Aroma Therapy
David Goode
For a male, strolling through the maze of cosmetic counters in a large department store, such an experience can be akin to therapy - a spiritual and sensual convergence. A multitude of fragrances from an extensive array of tiny, expensive bottles can affect a man in a manner unlike his reaction to the other four senses.
Smell, we are told, is the oldest sense, the first to evolve with such acuteness, and for good reason. Early man would emerge from the cave, lift his head high, flare his nostrils and breathe deeply, alert for the odors of danger lurking in the dark depths of the forest or jungle. History tells us the first use of fragrances was actually by men in primitive religious services. As time progressed, only wealthy men, and subsequently women, could afford, or in some societies were allowed, to enjoy this luxury. But eventually, all women began using these fragrances: the spices, herbs and honey, and by doing so, perhaps unintentionally, shifted the worshipfulness of men from their unseen pagan gods to more earthly goddesses.
I doubt if the pre-perfumed woman rubbed the drippings of dinosaur meat on her neck to attract a man, or dabbed under her arms with the entrails of a gutted fish to charm a potential mate. Early on, she learned that crushed petals of flowers and plants gave off a pleasing scent and had a more positive effect on a man than did those odors that stimulated his digestion. The pressed juices of these flowers applied to strategic areas of her body acted as an appetizer for his other hunger.
And so it is today. Actually, just walking through the cosmetics section is, in a way, uplifting. The brightly lit, glass display cases, both inspire and satisfy. The always attractive salesperson is an expert in selecting just the right scent for each customer.
But alas, in today’s bottom-line, self-endulgent environment, we are over-analyzing this phenomenon and doing all we can to capitalize financially on this basic sense. Scientists talk about odorand binding proteins and olfactory receptor neuromes. Researchers have discovered we can distinguish over 10,000 different smells and there are theories explaining why we each have a unique smell, all except identical twins, that is. We even have a name for the loss of the sense of smell, the anosmic condition. We speak of the smell of money, or the smell of success. We know the sense of taste is 75% smell. We know astronauts lose their sense of smell, as do schizophrenics. Women are able to detect the “scent of fear.” (I wonder how that research was conducted.). And the best news is sperm may smell its way to the egg. Ahhh, progress! And now, in our instant gratification, feel-no-pain society, we are attempting to manipulate our sense of smell using synthesizers with healing scents for a quick change of mood.
Is it vanity which drives women to buy expensive perfume? To try many different scents until she finds just the right fragrance for herself? Not at all, it’s simply her elemental nature. One day, I have no doubt; scientists will isolate the gene which predisposes her to do this. But all of this theorizing distracts from that primal, satisfying and simple exercise of walking amongst the ambrosial scents in the large department stores.
For a man, the experience can be a bit voyeuristic. Personally, I try to slide through undetected; a determined yet unhurried air to my stride. I do not make eye contact with any salesperson, but have a resolute look on my face, as if thinking of some important business engagement and this particular route just happens to be the shortest path.
However, I am furtively breathing in the many and varied bouquets, inhaling the delicious whiffs, letting them perform their magic on my mind, body and soul. If I happen by a selection of fragrances sitting on the display counter, used as alluring samplers, and no one is around, I quickly squirt a dose on my cuff, savoring it for the rest of the day.
So, fear not ladies, when your husband comes home smelling of perfume. He has only been in a therapy session, preserving his sanity.