Les Légendaires

Samsara 1989 Eau de Parfum

Samsara (Eau de Parfum) by Guerlain
Bottle Design:
Robert Granai
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Ranked 96 in Women's Perfume
7.9 / 10 687 Ratings
A popular perfume by Guerlain for women, released in 1989. The scent is oriental-floral. The longevity is above-average. It is being marketed by LVMH.
Pronunciation
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Main accords

Oriental
Floral
Woody
Spicy
Powdery

Fragrance Pyramid

Top Notes Top Notes
Ylang-ylangYlang-ylang Green notesGreen notes PeachPeach BergamotBergamot LemonLemon
Heart Notes Heart Notes
CarnationCarnation JasmineJasmine NarcissusNarcissus Orris rootOrris root RoseRose VioletViolet
Base Notes Base Notes
SandalwoodSandalwood Tonka beanTonka bean VanillaVanilla AmberAmber IrisIris MuskMusk

Perfumers

Ratings
Scent
7.9687 Ratings
Longevity
8.4506 Ratings
Sillage
7.9490 Ratings
Bottle
7.8487 Ratings
Value for money
7.4133 Ratings
Submitted by DonVanVliet, last update on 06/30/2025.
Interesting Facts
The original formula contained around 20% of natural sandalwood oil from Mysore - at the time a rather inexpensive ingredient. Today's scarcity of real sandalwood, an endangered wood species, has necessitated a reformulation of Samsara with a higher concentration of Polysantol, a synthetic sandalwood substitute.

The term Samsara is a Sanskrit word that has its roots in Hinduism. It refers to the cycle of birth and rebirth, the eternal wheel of life.
The fragrance is part of the "Les Légendaires" collection.

Smells similar

What the fragrance is similar to
Samsara (Eau de Toilette) by Guerlain
Samsara Eau de Toilette
Samsara (Extrait) by Guerlain
Samsara Extrait
Danger (Parfum) by Roja Parfums
Danger Parfum
Samsara (Rosée Parfumée Rafraichissante) by Guerlain
Samsara Rosée Parfumée Rafraichissante
Samsara Shine by Guerlain
Samsara Shine
Beguiled (Parfum) by Roja Parfums
Beguiled Parfum

Reviews

30 in-depth fragrance descriptions
jtd

484 Reviews
jtd
jtd
Top Review 9  
Bowel prep
Perfumery lore has it that Samsara contained 30% sandalwood oil when launched. It’s also part of perfumery’s body of common knowledge that Samsara’s sandalwood is long gone. Apparently early iterations of Samsara used this botanical sandalwood as well as botanical jasmine and had a wonderful vanilla note. There was certainly more to the composition than that, but these 3 elements defined Samsara’s shape.

Sandalwood has effectively been removed from the perfumer’s palette, and in Samsara’s case, it’s been replaced by polysantol (more from perfumery lore), a powerful synthetic. Perhaps a lush, botanically derived jasmine might have been overmatched by the polysantol, but it appears that a jasmine-analogue of equal volume and shrillness to the synthetic sandalwood is employed as well. I imagine the vanilla in the early Samsara versions would have complemented the creamy tartness of true sandalwood. In the current Samsara the shriek of the polysantol combined with the vanilla gives us a new, sick-making gourmand note: butterscotch vomit.

Samsara is for me what Secretions Magnifiques is to its detractors.

When powerful aromachemicals are used in largely synthetic perfumes, imbalanced accords and compositions carry greater risks. For better or for worse, when aromachemicals are particularly strong, their effects are a leveraged increase in punch, sillage, durability. If the accords made with these strong chemicals are imbalanced (read: unappealing) the negatives will be leveraged as well. Whereas a haphazard mix of botanicals will likely read as muddy, Samsara’s polysantol-based composition is both horrifying in its gear-grinding volume and nauseating. Samsara creates a perfume sub-genre: the rancid gourmand.
2 Comments
7.5
Bottle
10
Sillage
10
Longevity
7.5
Scent
Ineverwas

45 Reviews
Ineverwas
Ineverwas
Top Review 8  
Feminine beauty and wisdom
Warm, deep and complex, this perfume evokes to me the very essence of sensual femininity and mature wisdom. It's cozy and enveloping, like a hug from someone you love and at the same time it exudes strength and maturity.

Jasmine, ylang-ylang and vanilla are amazing together, but it's the rich sandalwood that really shines in this composition, giving it sensual and even spiritual qualities.

For me, Samsara is an incredible confidence booster. This perfume has a soul of its own and it feels like a loving companion that soothes and reinforces you all along the way.

I can imagine a mature, dark haired woman wearing this, someone who's strong and beautiful and wise. A woman who can keep her mind clear and her heart open and who lives life gracefully, with empathy and reason at the same time.

Lasting power and sillage are the best I have ever known (I own the EDP). This perfume lasts for more than 24 hours on my skin and it easily projects across a 10 meter room, so I'd suggest applying sparingly. There was not one occasion when I put this on and no one noticed it.

A true classic.
1 Comment
10
Bottle
7.5
Sillage
7.5
Longevity
8
Scent
MasterLi

375 Reviews
MasterLi
MasterLi
Very helpful Review 5  
Review for the current Eau de Toilette
Wow... definitely quite something to behold!

Probably one of the most sensual fragrances I have ever come across. It's almost as if every single sensual and tropical aroma was combined together in a single bottle!

This one is almost intoxicating from the start. For me, it's kind of a very grown-up mixture of rich, creamy white floral and dry, sheer-like Sandalwood, the overall result striking me as unmistakably feminine. Guerlain's perfumes are not always easy ones to like upon initial spray, you really need to give them time to fully appreciate their significance, and for me Samsara was no exception. The story goes that Jean-Paul Guerlain came up with this inspiration partly due to a woman he admired who only liked the notes of Rose, Jasmine and Sandalwood, and he decided to create a fragrance around these three very sensual notes. The result is incredible...

What I get upon initial spray is a very tropical-like, almost overripe fruit smell with a heavy dose of Ylang-Ylang which very much reminds me of banana. This is coupled with heady, indolic, almost fecal-like opulent Jasmine (one of my favourite notes in perfume), joined by a very fresh rose note, and all resting on a huge base of sheer, silky, creamy Sandalwood. This isn't a dry Sandalwood, like Tam Dao by Diptyque. This is a very creamy Sandalwood supported by the heavy white floral Jasmine and the creamy, banana-like Ylang-Ylang, giving a hint of an almost coconut-like vibe. The overall impression could also be a little soapy at immediate impression, but once you spend time with it you really get the full experience of a rich, tropical garden in bloom.

Because of the Jasmine/Ylang-Ylang combination, Samsara really gives me the impression of being almost in a tropical forest on a hot night, with the warm, heady aroma of sweet creamy coconut, green banana, Rose, and dry Sandalwood incense burning at a nearby Buddhist shrine. It really gives me one of the most exotic impressions I've ever smelt coming out of a bottle.

Speaking of the bottle, the Chinese-style red & gold finish really give it the impression of a precious urn filled with something valuable, or maybe even spiritual. It really highlights Guerlain's obsession with Asia (similar to the way the Shalimar bottle represented a clear fountain of water in the gardens of an Indian Palace), this one looks like it came out of a Buddhist Temple. I find that the bottle certainly fits the marketing really well...

I would say that this is very grown up, but not so strong or overpowering a scent, just very evocative and incredibly sensual. Wear it when you want to smell unlike anything else, just very feminine, sensual and exotic. Close your eyes and you just may find it transporting you to a faraway place, and a whole different experience. Personally I would find this incredibly sensual on a woman (as long as applied lightly as it can be strong in the opening).

A recommended must try... A special, exotic one from Guerlain.
0 Comments
7.5
Bottle
10
Sillage
10
Longevity
8
Scent
Sherapop

1239 Reviews
Sherapop
Sherapop
Very helpful Review 4  
Dorothy's Return to Kansas
SAMSARA is an intensely woody, slightly sweet but still profound fragrance that is very well named. In Indian philosophy, SAMSARA is the breaking away from the cycle of hum-drum everyday existence to another, celestial realm. SAMSARA transports one to a place at once ethereal and sensual, resolving all contradictions to produce a synthetic unity of one's self with the world.

This intoxicating fragrance is rich and voluptuous, mingling many elements to form a magical elixir much greater than the sum of its parts. With SAMSARA, Guerlain broke from their unfathomably beautiful past while still managing to create a masterpiece of an entirely different genre. Somehow SAMSARA is both exotic and accessible, insistent and inviting.

SAMSARA is unforgettable and transformative, like a long trip to a land far away, after which nothing will ever be the same.
1 Comment
7
Scent
Awesomeness

247 Reviews
Awesomeness
Awesomeness
Very helpful Review 4  
Powdery Vanilla, Amber Woody
OMG. Samsara could compete for space in my top 10. It is so "me."

It opens a bit green & citrus, and moves to the ylang ylang before heading straight for business ... powder, violet, powder, rose, powder, orris. Did I say powder? The powder is at the perfect level - not in your face or stiffling. However, the powder is there, changing and morphing, coming to the front, moving to the back, and teasing the senses. It's a changeable powder that is a powder lover's dream. It dries to a powdery, vanilla, tonka bean, amber on me.

Samsara is not an 1980s powerhouse, imo ... provided it is sprayed with caution. It's an oriental woody at its finest, bouyed by aldehydes. Ironically, it seems fresh & unique after the onslaught of edible, aquatic, and happy scents of the last 20 years. I've got the office-appropriate EdT, which is soft and close-wearing - very samsara. I will be adding the EdP to my wardrobe soon. I love it!

UPDATE - I acquired a part bottle of the EdP through ebay. The EdT is more woody, more wearable. The EdP is more floral, more oriental. Both are very good but I prefer the EdT to the EdP.

Feb
14
2011
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Statements

10 short views on the fragrance
RingtaleRingtale 2 years ago
9
Bottle
9
Sillage
10
Longevity
9
Scent
Another example of a perfume that needs to rise. I spray her nowhere higher than on my chest. That way she blooms at her best I think.
0 Comments
TheDunkPapaTheDunkPapa 2 months ago
9
Bottle
7
Sillage
7
Longevity
9
Scent
Gorgeous creamy, floral oriental. Heaps of smooth, sweet sandalwood, mixed florals throughout. Soapy, ozonic violet and citrus as garnish.
0 Comments
JayNayJayNay 4 years ago
8
Bottle
7
Sillage
8
Longevity
8
Scent
Is it me, or is there a huge resemblance with Habit Rouge EDP? I’m talking Samsara EDP Beehive Btl. They smell very similar in the dry down
0 Comments
MizywaMizywa 6 months ago
9
Bottle
9
Sillage
9
Longevity
2
Scent
Samsara is very unique, and despite that I can recognize that it’, it is too difficult for me. I think it’s the orris root that I just can’t handle.
0 Comments
RjudgeRjudge 8 months ago
heavy bug spray Smell
0 Comments
ZowieZowie 5 months ago
7
Bottle
8
Sillage
8
Longevity
7
Scent
What i'm learning is that i'm not into prominent sandalwood. This is pleasant but I can't see myself wearing it. Wonder what the OG was like
0 Comments
Akira1005Akira1005 27 days ago
It's strange to say this about the Legendary series, but the scent is too strong and I don't know when to use it.
0 Comments
SatagoSatago 5 months ago
7
Bottle
7
Sillage
6
Longevity
9
Scent
Really classy sandalwood, with a floral heart. Thankfully the peach is not prominent here, as I am not a fruity perfume girlie
0 Comments
Mariyam1975Mariyam1975 6 months ago
8
Bottle
8
Sillage
8
Longevity
10
Scent
Samsara turned me into an "orientals" lover. It does something to my brain when I smell it, I can't explain it!
0 Comments
Elijahrb67Elijahrb67 3 months ago
9
Scent
Classic spicy, floral-resinous masterpiece ala YSL Opium. Really great stuff. Modern formulations still hold up from my experience.
0 Comments
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