'Incense' is composed of
aromatic
organic materials. It releases fragrant
smoke when burned. The term ''incense'' refers to the substance itself, rather than to the odor that it produces.
Religious ceremonies used incense, a use that persists to this day. Incense is also used in
medicine and for its
aesthetic value. The forms taken by incense have changed with advances in technology, differences in the underlying culture, and diversity in the reasons for burning it.
Forms of incense
Incense is available in various forms and degrees of processing. However, incense can generally be separated into ''direct burning'' and ''indirect burnings'' types depending on how it is used. Preference for one form or another varies with culture, tradition, and personal taste.
Direct burning
Stick, granulated, and cone incense for home use
Direct burning incense, also called ''combustible incense'', generally requires little preparation prior to its use. When lit directly by a flame (hence the appellation) and then fanned out, the glowing ember on the incense will continue to smolder and burn away the rest of the incense without continued application of heat or flame from an outside source. This class of incense is made from a moldable substrate of fragrant finely ground (or liquid) incense materials and odorless binder. The composition must be adjusted to provide fragrance in the proper concentration and to ensure even burning. The following types of direct burning incense are commonly encountered, though the material itself can take virtually any form, according to expediency or whimsy:
★ ''Coil'': Shaped into a coil, the incense is able to burn for an extended period; from hours to days.
★ ''Cone'': Incense in this form burns relatively fast. Cone incense containing
mugwort are used in
Traditional Chinese medicine for
moxibustion treatment.
★ ''Cored stick'': This form of stick incense has a supporting core of
bamboo. Higher quality varieties of this form have fragrant
sandalwood cores. The core is coated by a thick layer of incense material that burns away with the core. This type of incense is commonly produced by the
Indians and the
Chinese. When used for worship in
Chinese folk religion, cored incensed sticks are sometimes known as ''
Joss sticks''.
★ ''Solid stick'': This stick incense has no supporting core and is completely made of incense material. Easily broken into pieces, it allows one to determine the specific amount of incense they wish to burn. This is the most commonly produced form of incense in
Japan.
Direct burning incense of these forms is either
extruded, pressed into forms, or coated onto a supporting material.
This might not be good, but for extruded or pressed incense, small quantities of water are combined with the fragrance and incense base mixture and kneaded into a hard
dough. The incense dough is then pressed into shaped forms to create ''cone'' and smaller ''coiled'' incense, or forced through a
hydraulic press for ''solid stick'' incense. The formed incense is then trimmed and slowly dried. Incense produced in this fashion has a tendency to warp or become misshapen when improperly dried, and as such must be placed in climate controlled rooms and rotated several times through the drying process.
Drying cored stick incense,
Vietnam
Coating is used mainly to produce cored incense of either larger ''coil'' (up to 1 meter in diameter) or ''cored stick'' forms. The supporting material, made of either of thin bamboo or wood, is soaked in water or a thin water/glue mixture for a short time. The sticks are evenly separated then dipped into a tray of damp incense powder, consisting of fragrance materials and a plant based binder, usually ''makko'' （抹香・末香）. 3 to 4 layers of damp powder are coated onto the sticks, forming a 2
mm thick layer of incense material on the stick. The coated incense is then allowed to dry in open air. Additional coatings of incense mixture can be applied after each period of successive drying.
incense sticks that are burned in
temples of
Chinese folk religion produced in this fashion can have a thickness between 1 to 2
cm.
Incense base can also be formed into incense shapes ''without'' any fragrance material. These are purchased by hobbyists who immerse the preformed incense base in their own blends of essential oil mixtures to create their own direct burning incense.
Indirect burning
Indirect burning incense, also called ''non-combustible incense'', is simply a combination of aromatic ingredients not prepared in any particular way or encouraged into any particular form, leaving it mostly unsuitable for direct combustion. The use of this class of incense requires a separate heat source since it does not generally kindle a fire capable of burning itself and may not ignite at all under normal conditions. This incense can vary in the duration of its burning with the texture of the material. Finer ingredients tend to burn more rapidly, while coarsely ground or whole chunks may be consumed very gradually as they have less total surface area. The heat is traditionally provided by
charcoal or glowing embers. The incense is burned by placing it directly on top of the heat source or on a hot metal plate in the censer or
thurible.
The best known incense materials of this type, at least in the West, are
frankincense and
myrrh, likely due to their numerous mentions in the
Christian Bible. In fact, the word for "''frankincense''" in many European languages also alludes to any form of incense.
★ ''Whole'': The incense material is burned directly in its raw unprocessed form on top of coal embers.
★ ''Powdered'' or ''granulated'': The incense material is broken down into finer bits. This incense burns quickly and provides a short period of intense smells.
★ ''Paste'': The powdered or granulated incense material is mixed with a sticky and incombustible binder, such as dried
fruit,
honey, or a soft
resin and then formed to balls or small cakes. These may then be allowed to mature in a controlled environment where the fragrances can commingle and unite. Much
Arabian incense, also called ''
Bukhoor'' or ''Bakhoor'', is of this type, and
Japan has a history of kneaded incense using this method.
Composition of incense
Incense composition requires more exactitude in the case of direct burning incense since it must be carefully proportioned and blended such that it has ability to slowly and evenly burn itself in its entirety.
While indirect burning incense consists mainly of fragrant materials and need not adhere to any specific proportion, recipes and mixes for all direct burning incense must include and balance two things: 'fragrant materials' and a 'combustible base'.
Fragrant materials
The fragrant materials provide the aroma and produce the fragrant smoke when incense is burned. Many types of fragrant woods, resins, herbs, and essential oils are used as incense individually or in combination. Many of the same fragrant materials are also commonly used in
perfume formulations.
Raw materials
The following fragrance materials can be employed in either direct or indirect burning incense. They are commonly used in religious ceremonies, and many of them are considered quite valuable. Essential oils or other extracted fractions of these materials may also be isolated and used to make incense. The resulting incense is sometimes considered to lack the aromatic complexity or authenticity of incense made from raw materials not infused or fortified with extracts.
Plant-derived materials
:
Animal-derived materials
★
Ambergris
★
Musk
★
Operculum
Essential oil fragrances
The following fragrances are but some of the many that can be utilized as
essential oils. Incense deriving its aroma primarily from essential oils is usually cheaper than that made from unextracted raw materials.
★
Patchouli
★
Cedarwood
★
Sandalwood
★
Jasmine
★
Rose
★
Ylang-ylang
Artificial fragrances
Artificial fragrances are normally used in the cheapest forms of incense. They are usually added to a base formed from charcoal powder. Typically, the essential oils from the following plants are not available, and therefore the presence of their aromas is a sign of ingredients derived from
chemical synthesis.
★
Cannabis
★
Strawberry
★
Opium
★
Queen of the Night
★
Lily of the valley
★
Watermelon
Combustible base
Stacks of
incense sticks, bundled for sale at a Buddhist temple in Japan
The combustible base of a direct burning incense mixture not only binds the fragrant material together but also allows the produced incense to burn with a self-sustained ember, which propagates slowly and evenly through an entire piece of incense with such regularity that it can be used to mark time. The base is chosen such that it does not produce a perceptible smell. Commercially, two types of incense base predominate:
★ '
Fuel and
oxidizer mixtures':
Charcoal or
wood powder forms the fuel for the combustion. Gums such as
Gum Arabic or
Gum Tragacanth are used to bind the mixture together while an oxidizer such as
Sodium nitrate or
Potassium nitrate sustains the burning of the incense. Fragrant materials are combined into the base prior to formation as in the case of powdered incense materials or after formation as in the case of essential oils. The formula for the charcoal based incense is superficially similar to
black powder, though it lacks the
sulfur.
★ 'Natural plant-based binders': Mucilaginous material, which can be derived from many botanical sources, is mixed with fragrant materials and water. The
mucilage from the wet binding powder holds the fragrant material together while the
cellulose in the powder combusts to form a stable ember when lit. The dry binding powder usually comprises about 10% of the dry weight in the finished incense. ''Makko'' （抹香・末香 incense powder）, made from the
bark of the
tabu-no-ki tree (''Machilus thunbergii'') (
jap. 椨の木; たぶのき), is perhaps the best known source of natural plant-based binder.
Qualitative Proportions
In order to obtain the desired combustion qualities, attention has to be paid to certain proportions in direct burning incense mixtures:
★ ''Oil content'': Resinous materials such as
Myrrh and
Frankincense must not exceed the amount of dry materials in the mixture to such a degree that the incense will not smolder and burn. The higher the oil content relative to the dry mass, the less likely the mixture is to burn effectively.
★ ''Oxidizer quantity'': The amount of chemical oxidizer in gum bound incense must be carefully proportioned. Too little, and the incense will not ignite, too much, and the incense will burn too quickly and not produce fragrant smoke.
★ ''Mixture density'': Incense mixture made with natural binders must not be combined with too much water in mixing, or over-compressed while being formed. This either results in uneven air distribution or undesirable density in the mixture, which causes the incense to burn unevenly, too slowly, or too quickly.
Uses of incense
Incense, being an article familiar to humanity since the dawn of civilization, has meant different things to the different peoples who have come to use it. Given the wide diversity of such peoples and their practices, it would be impossible to form an all-inclusive list of the ways in which incense has come to be used, since the methods and purposes of employment are as diverse and nuanced as those who have employed it.
Practical use of incense
Incense fragrances can be of such great strength that they obscure other, less desirable odors. This utility led to the use of incense in funerary ceremonies because the incense could smother the scent of decay. Another example of this use, as well as of religious use is the
Botafumeiro which, according to tradition, was installed to hide the scent of the many tired, unwashed pilgrims huddled together in the
Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela.
The regular burning of direct combustion incense has been used for chronological measurement in
incense clocks. These devices can range from a simple trail of incense material calibrated to burn in a specific time period, to elaborate and ornate instruments with bells or gongs, designed to involve and captivate several of the senses.
Incense made from materials such as
citronella can repel mosquitoes and other aggravating, distracting or pestilential insects. This use has been deployed in concert with religious uses by
Zen Buddhists who claim that the incense that is part of their meditative practice is designed to keep bothersome insects from distracting the practitioner.
Aesthetic use of incense
Incense can be, like
art for the eyes,
music for the ears, or fine
cuisine for the palate, an indulgence for the
sense of smell. Many people burn incense to appreciate its smell, without assigning any other specific significance to it, in the same way that the forgoing items can be produced or consumed solely for the contemplation or enjoyment of the refined sensory experience. This use is perhaps best exemplified in the
Japanese incense ceremony (香道 kōdō), where (frequently costly) raw incense materials such as
agarwood are appreciated in a formalised setting.
Religious use of incense
Incense
The religious uses of incense are perhaps the best known to Western audiences. These uses are of great antiquity, and may have their origin in the practical and aesthetic uses considering that many religions with not much else in common all use incense. One common motif is of incense as a form of sacrifical offering to a
deity.
Judaism
Incense is described in the
Bible for use in the Temple. Modern Judaism does not have a ritual use for incense (without the minor exeption of
havdala). But note that in Judaism there is a blessing for almost everything including pleasant smell, thus Jews may deliberately seek pleasant smells to be able to pronounce the blessing.
That a compound of aromatic gums and balsams will burn slowly, giving off a fragrant aroma was known to Jews in ancient times. The Hebrew words qeto'reth and qetoh·rah' are from the root qa·tar', meaning "make sacrificial smoke." The equivalent in the Christian Greek Scriptures is thy·mi'a·ma.
The sacred incense prescribed for use in the wilderness
Tabernacle was made of costly materials that the congregation contributed (
Exodus 25:1, 2, 6; 35:4, 5, 8, 27-29). In giving the divine formula for this mixture, God said to Moses: "Take to yourself perfumes:
stacte drops and
onycha and perfumed
galbanum and pure
frankincense. There should be the same portion of each. And you must make it into an incense, a spice mixture, the work of an ointment maker, salted, pure, something holy. And you must pound some of it into fine powder and put some of it before the Testimony in the tent of meeting, where I shall present myself to you. It should be most holy to you people." Then, to impress upon them the exclusiveness and holiness of the incense, God added: "Whoever makes any like it to enjoy its smell must be cut off from his people."-Ex 30:34-38; 37:29.
At the end of the Holy compartment of the tabernacle, next to the curtain dividing it off from the Most Holy, was located "the altar of incense" (
Exodus 30:1; 37:25; 40:5, 26, 27) There was also a similar incense altar in Solomon's
temple in
Jerusalem (1
Chronicles 28:18 and 2 Chronicles 2:4). Every morning and evening the sacred incense was burned. (Ex 30:7, 8; 2Ch 13:11) Once a year on the Day of Atonement coals from the altar were taken in a censer, or fire holder, together with two handfuls of incense, into the Most Holy, where the incense was made to smoke before the mercy seat of the ark of the testimony.-Le 16:12, 13.
Christianity
The Catholic tradition employs incense in worship, contained within a
thurible.
Incense has been employed in the worship of the vast majority of Christian groups since antiquity, particularly in the
Roman Catholic and
Eastern Orthodox Churches, but also in
Anglican and
Lutheran Churches.
Incense may be used in Christian worship at the celebration of the
Eucharist, and at solemn celebrations of the
Divine Office, in particular at Solemn Vespers.
A
thurible, a type of
censer, is used to contain incense as it is burned. A server called a
thurifer sometimes assisted by a "boat bearer", approach the person conducting the service with a thurible with burning charcoals. Incense is taken from what is called a "boat", and usually blessed with a prayer. The thurible is then closed, and taken by the chain and swung towards what or who is being incensed.
Aside from being burnt, grains of blessed incense are placed in the
Easter candle and in the
sepulchre of consecrated
altars. Many formulations of incense are currently used, often with
frankincense,
myrrh,
styrax,
copal or other aromatics.
The smoke of burning incense is viewed by many of the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox faith as a sign of the prayer of the faithful.
[1]
In the
Book of Revelation, which is woven with rich imagery, incense symbolises the
prayers of the
saints in
heaven - the "golden bowl full of incense" are "the
prayers of the
saints" (Revelation 5:8 cf. Revelation 8:3) which infuse upwards towards the altar of
God.
Islam
It is also a common practice to use it for meditation, especially in the
Sufi sect of Islam. A common ritual, especially for Indian and Pakistani Muslims, is to burn the incense every Thursday after sunset.
Buddhism, Taoism and Shinto in Asia
Incense smoke wafts from huge burners in
Lhasa,
Tibet.
Incense use in religious ritual was first widely developed in
China, and eventually transmitted to
Korea,
Japan and
Vietnam. Incense holds an invaluable role in East Asian Buddhist ceremonies and rites as well as in those of Chinese
Taoist and Japanese
Shinto shrines. It is reputed to be a method of purifying the surroundings, bringing forth the Buddhist
Alamkaraka (Realm of Adornment).
In Chinese Taoist and Buddhist temples, the inner spaces are scented with thick coiled incense, which are either hung from the ceiling or on special stands. Worshippers at the temples light and burn sticks of incense in large bundles, which they wave while bowing to the statues or plaques of a deity or an ancestor. Individual sticks of incense are then vertically placed into individual censers located in front of the statues or plaques either singularly or in threes, depending on the status of the deity or the feelings of the individual.
In Japanese Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples, the sticks of incense are placed horizonally into censers on top of the ash since the sticks used normally lack a supporting core that does not burn.
The formula and scent of the
incense sticks used in various temples throughout Asia vary widely.
Hinduism
Incense stand used by Hindus to worship Gods
Hinduism was probably the first religion in which incense was used and sacrificed to show loyalty to God. The use of incense is a traditional and ubiquitous practice in almost all
pujas, prayers, and other forms of worship. As part of the daily ritual worship within the Hindu tradition of India, incense is offered to
God in His deity forms, such as
Krishna and
Rama. This practice is still commonplace throughout modern-day India. It is said in the
Bhagavad-Gita that, "Krishna accepts the offering made to Him with love," and it is on this principle that articles are offered each day by temple priests or by those with an altar in their homes.
Neopaganism
Incense is also often used in Neopagan rituals to represent the element of air, although more modern approaches to incense
magic demonstrate that incense actually represents all of the elements. This is attributed to the fact that incense smoke wafts through the air, is created through the use of fire, the incense materials are grown from the earth, and combustible incense is formed using water. It is also believed to release natural energy. Incenses of a wide range of fragrances are also used in spell and ritual for different purposes.
Although many Pagan traditions associate specific botanical materials with certain magical attributes (see below), those definitions vary widely from one tradition to another. Generally speaking,
Neopagans and
Wiccans use incense for two basic purposes in modern rituals. First, incense is believed to create a magical atmosphere that is appropriate for the invocation (or inviting) of deities and spirits often present around the Pagan altar. Second, burning the incense is believed to release the large amount of energy stored within natural incense so that it can be used for magical purposes.
The use of "perfumed", "dipped", or synthetic incense is generally avoided during magical workings, since such artificial materials are believed to not contain the energies useful for magic.
The associations below do not hold true for all traditions, but provide a general look at the magical associations of incense.
★ '
Frankincense' — burned for purification, spirituality and is associated with the Sun. Frankincense is associated with masculine powers.
★ '
Myrrh' — has similar properties to frankincense, though it is also used for healing and attraction as well. Myrrh is associated with feminine powers.
★ '
Copal' — most often burned for purification, both spiritual cleansing as well as for cleansing physical items. Copal is actually a generic term referring to many different types of resins. Varieties include white, black, and golden.
★ '
Dragon's blood' — burned for love, strength, and courage and can be used to add potency to any spellwork.
★ '
Pine' and '
Cedar' — help cleanse space of negative energy.
Satanism
Some forms of
Satanism use incense to create an atmosphere that is capable of bringing 'demons' into the room, to perform such tasks as telling the future, healing the ritual practitioner or another person, and in some cases, Satanists believe they can 'curse' or 'hex' someone if the demons are willing to help.
Although Satanism uses a variety of
incense sticks, the one most commonly used is
Patchouli (Graveyard Dust). Patchouli, when burnt in a small room or altar with several burning black candles, is said to bring forth those demons the practitioner wishes. Practitioners may bathe in water and then dress in black to perform these rituals, which may put the practitioner into a
trance like state.
Indeed, it can be seen that the uses of incense in this 'tradition' are similar to those in other traditions - that is, the creation of atmosphere and an air of out of the ordinary into which change can be invited.
Asian incense
Indian incense
'Indian incense' can be divided into two categories: masala and charcoal. Masala incenses are made of dry ingredients, while charcoal incenses contain liquid scents. Masala incenses have several subgroups.
Masala
Masālā is a word in
Hindi (and other
Indian languages) meaning "spice mixture". It is commonly used when referring to curries or other food dishes. Masala incenses are made by blending several solid scented ingredients into a paste and then rolling that paste onto a bamboo core stick. These incenses usually contain little or no liquid scents (which can evaporate or diminish over time).
★ 'Dubars'
Dubars are a sub-group of masala incense. They often contain ingredients entirely unfamiliar in the West and contain very complex scents. They are usually very slow-burning and are quite sweet and spicy in scent. They contain both solid and liquid perfumes in a binder which never quite dries out, making the
incense sticks soft to the touch.
★ 'Champas'
Champas are a sub-group of durbars. They contain a natural ingredient indigenous to India called "halmaddi". Halmaddi is a grey semi-liquid resin taken from the
''Ailanthus Malabarica'' tree. It smells like the flowers of the
plumeria tree. Plumeria flowers are known as champa flowers in India, hence the name of the incense group. Halmaddi is
hygroscopic which means it absorbs moisture from the air. This can cause champa incenses to have a wet feeling to them.
Nag Champa is probably the most famous incense of the champa group.
★ 'Dhoops'
Dhoops are another masala sub-group. They are an extruded incense, lacking a core bamboo stick. Many dhoops have very concentrated scents and put out a lot of smoke when burned. The most well-known dhoop is probably Chandan Dhoop. It contains a high percentage of
Sandalwood.
Charcoal
Charcoal incenses are made by dipping an unscented "blank" (non-perfume stick)
into a mixture of perfumes and/or essential oils. These blanks usually contain a binding resin (sometimes
sandalwood) that holds the sticks' ingredients together. Most charcoal incenses are black in color.
Tibetan incense
'Tibetan incense' refers to a common style of incense found in
Tibet,
Nepal, and
Bhutan. These incenses have a characteristic "earthy" scent to them. Ingredients vary from the familiar such as cinnamon, clove, and juniper, to the unfamiliar such as kusum flower, ashvagandha, or sahi jeera.
Many Tibetan incenses are thought to have medicinal properties. Their recipes come from ancient
Vedic texts that are based on even older
Ayurvedic medical texts. The recipes have remained unchanged for centuries.
Japanese incense
Agarwood （沈香 Jinkō） and
Sandalwood （白檀 Byakudan） are the two most important ingredients in Japanese incense. Agarwood is known as "Jinkō" in Japan, which translates as "incense that sinks in water," due to the weight of the resin in the wood. Sandalwood is one of the most calming incense ingredients and lends itself well to meditation. The most valued Sandalwood comes from
Mysore in the state of
Karnataka in
India.
Another important ingredient in Japanese incense is ''kyara'' （伽羅）. Kyara is one kind of
agarwood (Japanese incense companies divide agarwood into 6 categories depending on the region obtained and properties of the agarwood). Kyara is currently worth more than its weight in gold.
Nippon Kodō （日本香堂） is the largest seller of Japanese incense in Japan. Most of their incense is "Everyday" quality (毎日 mainichi). They do make some "Traditional" incense as well.
Shōeidō（松栄堂） and
Baieidō （梅栄堂） are 2 of the oldest incense makers in Japan. They sell many of their Traditional incenses overseas. Kyūkyodō （鳩居堂）, Kunmeidō （薫明堂）, and Kōkandō （孔官堂） also sell some incense overseas.
Incense and health
Research carried out in Taiwan in 2001 linked the burning of
incense sticks to the slow accumulation of potential
carcinogens in a poorly ventilated environment by measuring the levels of
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons within Buddhist temples. Sitting in a smokey room, all day, every day for many years may expose individuals to cancer-causing chemicals.
[2]. The scientists conducting the study noted that the rooms of concern had "visibility so low that you can't see clearly across the room." [Id.] They indicated that they were planning to conduct subsequent studies to determine whether the potential carcinogens actually affected individuals in the smokey temples but no such research seems to have been conducted. Several other studies in other countries showed no connection between exposure to incense smoke and developing lung cancer.
[3] A survey of risk factors for lung cancer, also conducted in Taiwan, finds the burning of incense to be inversely correlated with adenocarcinoma of the lung.
[4]
See also
★
Incense Road
★
Kyphi
★
Silk Road
★
Smudge stick
★
Tea incense
References
★
Silvio A. Bedini. (1994). "The Trail of Time : Time Measurement with Incense in East Asia". ''Cambridge University Press''. ISBN 0-521-37482-0
Incense in Christian worship
★
Incense (New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, Vol. V)
★
Catholic Encyclopedia (1917) on Incense
★
EWTN Catholic Questions: Why is incense used during Mass?
★
General Instruction on the Roman Missal (GIRM) - incensation
★
The Liturgical Customary of the Church of the Advent, Boston (Episcopalian) - Thurifer
★
A Reason for Incense (Lutheran)
★
The Archbishops on the Lawfulness of the Liturgical Use of Incense Anglican document from 1899.
Incense in Jewish Tradition
★
The Spiritual Significance of the Qetoret - Rabbi Avraham Sutton
External links
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