Balm of Gilead by Deborah Dolen

I just love it when my readers ask me about a great natural raw material that I have never heard of.  Until 2007 Balm of Gilead was one of them.  This balm was mentioned in the Bible and apparently it was a panacea for many ailments even as far back as the word was written, and even farther back than that.   Balm of Gilead is basically a resin from the better known Myrrh family, a plant based material mentioned 18 times in the bible. For example, when Esther was being prepared to be the bride of the King, she received a daily anointing of oil of Myrrh.  This resin is also known as “Opoponax” a resin I use as a fixative in my favorite perfume formulation – which is a copy of the discontinued Chanel #22 perfume.  This resin is also integral in the making of incense.  If you do not have the time or resources to make your own extract, you can search to purchase Opoponax, or Myrrh, but the highly sought after Myrrh can be so cost prohibitive – I secure Opoponax.

Wikipedia describes Balm of Gilead best as;

“Balm of Gilead” is a balm (healing compound) made from the resinous gum of the balsam poplar (Populus candicans), a North American tree species. It takes its name from the allusive Biblical phrase "balm in Gilead", referring to the balm or balsam carried from Gilead by the caravan of merchants to whom Joseph was sold by his brothers (Genesis chapter 37). In all likelihood, this ancient trade item was what is now known as Balsam of Mecca, produced from the tree Commiphora gileadensis (syn. Commiphora opobalsamum), native to southern Arabia. 

The Wiki definition causes a little confusion, because on one hand, Wiki is talking about a resin from essentially a Canadian tree, but then changing tides in the same paragraph to refer to a thorny bush that grows in Saudi and parts of Africa.  The two botanicals are very different and I can already say that the balsam popular, is more of a beneficial wintergreen like smelling compound, and the true Gilead – a deep, rich, fragrant resin.  Both have very healing attributes, and very different end uses.  Such as, the Balsam Poplar [the Canadian botanical] is used for respiratory, cough syrup preparation and the like, whereas the real Balm of Gilead is not used for that purpose.   And there are other healing botanicals by far we can select from.  Having the world now at our fingertips we know that Vege-balm, created by the French, is more of a world renowned panacea and includes the healing properties of Sassafras oil among other oils.  The oil of Lavender or any blue essential oils are best for healing as one expert taught me in my early herbal studies.   

To make matters more confusing, a number of plants have been given the name 'Balm of Gilead' and you really have to consider the true source material when shopping for it.   As we just learned, the true plant mentioned in the Bible is commiphora opobalsamum but this is a very rare Arabian desert plant whose export had been prohibited until recently. Most likely because it would make us too "happy."  The common version of Balm of Gilead that we find in stores is usually Cedronella canariensis.   I find stores to always be very diluted and fairly worthless – so I make my own infusions.  Here is one source of true Gilead bud sellers, but I have never used this source.  I am just trying to show an example of what I would be searching for if I wanted to make this preparation and secure the right materials. 

So the Balm of Gilead also given as a gift to Solomon by the Queen of Sheba is the plant we use now and shares the name because of its similar musky fragrance. Folk magic said carrying the buds would help mend a broken heart. 

You can make an oil from Balm of Gilead by packing a jar with commiphora opobalsamum  buds, and topping up with warm vegetable oil or jojoba oil. I far prefer fractionated coconut oil for its ability to extract and impart the most beneficial plant properties than any other oil.  If you cannot secure fractionated coconut oil, you can opt for Safflower oil which is very high in vitamin e and readily available on the grocery store shelves.  Seal the buds and leave in a warm place for 14 days and then strain into a clean jar. You can perform a double or triple infusion which is what I would do.  Meaning I would toss the spent buds and use the same infused oil two more times with fresh buds.  This is also an excellent oil to dress candles for use in magical healing. This method is also true if you are working with the other resin, the one native to Canada known as balsam poplar (Populus candicans).

In summary, Balm of Gilead is a confusing name. It has been freely applied to trees of the balsam family, trees of the willow family, trees of the poplar family and to at least one shrub found during research on this herb. So, care should be taken when a formula or a recipe for treatment is given with an ingredient called "balm of Gilead" in the ingredients. You can make yoru own by infusing the reasl commiphora opobalsamum buds in oil and preferably making a triple infusion for maximum value.

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