Sandalwood oil is perhaps best known in the west as a sweet, warm, rich and woody essential oil used as is for a body fragrance, and as an ingredient in fragrant products such as incense, perfumes, aftershaves and other cosmetics. But the story of sandalwood, the divine essence, goes much further. Sandalwood has been a part of the religious and spiritual traditions of India since prehistory and has been effectively used in traditional medicine for thousands of years. The oil is widely used in making the best quality attars. Sandalwood products are obtained from the sandalwood tree, which is a member of the Santalaceae family. It is known as white sandalwood, Mysore sandalwood, East Indian sandalwood, sandal, Chandan (Hindi), and tan xiang (Mandarin). The white sandalwood is an evergreen tree which grows to 50 feet and naturally occurs in Eastern India in the states of Mysore, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Sandalwood is a parasitic tree and obtains nutrients from several other plant species. There are other species of sandalwood, including red sandalwood.

• Sandalwood oil is one of the most-often adulterated essential oils and one of the finest quality attar is obtained from the same.
• The cost of sandalwood oil is rising dramatically (about 25% per year) and thus the best quality sandalwood attar is available through the finest material.
• The heartwood is the most precious part of the Sandalwood tree, and the best heartwood comes from the roots. Sapwood yields lower quality oil. Older trees have more heartwood, and so are more highly prized.
• Hydro-distillation is the traditional method of extraction. It is fairly rare these days, yet it is said that this method yields oil with a superior aroma.
• Sandalwood oil has a long history of use as a traditional medicine. It is part of traditional medical systems such as Chinese medicine and the Indian healing science known as Ayurveda.
• Sandalwood is central to the making of traditional attars in India. These natural perfumes are made by distilling essential oils of rare and/or difficult to distill plants into pure Sandalwood oil.
• Sandalwood is used in many different ways in the spiritual traditions of the East. It is considered beneficial for meditation and for calming and focusing the mind.

The oil of Sandalwood is used to anoint deities. In this way the fragrance which is emitted over time also helps to remind one of the spiritual realms. Sandalwood oil is one of the best fragrant aids to meditation. A drop or two can be applied to the forehead, the temples or rubbed between the eyebrows before beginning. In this way, it helps to set the stage and prepare the mind to begin its inward journey. Sandalwood oil is used extensively in natural perfumery as a harmonizing agent, base note and fixative. It helps to bring together other oils and adds a graceful aroma without taking away or overpowering other oils.