Kewda Attar Spray: The Fragrance Shiva Cursed — and Why It's Still Used in Worship

By Akshita Singh | Sadhna.co Published: 2024 | Last Updated: 2026

Kewda (Pandanus odorifer, also called screwpine) has one of the more unusual positions in Hindu ritual fragrance: it is the only flower with a documented mythological curse from Shiva himself, and yet it remains in active use in worship across India. Understanding this contradiction — why a flower banned from Shiva worship is still a legitimate ritual offering — requires knowing the actual story rather than a summary of it.

What Kewda Is and What It Smells Like

Kewda is extracted from the male flowers of the Pandanus odorifer tree, a tall, palm-like plant native to coastal India — particularly the Konkan coast, Odisha, and parts of Rajasthan. The fragrance is extracted primarily through steam distillation of the fresh flowers, producing kewda water (a hydrosol) and kewda attar. The tree is also called screwpine because of the spiral arrangement of its long, spiky leaves.

The fragrance profile of kewda is unlike most Indian ritual flowers. It is:

• Green and aquatic at the top — a fresh, slightly grassy opening note that feels cool and diffuse
• Floral in the middle — a soft, powdery floral heart that is less sweet than rose or jasmine
• Slightly musky at the base — a warmth that comes from the natural waxes in the flower

The overall profile is described as delicate, airy, and slightly watery — closer in quality to water lily or lotus than to the heavier night-blooming florals like rajnigandha or mogra. This makes it particularly suited to worship spaces where you want fragrance that is present without being overpowering, and to deity traditions where light, pure fragrances are preferred over rich, heavy ones.

Kewda water (kewda jal) is also used in cooking — most notably in biryani, sweets, and sharbat — which is why the fragrance is familiar even to people who don't use it in worship.

The Story Behind the Curse: What Actually Happened

The story is in the Shiva Purana, specifically in the Kotirudra Samhita and referenced in the Vidyeshvara Samhita. The full version runs as follows:

Brahma and Vishnu entered into a dispute about which of them was supreme. To settle the question, Shiva manifested as a towering column of fire — the Jyotirlinga — with no visible beginning or end. Whoever could find either end first would be recognised as supreme.

Vishnu took the form of a boar and dug downward to find the base. He searched without success and returned honestly, declaring he could not find it. Brahma flew upward as a swan to find the top. He too failed to reach the end, but on his way, he encountered a kewda flower falling slowly downward. Brahma persuaded the kewda flower to serve as a false witness — to claim it had seen the top of the column when Brahma offered it there. Brahma then returned to Vishnu and lied, claiming the kewda flower as proof that he had reached the summit.

When Shiva revealed the deception — the flower had lied, and Brahma had orchestrated the lie — Shiva pronounced two specific curses. Brahma would not receive proper worship in temples (which is why there are almost no Brahma temples in India despite him being part of the trinity). And the kewda flower would never be offered to Shiva.

The theological significance is straightforward: truth (satya) is non-negotiable in the presence of the divine. A beautiful fragrance is worthless as a ritual offering if it is connected to falsehood. The curse is not about the flower's inherent quality — it's about what the flower did.

Why Kewda Is Still Used in Hindu Worship

The Shiva curse is specific: kewda is not offered to Shiva. It is not banned from Hindu worship generally. This distinction matters practically.

Vishnu's position in the story is honourable. Vishnu returned honestly and admitted he could not find the base. He did not participate in Brahma's deception. As a result, Vishnu is not subject to the kewda prohibition — and kewda is in fact considered appropriate for Vishnu worship. Some Vaishnava traditions specifically include kewda water in the preparations for Vishnu abhishekam.

Kewda in Devi worship: The kewda prohibition applies to Shiva specifically. Devi worship, particularly forms of Shakti associated with water and nature — like Ganga, Yamuna, or some forms of Durga — does not carry the same restriction. Kewda's aquatic, fresh fragrance profile aligns naturally with water-associated deity traditions.

Kewda in Jagannath temple: The Jagannath temple in Puri, Odisha — one of the four Dhams — uses kewda in its ritual preparations for Lord Jagannath (a form of Vishnu/Krishna). Kewda water is used in the mahaprasad preparations and in temple fragrance. Given Odisha's coastal geography and proximity to kewda-growing regions, this tradition has been continuous for centuries.

Everyday use: Beyond specific deity worship, kewda attar spray is appropriate for general puja spaces, during meditation, and for personal fragrance during worship — provided the practice is not focused on Shiva.

The Fragrance in Practice: Where Kewda Works Well

For Vishnu and Krishna puja: Kewda's lightness and slight aquatic quality suits Vishnu's association with water — Vishnu rests on the cosmic ocean (Ksheer Sagar) and is associated with preservation and clarity. A fresh, diffuse fragrance like kewda fits this energy better than heavy resins or deep florals.

For morning worship: The green, aquatic opening note makes kewda a good morning fragrance — it has the freshness of camphor without the sharpness, and the gentleness of sandalwood without the heaviness. For households that find camphor too activating but want something lighter than sandalwood for morning puja, kewda fills this gap.

For meditation: Kewda's fragrance is not directional — it doesn't push the mind toward alertness (like camphor) or pull it inward (like Oudh). It creates a clean, neutral-fragrant atmosphere that allows the practice to proceed without the fragrance competing for attention. Good for open-awareness meditation and for breath-focused practices.

For personal fragrance during puja: Traditional kewda attar on the wrists or forearms provides a subtle personal fragrance during worship without overwhelming the space. It layers well with sandalwood — kewda's aquatic freshness and sandalwood's warm wood base complement rather than conflict.

Not for: Shiva puja, Shiva temples, any practice specifically oriented toward Shaiva tradition. For Shiva worship, sandalwood, Oudh, or camphor are the appropriate choices. See our full Attar Spray collection for the complete range and deity associations.

Kewda in Ayurveda and Indian Perfumery

Beyond ritual use, kewda occupies a specific place in Indian pharmacopoeia. Classical Ayurvedic texts (Charaka Samhita, Ashtanga Hridayam) list kewda among cooling (sheeta) aromatics — substances that reduce heat, soothe inflammation, and calm Pitta dosha. This is consistent with its fragrance profile: aquatic, fresh, and diffuse rather than warming or activating.

Traditional uses in Ayurvedic preparation include:

• Kewda water as a nervine tonic — used in preparations for headache, nervous tension, and heat-related conditions
• In eye preparations — the anti-inflammatory properties of kewda extracts have been used in classical preparations for eye irritation and redness
• As a digestive — small amounts of kewda water in food preparations (as in biryani and kheer) were understood to aid digestion, which is consistent with the Pitta-reducing classification

The fragrant compound primarily responsible for kewda's characteristic scent is 2-phenylethyl methyl ether, which also appears in rose but in a different ratio, explaining some of the floral overlap while the overall profile remains distinct.

How to Use Kewda Attar Spray

Sadhna.co's Kewda Attar Spray is alcohol-free and uses natural kewda fragrance in an oil carrier — which preserves the full three-part fragrance profile (green top, powdery floral middle, musky base) rather than the single flat note most synthetic kewda products deliver.

For puja space: 2–3 sprays 5 minutes before beginning. Kewda's top note disperses quickly — giving it a few minutes to settle lets the middle and base notes establish in the room before you sit.

For Vishnu puja specifically: A single spray near the murti as a fragrant offering, or on the altar cloth. This replaces the traditional kewda water offering in a practical format for home worship.

As personal attar: Applied to pulse points (wrists, inner elbows) before worship. Kewda on skin develops differently than in the air — the body warmth brings out the musky base note, making it more complex and personal as a fragrance.

Layering with sandalwood: Kewda and sandalwood complement each other well — spray kewda first, allow 2 minutes, then apply sandalwood attar spray. The combination covers kewda's freshness against sandalwood's warm base for a more complete fragrance that suits longer worship sessions.

Kewda vs Other Attar Sprays: When to Choose What

See our full Attar Spray collection for all fragrances with complete usage notes. If you maintain separate worship for Vishnu and Shiva, kewda serves the former and Oudh or sandalwood serves the latter — they don't overlap.

Frequently Asked Questions

Q: Why is kewda not offered to Shiva?

The Shiva Purana records that the kewda flower served as a false witness when Brahma lied about reaching the top of Shiva's infinite Jyotirlinga. Shiva cursed the flower — along with cursing Brahma with the loss of proper temple worship — as a consequence of the deception. The prohibition is specific to Shiva; kewda is appropriate for Vishnu and other deity traditions.

Q: Can kewda be used if I worship both Shiva and Vishnu?

Yes — use it for your Vishnu puja and a different fragrance (sandalwood, Oudh, or camphor) for Shiva worship. The prohibition is about offering kewda to Shiva specifically, not about having kewda in the house or using it in other contexts.

Q: What does kewda smell like?

Fresh, green, slightly aquatic at first, then softly floral, then faintly musky. It's lighter and more diffuse than jasmine or rose, and noticeably different from the heavier resins and woods. Often described as "clean" or "airy." The familiarity most people have with it comes from kewda water in biryani and Indian sweets — the fragrance is the same compound, just in a higher concentration in the attar.

Q: Is kewda the same as pandanus or screwpine?

Yes. Pandanus odorifer (also called Pandanus fascicularis) is the botanical name. Common names include kewda (North India), keora (Bengal and Odisha), and screwpine (English). The fragrance comes from the male inflorescence — the large, pale yellow flower spike that appears before the fruit.

Q: What is kewda water and how is it different from kewda attar?

Kewda water (kewda jal) is the hydrosol — the water phase collected during steam distillation of the flowers. It contains a low concentration of the aromatic compounds and is widely used in cooking and as a mild fragrance water. Kewda attar is the concentrated oil phase — a much higher concentration of the same aromatic compounds, suitable for use as a perfume or ritual attar spray.

Q: Can kewda attar spray be used as a personal perfume?

Yes. Traditional attar use is as much personal fragrance as ritual application. Kewda is a clean, fresh fragrance that works well as an everyday personal scent — particularly for people who prefer lighter, less heavy florals. Being alcohol-free, it is gentler on skin than alcohol-based perfume and develops more slowly.

Q: Is kewda related to any other ritual flowers?

Not in the botanical sense — it's in the Pandanus genus, unrelated to roses, jasmine, or tuberose. In fragrance terms, it shares some floral-musky characteristics with rose (both contain phenylethyl compounds) but the overall profile is distinct. In ritual terms, it is one of a small group of specific deity-restricted flowers in Hindu practice — the others being Champa (restricted from Shiva in some traditions) and Tulsi (restricted from Shiva and Ganesha).

About the Author: Akshita Singh writes for Sadhna.co on Hindu ritual practice, Ayurvedic tradition, and the role of fragrance in devotional life. Sadhna.co is a pooja essentials brand based in Sahibabad, Uttar Pradesh, making bambooless, chemical-free incense sticks, dhoop cones, havan cups, and attar sprays.