Spikenard

Statema, B. C. P.

Plant

Spikenard

Spico nardo

Known today as: The root of Nardostachys jatamansi, a Himalayan valerian.
Kind: Plant, in 2 older authorities
Constituents: jatamansone (valeranone), nardosinone, calarene, and 1 more
Earliest authority here: Mark 14:3 (the Hebrew Bible and the New Testament)
In other databases: Plants of the World Online search · GBIF search · Wikidata search
In the Canale glossary: On the Manner of Discerning and Healing the Bewitched, Appendix A: Part Three, Chapter 9: Anointings

Revised October 1, 2026: Lore added from texts read in full. Version 1, first published September 25, 2026.

Spikenard: what did Canale use it for?

In the oil for the bewitched; blessed “by Christ, whose feet were anointed with your ointment by Magdalene” (ch. 9; Treatise Two).

Spikenard: what does modern science say?

Aromatic; calming effects like those of its relative valerian have been shown in animal studies.

Pharmacognosy & Toxicology

Constituents

jatamansone (valeranone)a sesquiterpene ketone shared with valerian
nardosinone ChEMBL
calarene
valerenic acid analogues

Mechanism

Nardostachys jatamansi of the Himalaya, a valerian relative: its oil is sedative in rodents by the same GABA-modulating sesquiterpenes as valerian, and the Ayurvedic use for sleep and epilepsy rests on that; the ointment of Magdalene was a perfume in an oil base.

Toxic dose

Safe at pharmacopoeial doses; the plant is endangered by collection.

Standing

In the Ayurvedic pharmacopoeia (jatamansi); listed on CITES Appendix II since 1997 and as critically endangered in India.

Lyle, N., et al. (2009). “The role of antioxidant properties of Nardostachys jatamansi in alleviation of the symptoms of the chronic fatigue syndrome.” Behavioural Brain Research 202. Verified against its record · PMID 19374260
Takemoto, H., et al. (2008). “Sedative effects of vapor inhalation of agarwood oil and spikenard extract.” Journal of Natural Medicines 62. Verified against its record · doi:10.1007/s11418-007-0177-0

The abstract of each source, beneath its citation. For Club members. About the Club or sign in.

Constituent names open the compound’s record at PubChem, and “ChEMBL” beside a name opens its record at ChEMBL, the European Bioinformatics Institute’s database of bioactive molecules. Where a mechanism line was checked against ChEMBL (ChEMBL 37, read 1 October 2026), the check is shown with the measured value and its source paper, or says plainly that nothing has been measured. Doses are as the references give them, for description only; this is not medical advice. Each source carries the result of its check against Crossref, PubMed, or the authority’s page: see Verification.

Spikenard: what lore surrounds it?

Folkard quotes the Canticles, “While the king sitteth at his table, my Spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof,” and Pliny's twelve varieties, the Indian best, at “one hundred denarii per pound.” He follows Rimmel on the ancients confounding spikenard with the fragrant grasses of India, “which would account for the report that Alexander the Great, when he invaded Gedrosia, could smell from the back of his elephant the fragrance of the Nard as it was trod upon by the horses feet,” and Sir William Jones's identification of the true plant as the Valerian the Arabs call Sumbul, “spike,” and the Hindus Jatamansi, “locks of hair.”

Used in These Compounds

Spikenard is an ingredient of 2 compound medicines in the database. For Club members. Create a free account or sign in.

Spikenard: what did the older authorities say?

Mark 14:3: The woman at Bethany breaks an alabaster jar of costly spikenard over the head of Christ.
The Song of Songs: “While the king sitteth at his table, my spikenard sendeth forth the smell thereof.”

Sources

[103] Razack, S., Kandikattu, H. K., Venuprasad, M. P., Amruta, N., Khanum, F., Chuttani, K., & Mishra, A. K. (2018). Anxiolytic actions of Nardostachys jatamansi via GABA benzodiazepine channel complex mechanism and its biodistribution studies. Metabolic Brain Disease 33(5): 1533–1549. doi:10.1007/s11011-018-0261-z Verified against its record · doi:10.1007/s11011-018-0261-z

Folkard, R. (1884). Plant Lore, Legends, and Lyrics, “Spikenard.” Project Gutenberg #44638. Primary text
Folkard, R. (1884). Plant Lore, Legends, and Lyrics, “Baccharis.” Project Gutenberg #44638. Primary text

Verification

Checked

October 1, 2026

Passes

Every sentence read against its sources, in the pass over the remaining 343 entries
The Standing line checked against the authority it names (EMA, WHO, FDA, CITES, Commission E)
Every dated or regulatory claim checked by category across the database
Each quotation from the older authorities checked word for word against the text, read in full

Sources

5 cited: 3 verified against its record, 2 primary text. 2 with the abstract on file.

Corrections

None were needed.

What was checked, how, and what was found is set out on the Verification page. A checked source is one whose record was found; it does not make the entry medical advice.

Cite This Entry

Version 1 · first published September 25, 2026 · last revised October 1, 2026

Chicago: “Spikenard.” In Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema. Version 1. The Thinking Press, 2026–. Last modified October 1, 2026. https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/spikenard.
MLA: “Spikenard.” Materia Medica, edited by B. C. P. Statema, version 1, The Thinking Press, 1 Oct. 2026, thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/spikenard. Accessed 8 Oct. 2026.
APA: Spikenard. (2026, October 1). In B. C. P. Statema (Ed.), Materia medica (Version 1). The Thinking Press. Retrieved October 8, 2026, from https://thethinkingpress.org/materia-medica/spikenard

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