddi resin is extracted

Halmaddi is a resin, like amber, frankincense and myrrh, which comes from a tree. As with other such resins, it is sticky when first extracted, then becomes hard and brittle when dried, which makes it useful for binding and then sealing fragrant ingredients when making incense, allowing the fragrance to last longer both in storage and when burned. As the fragrances are protected, they remain purer and so are stronger and clearer when released.

There is an association of halmaddi with traditional, artisan incense makers who make masala incense as opposed to perfumed incense, and while on the surface this appears to makes sense, halmaddi is used as an scent holder and amplifier for fragrances both liquid and solid. The decision to use halmaddi to fix the fragrance is based on cost, availability, marketing, and the incense makers own experience and traditions.

The halmaddi resin comes from the ailanthus triphysa tree, which is mainly grown for its wood, which burns well, so is used for match sticks. Here's a set of images of the tree being tapped for the resin. Because halmaddi extraction damages the tree, and so threatens the wood crop, in the 1990s the Indian government protected the trees, and producers used other binding ingredients. The government has since relaxed its restrictions so production of halmaddi has increased. Incense aimed at the Western market may mention that it contains halmaddi on the packets.

Halmaddi resin in my incense burner

It is frustrating that there is so little authoritative information about Indian incense. I have several books and texts, but the hard factual information in them is quite minimal. What I have learned, though, is that halmaddi is traditionally used as a fixative and plasticiser, though that use is these days largely taken over by gum Arabic, which is easier to obtain, and has the benefit of being a neutral aroma, so the incense maker is free to design a scent without impact from the fixative. However, there are some traditional makers who continue to use halmaddi, and even some commercial incense houses are using halmaddi in incense aimed at the West.

Halmaddi is produced in the same way that frankincense, myrrh, and amber are made - by cutting the tree, and collecting the gum that the tree oozes. All these resins behave the same way - they are moist and pliable when fresh, then harden over time. Gum arabic is also a tree resin, though, unlike the others, is odourless. The tree resins most famous for their scent are frankincense, myrrh, and amber. Halmaddi is not as famous for its scent. Though the scent is pleasant, it is not as profound and appealing as the others. I have some halmaddi (resin from the Ailanthus triphysa tree) in a jar, and people who have smelled it feel that the scent is neutral to mildly pleasant. The scent is mildly menthol and camphor, faintly like Tiger Balm. It is earthy, a bit like clay, warm wool, and beeswax. The scent when heated in my burner is warm, fragrant, mostly neutral though mildly sweet, mild camphor, floral with suggestions of frangipani (mild citrus), slightly peppery, warm wool, soft rubber, gym shoes, aged wooden floor. Very pleasant, though not divine. Not a scent to grab the attention and get people trading in it for thousands of years as they have done with frankincense and myrrh.

Here is a video made about Haria, in which it is shown how halmaddi is used as a binder and carrier of the fragrant ingredients in the incense. The owner says there is no scent to halmaddi itself, though I found there is a scent - mild and neutral, but certainly a scent.

Ailanthus triphysa is the tree most associated with the term "halmaddi". There are, however, other trees which produce halmaddi, same as there are a range of trees which produce amber, myrrh, and frankincense. The Mothers Indian Incense use the resin from Mimusops Elengi L. Or perhaps not the resin, but a paste made from the crushed bark, leaves and seeds of the tree, blended with honey. My research indicates that those parts of the tree are used for their fragrance, but I've not yet seen that the resin is tapped and used.

In the West, during the period when the quality of Satya incense declined, it was thought that that was due to a decline in use of halmaddi. It is true that the quality of Satya incense in the West declined, and it is true that use of halmaddi declined due to restrictions on harvesting the halmaddi tree for the gum. And putting these two events together resulted in the assumption that they were linked. And, yes, that is plausible and understandable. However, my own researches have indicated that the main reason for the decline in quality of Satya at that time was due to the two brothers splitting up, and the Satya incense being imported into the West (mainly into America) was being created by the older brother, Nagaraj, who had split from the younger brother, with synthetic perfumes to keep costs down.

Some people have said that halmaddi is a substance that attracts moisture, and so a flora style stick is wet because of the halmaddi. Halmaddi, like all tree resins, such as frankincense and gum Arabic, are hygroscopic. So is any natural material, such as plants, leaves, flowers, and especially sawdust and charcoal, which are very absorbent, and make up the majority of any incense. That's why it is important to store incense in a dry place. Halmaddi, as with other tree resins, hardens with exposure to the air. That is the purpose of the resin. It is there to protect the tree from losing moisture when it has been cut. Now, we all know that tree resins get hard and brittle - we know about amber, for example; and those of us who have bought halmaddi know that it behaves the same as other tree resins and goes hard. So shut the fuck up already about halmaddi being the thing that is responsible for incense paste being soft or damp. It's not. It is more likely to be soft because of some kind of liquid scent such as the use of essential oil, carrier oil, or agarbatti oil.

Though it was traditionally used as a fixative and plasticiser rather than as a scent ingredient, it does have a scent of its own which in the West is associated with Satya Nag Champa, a very popular incense. The association is so strong that some consider halmaddi essential to a nag champa scent - indeed, some feel that nag champa = halmaddi. Nag champa, however, is a scent based on a flower, the magnolia champaca, or champak tree, from where it gets the "champa" part of its name. There are some Indian incenses which are just called Champa, and these are almost always based on plumeria or frangipani, a fragrant flowering shrub, rather than the champaca of Nag Champa, which is a plant in the magnolia family.

Champa (or frangipani)

There is a school of thought that a Nag Champa incense would be a combination of plumeria and sandalwood, and I once followed that line of thinking myself, though I am more inclined now to think that the original scents were different - Champa being frangipani, and Nag Champa being magnolia. Sandalwood being a common base ingredient in traditional masala incense, its inclusion in a recipe does not seen to me to be significant.

Useful summary of halmaddi by r/Incense forum contributor Vivek Ram - Individual Animal162:

Reading through the internet about Indian incense stick ingredients has been a disheartening experience. To be fair, most of the confusion is caused by the cavalier attitude of incense makers in India who apply names in a slapdash manner. Perhaps, it's also fuelled by the desire to preserve trade secrets, I speculate.

Nothing has been more confusing when it comes to ingredients than Halmaddi and Mattipal. As someone with a large circle of friends and family members involved in spice, herb and incense trade, I can lay this topic to rest once and for all.

Ailanthus Triphysa Halmaddi

Halmaddi is a sticky, gooey resin extracted from Ailanthus Triphysa. Malabarica is simply a geographical signifier - NOT the proper scientific name. A.Triphysa is esteemed for it's light, white, porous, yet strong wood. It continues to be used widely in boat making and match sticks. Being extremely light to carry, it was also used to make sword handles and sheaths for spearheads alongside India's export of the famed Wootz steel.

Incidentally, A Triphysa is tapped for its resin. The resin is sticky and gooey and looks questionably brown in colour and of uniform consistency. When tapped, it is pale white, and slowly thickens to brown resin. Historically, Halmaddi was used to bind the ingredients of the incense into a single cohesive mix and cut them into burnable units. These are called Gheela Dhoop.

Overtime, extractors used crude methods on young trees that weren't mature enough to recover from the sudden loss of sap. Sap is like the blood of the tree. In 1990, Indian government put a moratorium on resin extraction and at the same time boosted conservation efforts. Over time, the combined strategy paid off and the ban on extraction was lifted.

To this day, Halmaddi extraction on large government-controlled plantations is leased to the highest bidder and carefully monitored by the government of India. Not so in Myanmar and Sri Lanka, which also have the tree natively. The drip feeding of Halmaddi is why it is so costly. It has also acquired a somewhat unwarranted legendary status among people who enjoy Indian incense - as if it is the be all and end all of Indian incense making.

Here's the truth: Halmaddi is neutral in scent. The terpenes in the resin give it a petrol-like odour and burns unpleasantly when placed on coal. But mixed with other resins, spices, herbs and oils, it binds them together and "fixes" their molecules: meaning, the molecules don't get disintegrated and released until they're burned. This extends the shelf life of incense mixes AND the duration of the burning.

Honey can do the same. Joss and Makko powder can do the same. Operculum Onycha and benzoin can do the same. Hence why they're used in Japanese and Greek incense making, which don't know Halmaddi.

Ficus Religiosa Mattipal

Now, the other ingredient in Indian incense. Ficus Religiosa is a highly esteemed tree in Indian culture. It is one of the rare trees that releases oxygen throughout the day, releasing up to 2400 kilos of oxygen per day. Buddha is said to have attained enlightenment under the tree. Hence called Bodhi (Awakening) tree.

Bodhi tree parts are used medicinally for a variety of ailments in traditional Siddha and Ayurveda. I won't go into them as this is not the place.

The leaf is also crushed along with bits of bark and tiny twigs and mixed with the milk-like tree exudate. This is called Mattipal.

Mattipal smells earthy, mouldy, floral and figgy. When burnt on it's own, it produces heavy smoke and a somewhat choking earthy and kerosene like fragrance. Not pleasant at all. But when mixed with other resins, herbs, spices and oils, it actually adds a subtle hint of flower and fig (after all, it is a fig tree!). The scent is not loud. It is a subtle scent. Traditionally prepared Dasangam has Sacred Fig Mattipal.

How do I know it is not Halmaddi resin? Because Dasangam is a powder. And Mattipal is a powder. Dasangam has other tree barks too: Arjuna and Cedar tree bark (depending on which recipe you use). So, it goes with the logic of the recipe that Mattipal would also include powdery tree bark, and not gooey resin.

I also checked with several different manufacturers, suppliers and vendors in my circle of family and friends. Guess what? They all confirmed Mattipal is Bodhi Tree sap and bark and NOT A.Triphysa resin. I attach the screenshot from our conversations.

Here's the quickest way to confirm whether you're getting A.Triphysa or F.Religiosa: Cost. Halmaddi resin is costly because it is not widely and freely available as yet. Mattipal is freely and easily available, and does not cost much.

Another way to tell: If you can get it from a herbal medicine shop, it is probably F. Religiosa and not A.Triphysa.

https://imgur.com/gallery/95QFFAM - Chat with supplier.

https://imgur.com/gallery/fxeMalX - Images of the actual thing.