AROMATICS 



53. The Sui su l mentions two aromatics or perfumes peculiar to 

 K'an (Sogdiana), kan hian IB" 2 W and a-sa-na hian P3 HI ffi 

 Fortunately we have a parallel text in the T*ai p*in hwan yu kif where 

 the two aromatics of K'an are given as ~B* & H HI M . Hence 

 it follows that the kan of the Sui Annals is no more than an abbreviation 

 of kan sun, which is well known as an aromatic, and identical with the 

 true spikenard furnished by Nardostachys jatamansi. It is Sanskrit 

 nalada, Tibetan span spos, Persian nard or sunbul, Armenian sumbul, 

 smbul, snbul, etc. 4 It is believed that the nard found by Alexander's 

 soldiers in Gedrosia 5 represents the same species, while others hold 

 that it was an Andropogon* 



The Sanskrit term nalada is found in the Fan yi min yi tsi 7 in the 

 form 8$ H $ na-lo-t'o, *na-la-da. It is accompanied by the fanciful 

 analysis nara-dhara ("held or carried by man"), because, it is said, 

 people carry the fragrant flower with them in their girdles. The word 

 nalada is of ancient date, for it appears in the Atharvaveda. 8 Hebrew 

 nerd, Greek nardos* Persian nard and nard, are derived therefrom. 10 

 Being used in the Bible, the word was carried to all European languages. 



1 Ch. 83, p. 4 b. 



2 This character is not listed in K'an-hi, but the phonetic element -ff leaves no 

 doubt that its phonetic value is kan, *kam. 



3 Ch. 183, p. 4. 



4 ABU MANSUR (Achundow's translation, pp. 82, 241) mentions sunbul-i-hindt, 

 the nard of India. SCHLIMMER (Terminologie, p. 36) identifies this name as Andro- 

 pogon nardoides or Nardus indica. On the other hand, he says (p. 555) that Nar- 

 dostachys or Valeriana jatamansi has not yet been found in Persia, but that it could 

 be replaced in therapeutics by Valeriana sisymbrifolia, found abundantly in the 

 mountains north of Teheran. 



5 Arrian, Anabasis, VI. xxn, 5. 



6 JORET, Plantes dans 1'antiquite", Vol. II, p. 648. See, further, Periplus, 48; 

 and Pliny, xn, 28; WATT, Commercial Products of India, p. 792. MARCO POLO 

 (ed. of YULE, Vol. I, pp. 115, 272, 284) mentions spikenard as a product of Bengal, 

 Java, and Sumatra. The Malayan word narawastu, mentioned by YULE (ibid. % 

 p. 287), must be connected with Sanskrit nalada. 



7 Ch. 8, p. 4 b. 



8 MACDONELL and KEITH, Vedic Index, Vol. I, p. 437; H. ZIMMER, Altindisches 

 Leben, p. 68. 



9 First mentioned by Theophrastus, IX. vm, 2, 3. 



10 See above, p. 428. 



455 



