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Henna: A Natural Colorant

Last night I offered myself a calming, somewhat exotic, aromatic retreat. It was probably one of hundreds of times that I’ve indulged in henna to make mehendi — beautiful tattoos — or to dye my hair. Starting from the time when I was a teenager, henna has been a most pleasurable aspect of my health and beauty regimen.

I know you’ve heard of henna, but do you know it’s history, how it grows and from whence it came? I hope to provide some background on its long history as a medicinal herb for the mind, body and spirit.

A History of Henna

Henna is an herbaceous shrub called Lawsonia inermis in botanical Latin. It was named after the British explorer John Lawson in the early 1700s. The use of the herb for health and beauty is far older than the British discovery, dating back to 3,500 BC, and has had a presence in human civilization for 7,000 years.

Henna is a Persian word for a plant with many names. In Arabic it is called Khanna. In India, henna is called by many names depending on the dialect: menhadi, mehendi, mehedi, mendi, hina. And in Sanskrit, it is mendika. Ancient hieroglyphs in tombs in the Valley of the Nile refers to it by the Egyptian name pouquer. Pouquer refers to dye created from the plant, used to color the fingernails of mummies. A lovely perfume created from henna plant is referred to as camphire, in the K’oran. Since the Hindus of India call it mehendi — a name synonymous with temporary henna tattoos — I will refer to henna alternately by this name when speaking of hair care.

In early India, henna was applied by dipping palms and soles into a thick paste of crushed fresh leaves, creating a solid red stain without a pattern. Middle Eastern henna was done by mixing dried powdered leaves into a paste and applying it with a stick. Henna is still in use in parts of Asia, especially India, the Middle East and the Continental African countries. It also is catching on in Australia, North American and Europe.

A Henna Timeline

Country/culture	Period
Catal Huyuk	7,000 BC
Turkey	5,000 BC
Cycladic Islands	3,000 BC
Israel/Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon	2100 BC
Crete, Cypress, Greece, Libya, Nubia	1,700 BC
Iraq, Iran	1,300 BC
Tunisia, Kuwait, Morocco, Algeria, Mali, Sudan, Yemen	1,200 BC
Jewish culture	1,000 BC
Pakistan and India	400 BC
Muslim culture	550 BC
Christian (Coptic, Armenian>	1st Century AD
Asia (Sri Lanka, Turkistan, Uzbekistan, China, Tibet, Burma, Thailand)	700-800 AD
Ethiopia, Nigeria	800 AD
Indonesia	1200 AD
South Africa	1800 AD

Uses of Henna: Cool Medicine for Health and Beauty

Henna can be used to condition and color the hair. For curly tops, Henna’s benefits include:

• Amps up volume
• Building body
• Decreasing chemical and greasy build-ups
• Emphasizing shine
• Developing subtlety in hue and tone
• Yielding creative colors (avoids “out of the box” tired-look)
• Excellent conditioner for all hair types
• Wound healer
• Good for sensitive and irritated scalp
• Reliable natural colorant for kinky, curly, wavy and thick hair which may be resistant to other types
• Inexpensive
• Widely available

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Hair Products Containing Henna

DevaRed Sacred Love No-Poo (See reviews)
DevaRed Sacred Love One Condition (See reviews)
DevaRed Sacred Love Low-Poo (See reviews)
Batia & Aleeza Bio-Natural Shampoo (See reviews)
Circle of Friends Dragon Dance Conditioner
Curlisto Botanical Shampoo (See reviews)
Curlisto Hi-Lights Shampoo (See reviews)
Curlisto Botanical Rinse (See reviews)
Curlisto Straight Time Glaze (See reviews)
Curlisto Travel Kit
Fairy Tales Detangling Conditioner (See reviews)
Jane Carter Condition & Sculpt (See reviews)
Aubrey Organics Egyptian Henna Shine-enhancing Shampoo
Klorane Henna Shampoo
Nature’s Gate Rainwater Henna Shampoo and Conditioner
Hennulucent (variety of hair colors henna-based)
Sobanu Henna Scalp Cleanser
Light Mountain Henna Hair Color and Conditioner
Somang Henna Hair Rinse
Shikai Henna Gold Color Enhancing Shampoo Silver Hair Formula
Hask Placenta Henna N Placenta Hair Care Kit Super Strength
Surya Ucuuba Restructuring Hair Mask (See reviews)

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Henna also is a strong medicinal herb, with many potent and promising qualities, including:

• Antipyretic (a natural coolant) hence its popularity in hot climates.
• Antispasmodic (soothing), antiseptic, astringent (drying), antibacterial and antifungal
• Natural sun screen; screens off chemicals and is effective for soothing sunburn applied as a paste topically.
• Natural deodorant and antiperspirant, especially for the feet.
• Dyeing the soul of the feet is called a step-in design. This insulates the foot from hot desert sands and alluring adornment is a painted, cheap substitute for sandals.
• In Ayurvedic medicine, henna tea is a beverage used to treat many ailments including: headache, fever, and stomach pain.
• Soothing to skin ailments.
• Remedies from around the world feature henna as a curative for rheumatism, nervousness, and certain types of tumors, cancer and sexually transmitted diseases and even for leprosy.
• In aromatherapy, the scent of the fragrant henna flower is used to make hina perfume. Gulhina or hina perfume is purchased in small bottles (drams) of thick oil from health food stores and specialty Asian suppliers (see resources). The oil can be applied neat (straight) dabbed on to the pulse points, temples or crown of the head. Gulhina and Hina are calming and balancing scents used by both men and women.

From Nefertiti to Cleopatra

While henna can be applied anywhere, and even taken internally, it is most widely used as an application to the hair, hands and feet. While some folks do not associate henna tattoos with Africa, it has a lengthy history on the continent. It is believed that the Canaanites spread the tradition of using henna across the Mediterranean to North Africa between 1700 and 600 BCE. Nefertiti was a famous redhead whose name translates as “The beautiful one comes.” It is thought that her hair was made red with henna. Cleopatra used henna and rosewater to create an alluring dip for the sails of her boat when she was approaching Mark Antony.

North African nomadic people have a distinctive way of decorating with henna that incorporates pre-Islamic mythology, folklore and symbols. The Berber and Tuareg formulate a deep, almost black color of henna paste, which is then applied in large, bold, geometric patterns.

Henna was incorporated into the customs of Muslims in the 6th century CE. Henna traditions were long established in Arabia, and it was used by Mohammed’s wives to color his beard. The henna flower is considered the favorite of Mohammed. Muslims use the henna plant in various ways. Some of the most complex and elegant henna designs created were done between 900 to 1700 CE in the Islamic countries of Africa and the Middle East.

Making and Using Henna or Mehendi

If you want to learn more about henna, the best way is by jumping in. Follow this time-tested recipe for hair dye, foot dip or mehendi tattoos.

Directions for Henna

1. Bring a cup of water to a boil. Add two rosehip or rooibos tea bags and 1 black tea bag. Cover. Steep overnight.
2. Pour approximately 1 cup of the green henna powder into a non-reactive (stainless steel or Pyrex) bowl.
3. Add the tea to the powder.
4. Stir to form a thick paste. (Add liquid slowly so that mix doesn’t become watery.)
5. To enhance the staining power, stir in 1 tablespoon honey; 1 teaspoon olive oil, 1 teaspoon rosewater; a few drops of eucalyptus essential oil and oil of clove. This is called a mordant. (Use sparingly as they are skin irritants; avoid altogether if you have allergies). Let sit for one hour so color can mature. Add either more warmed liquid or more henna until you have achieved the desired pasty Greek-yogurt styled consistency.
6. While maturing your henna batch, create a lemon sugar glaze. Squeeze and strain the juice of a ripe lemon (remove seeds and discard). Add three tablespoons white sugar. Stir together lemon juice and sugar. Set aside.
7. Henna hair by parting the hair into small sections. Completely saturate the hair shaft from root to ends with the henna paste. Rub it in gently, then twist or clip and move this hair atop the head to move on to the next section until finished. Put on a shower cap or tin foil to keep in heat. Sit out in the sun if possible, or under a dryer placed on the lowest heat setting for 40 minutes. Leave henna on as long as possible – at least 1 hour. Rinse thoroughly and condition very well because henna can be very drying (do not shampoo to rinse). Style as usual.
8. For mehendi: dip fingers, soles of the feet or create an intuitive abstract pattern (the simpler the better). When the henna begins to dry apply lemon-sugar blend with a cotton swab. Reapply lemon sugar every twenty minutes until a protective glaze forms. You can also use a porcupine quill for creating the designs (easily purchased from a beading supply shop or craft store) or bamboo skewer to draw more intricate designs. Most henna artisans prefer pastry-decorating tubes with very narrow tips to spread henna. (See suppliers in the appendix) When glaze forms on the hennaed design gently wrap hands in gauze or toilet paper to protect designs. Be sure to keep hands warm. I usually put my hands in a large pair of clean, old cotton socks at this stage. Alternately you can hold hennaed hands near a lit fireplace, over a candle flame (far enough away so that you do not burn yourself or wrapping) or the best yet–drink hot herbal tea like peppermint or chamomile with honey.
9. Keep henna on your hands or feet as long as possible –a minimum of four hours; overnight is preferred. Your dreams will be very interesting!
10. In the morning, flake off the henna manually; do not use water in this process.
11. Massage with sesame or olive oil but try to refrain from washing with soap for six hours. Rinse with rose water or orange flower water.

For Temporary Tattoos (books, kits, stencils, henna herb and more)

• Mehandi.com, Supplies for Hair and Body Art
• Tap Dancing Lizard, LLC.,Phone 330-688-1130 FAX 330-688-8803
• The Henna Page
• Tigerfly Natural Perfumery

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Stephanie Rose Bird is an artist and writer. She is the author of Sticks, Stones, Roots & Bones: Hoodoo, Mojo & Conjuring with Herbs and Four Seasons of Mojo: An Herbal Guide to Natural Living.
She also hosts a Yahoo study and practice group based on her writing here.

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