Incense - Culture and Sensation

What does it mean to light an incense?

Incense comes from the Latin "Incensum" which means "to burn". Since ancient times incense has been used to attract good energies and ward off bad ones. But nowadays its purpose is still practically the same, since lighting an incense is very gratifying and pleasurable for us. The smoke and the pleasant aroma relaxes our nervous system, helping us to combat the symptoms of anxiety and depression, thus reducing our stress.

How long have incense existed and what was the first one? A little bit of history...

Since man discovered fire, he discovered the aromas that came from burning different things, such as wood and leaves. This is how he continued to explore and refine his sense of smell, until he came up with these aromatic resins that gave him greater pleasure when lit.

For practically all the cultures that use this practice, incense was considered sacred and this is due to the fact that through its burning, its smoke and its aroma they were able to connect with the gods, appeasing them and offering them, in this way, prayers to the afterlife.

Incense was considered a gift from nature, since it was extracted from nature and when lit, their mood improved.

They were used especially in religious rituals and healing, a purpose that still exists today as they are used for religious purposes as well as during yoga, thai chi and meditation classes.

The ancient Chinese are credited with the first use of incense around 2000 BC for ceremonial worship, but evidence from prehistoric burials suggests that in ancient Egypt it was already being used to satisfy their gods a thousand years earlier.

The ancient Hindu sacred texts of India, the Vedas, indicate that the use of incense may be even older, from around 3500 BC.

When talking about the first incense, the name that resonates is olibanum (whose original name comes from the Old French "francencens", meaning "pure frankincense"), an aromatic resin obtained from trees of the genus Boswellia. Olibanum was used as a remedy for everything from haemorrhoids to menstrual cramps and melanoma (skin cancer). It was considered the aspirin, penicillin and Viagra of its time.

What does it mean to light an incense stick? Should it be lit at a particular time? When should I light an incense stick? Why burn a Sahumerium?

Burning a stick of Incense or Sahumerio is a millenary ritual and is directly related to the cleaning of the environment, with the expulsion of the most bad energies and the attraction of good energies.

There is no exact time to light an incense, unless there is a specific religious ritual involved, in which case it should be governed by the religion and the act itself.

But in our daily life, as long as we light it safely (we will tell you how to do it later), we can perform this act for different reasons, either to scent the environment, to begin or end a yoga practice, meditation or similar, or to relax and enjoy a special moment for ourselves.

It goes without saying that although the act of burning an incense stick calms the nervous system, generating a pleasant and relaxing sensation, there are different aromas that provide us with different benefits, some are purifying, others attract positive energies, and so on. We should choose the fragrance that we like the most or the one that best benefits us with its properties.

What are the benefits of lighting an incense stick?

Here are some of the benefits of burning a stick of incense:

* Reduces symptoms of anxiety and depression.

* Cleans the air

* Improves blood circulation and inflammatory processes.

* Improves our mood

* Helps concentration

* Can be a good aphrodisiac

* Helps us to fall asleep

How to light an incense?  

The steps to light an incense are:

* Put the stick in an incense holder or burner; you should place the uncovered tip in the hole provided in the burner for this purpose. Make sure it is stable.

* Light the tip of the stick with a lighter or match, after a few seconds, blow out the flame so that only the red tip remains and you see smoke coming out.

How to extinguish an incense safely??

Incense extinguishes itself when it is completely consumed, but if you need to extinguish it in advance, you can press the tip of the incense on a piece of metal, just as you would extinguish a cigarette.

You can also wet the burning tip with just a few drops of water. As little as possible, so that you can use it again without damaging the resin.

Can extinguished incense be reused??

Incense that you have extinguished before it has run out can be used again and its properties will be the same. To do so, you should follow the same steps as you did when you lit it the first time.

What safety precautions should I take when lighting and/or extinguishing incense?

Generally it is not a dangerous practice, but as it is fire and something that we introduce in our organism through our sense of smell, it is good to take some safety measures:

* Always light it in burners made for that purpose.

* Never leave it lit without the supervision of an adult.

* Do not place it near objects that can be easily ignited, making sure that the wind that may exist in the place does not bring curtains or fabrics close to the incense that is lit.

* Always light it in ventilated areas.

* Avoid exposing yourself to direct smoke for prolonged periods of time.

* Always choose natural incense, synthetic incense smoke is more toxic.

* Keep in mind that the smoke should always be light. If the smoke is very dark it means that it is very concentrated and this can be harmful to our organism.

What are incense made of?

Incense is a paste made of aromatic vegetable resin and wood powder, to which oils of different essences are added. The most common resins are myrrh, cedar, copal or olibanum, and the aromas and essential oils can be many, such as sandalwood, rosemary, lemon, lavender, among others.

What types of incense are there?

You can find incense in the form of cones, which can be common cones (those that emanate the smoke upwards) or reflux cones, which are those that have a hole in the bottom and when lit the smoke goes downwards; the latter should be placed in sources made for this purpose.

There are also spiral incense and pure resin.

The most widespread format is the traditional stick, which is the one to which we mainly dedicate this blog.

It is important to clarify that each type of incense must be placed in the right place. The most common and traditional burners usually have a place for the stick and the cone.

Can it be dangerous?

Incense smoke is not harmless, even if it is a natural product, but that does not mean that we should be alarmed.

The South China University of Technology in Guangzhou conducted a study five years ago to find out whether the use of incense in poorly ventilated or enclosed places was harmful to health, and the result was alarming, but it was also recognised that the study had been conducted on a very small sample and on animals, not humans, so further research is needed for a more serious analysis.

However, it is always recommended to use these incenses in ventilated places and not to light them for more than two or three hours a day.

Ventilation is essential, especially if there are children in the room where the incense is lit.

Finally, it is important to choose natural incense, which are those whose smoke is light in colour, whose aroma is subtle and which have an ecological certification. Although it is not a product subject to strict sanitary controls, we can find incense with ecological certifications. 

Which incense burners to use and which incense holders are the safest?

There is a wide variety of incense holders, which can be made of metal, wood, ceramic or resin.

Generally you will find ceramic or resin in reflux sources, which are especially for the cones that have the hole underneath, which is where the smoke passes through. Between these two varieties, the most recommended is ceramic as they are safer. These sources usually have a hole where the incense stick can be placed and in the place of the cone, both types of cones can be placed.

In case of the sticks or the common cones, most of the burners have a place to place both, being able to opt sometimes for the traditional sticks and others for the cones.

These burners can be made of wood or metal, both of them being safe, although metal always has an extra safety factor because we are talking about fire. In any case, if you have a wooden incense-holder or if you are thinking of buying one and you prefer the wooden one, you can be sure that you will not have any problem as the incense does not emit sparks and what falls on the burner will be the ashes, so you will not have any problem whatsoever.

In addition to the material, there are various forms of burners, the simplest are the traditional wooden board, which at one end is curved and there is where it has a hole designed to place the rod so that it is at an oblique angle.

Then we have a similar model but with a metallic shape, these are usually carved and have the shape of a leaf.

The other very well known type of burner is the one that has the shape of a coffin, it is made of wood and in its lower part it usually has a place where new incense can be kept. At the top there is a lid with holes through which the smoke and aroma can pass. When the lid is lifted, the wand or the cone is placed on top.

Similar to this are the towers, in which the incense or cone is placed inside and when closed, it has holes that allow the smoke and aroma to pass through. The difference with the coffins is that they are vertical and there are wooden and metal coffins.

Finally we find incense holders, usually metal (although there are also wooden ones), which are of different shapes and are carved with symbols or decorative shapes, many of them with ethnic figures or symbols or Hindu gods. These burners are very decorative, because although they are not fulfilling their function, they are very beautiful ornaments.