Scientific Name: Sesamum indicum L.

Arabic name(s): السِّمْسِم

English name(s): Sesame

Growth form: True Sesame is an annual herbaceous plant.

Order: Lamiales

Family: Pedaliaceae

Genus: Sesamum L.

Species: Sesamum indicum L.

Citation in the Quran:

The plant is not mentioned in the Holy Qur’an.

Citation in the Hadit:

Jabir b. ‘Abdullah was sitting near a column narrating to the people the Prophet (may peace be upon him). When he mentioned the inhabitants of Hell “He then described the Path (the Bridge) and the passing of the people over it, and said: I am afraid I may not have remembered (other things) but this much is still in my memory that people would come out of the Hell after having gone into it, and he said: They would come out of it as if they were the wood of the ebony tree (or like bars of smasem). He (the narrator said: They would enter a river, one or the rivers of Paradise, and would bathe in it, and then come out as if they were (white like) paper.” Sahih Muslim, book of Faith.

Habitat & Distribution:

Sesamum genus is native to Africa and few species number occur in India. It is widely naturalized in tropical regions around the world.