Table of contents
Incense burning: Definition, tradition and philosophy
The connection between incense rituals and spatial energetics
For what purposes is incense burning used?
The practice of incense burning: ingredients, methods and helpful tips
Incense burning with incense charcoal
Incense burning with incense cones
Incense burning with an incense burner
Incense burning with a smudge bundle
The roots, resins and plants used for incense burning
Incense burning ritual: Intensive cleansing and purification of a burdened place
Have you always been fascinated by the world of incense burning?
Do you want to finally start burning incense, but don’t know how?
Then you’ve come to the right place! In this article, you’ll find lots of fascinating information on the subject of incense burning, as well as a guide to burning incense. We’ve also put together helpful practical tips and all sorts of interesting facts about incense materials and methods.
Incense burning: Definition, tradition and philosophy
What is meant by “incense burning”?
“Incense burning” refers to the burning of incense or incense materials on glowing incense charcoal. Allowing resins, herbs or incense cones to smoulder in an incense bowl or on an incense burner is also referred to as “incense burning”.
Burning certain substances and herbs offers you the opportunity to purify your spaces deeply and to transform stored (negative) impressions. The scent experiences created by the burning plants have the power to imbue your rooms with a completely new quality and atmosphere. The act of ritual incense burning can be seen as a form of communication – a communication that takes place between you and the vibrational field present in the room. This communication between person and space is the cornerstone of the long-standing tradition of incense burning.
Incense burning – a mystical process of transformation and transcendence
Incense burning is a mystical process that has its origins in the transformative power of fire. During incense burning, the powerful symbolic forces of fire – life force, warmth, love and the power of transformation – come together. Smoke generally symbolises humanity’s longing for the divine. During the ritual, the hearth becomes the centre of communication, enabling the transcendence of material and physical boundaries.
The smoke produced during the incense-burning ritual symbolises the fusion of fire with the plant parts being burned. It also represents the person’s intention, through the incense-burning ritual, to surround themselves with the powerful effects of the plants being burned, which give off magical and energetic scents.
Incense burning as an ancient art form
The use of incense for religious, socio-cultural, medicinal and ritual purposes is a cross-cultural phenomenon that has spread worldwide. In the past, the burning of incense formed part of sacred ceremonies or healing practices. Ritual incense burning, which holds deep mystical significance, is an ancient art form. People believed that the smoke formed a subtle bridge to the deities. It was through this bridge that people’s prayers and wishes were to be conveyed to them.
Over time, incense burning has become an integral part of everyday life and of religious rituals in various cultures. Over the millennia, numerous healing and medicinal properties have been attributed to the different scents of the plants used for incense. Knowledge of the healing powers of incense burning using plants, resins and herbs was defended, protected and passed down from generation to generation – in some cases in secret. In recent years, as part of the “wellness trend”, interest in incense burning and its soothing, relaxing effects has been rekindled.
The connection between incense rituals and spatial energetics
Incense burning is an important part of spatial energetics for two reasons:
1. Transformation and clarification
By burning herbs and specially formulated incense blends, the energetic information of the plants or resins is transferred to the vibrational field of living spaces. The transformative power of fire and the active forces of the incense materials allow burdensome energetic “traces” in living spaces or other locations to be cleared.
2. Linking to positive emotions
Incense rituals have the power to connect us with positive vibrations and positive emotions. The aromas of the plants, which are released during incense burning and contained in the scent molecules, reach the limbic system in the brain directly via the nose. This part of the brain is particularly responsible for the processing of our emotions and the emergence of instinctive behaviour. The scent experience of certain incense materials immediately evokes specific emotions within us. Burning incense thus enables you to connect with the positive emotions inspired by the scents of the herbs and resins being burned.
For what purposes is incense burning used?
Incense rituals are used for various purposes. In summary, the following areas of application exist:
» Connecting with one’s ancestors
» Support with meditation
» Support with bodywork
» Relaxation stimulus for therapeutic sessions
» Support during yoga and training sessions
» Subtle cleansing of rooms
» Establishing contact with deities and guardian spirits
» Developing sensuality
» Creating positive vibrational fields in rooms
» Creating a positive atmosphere
On the following pages, you will learn about the practice of the mystical art of incense burning. You can discover incense burning as a way to find peace and relaxation amidst the stresses of everyday life and to recharge your batteries. Alternatively, you may wish to use incense burning as part of an intensive ritual. In any case, the following information will provide you with excellent guidance on carrying out space-clearing rituals.
The practice of incense burning: ingredients, methods and helpful tips
Incense burning is a practice dating back thousands of years, known in many cultures around the world. It is a method of burning certain plants or resins and using the smoke to fulfil specific purposes. Whether used for purification, relaxation or spiritual purposes, incense burning can have a calming and healing effect on the body and mind.
Incense burning with incense charcoal
Burning resins, herbs and roots on incense charcoal is one of the most common methods of incense burning. A fireproof bowl is used for this purpose. The herbs burn very quickly on the hot charcoal. For this reason, burning incense on charcoal is particularly suitable for intensive cleansing rituals. But please note: when using incense charcoal, bear in mind that it may release substances that are harmful to the environment. For this reason, it is advisable to choose other, more natural methods of incense burning.
If you want to burn incense using incense charcoal, you will need the following items:
- Incense vessel
- Incense
- possibly a feather
- Candle
- Lighter or matches
- Sand
- a pair of long tweezers and a small spoon
- a fireproof mat
Implementation
Place some sand in the bottom of the incense vessel, then light the candle and hold the incense charcoal over the candle with the long tweezers until it crackles and smoulders. As soon as the incense charcoal is glowing, place it on the sand and gently fan the charcoal with a feather. Once the charcoal is fully glowing, use a small spoon to place the incense on top of it. Make sure you do not add too much incense, as this will smother the embers.
Burning incense cones
Another option is to work with incense cones. For this, you will need:
- Incense cones
- fireproof mat
- Bowl
- Lighter or matches
Implementation
Light the tip of the cone, place it in the incense bowl, and you’ll soon be able to enjoy the inspiring, aromatic scent.
Burning incense with an incense burner
Burning incense using an incense burner is the most natural and a very practical way to burn incense in everyday life. It is also ideal for ritual and shamanic incense ceremonies.
This method of burning incense is gentle and slow, allowing you to enjoy a joyful, invigorating aromatic experience.
To burn incense using an incense burner, you will need:
- fireproof mat
- Incense burner (this is similar to an aroma lamp and consists of an incense pot and a metal sieve)
- Lighter or matches
- Tealights
- Feather
Implementation
For this type of incense burning, you can use either ready-bought incense or a personal incense blend that you make yourself.
In this case, the individual ingredients are chopped up and mixed thoroughly. For example, pieces of wood are cut into very small pieces with a knife, herbs are rubbed between the hands, and resins are crushed in a mortar.
Then light a tea light and place it underneath the sieve or the incense pot. Next, place the incense – leaves, resins, roots, bark or other incense materials you wish to use – on the sieve or in the incense pot and gently fan it with the feather until the incense glows.
This method means that the incense burns for longer, allowing it to slowly and intensely release its effects into the room.
Valuable tips and tricks for burning incense with an incense burner
- You can remove the remains of the incense – particularly resins – from the sieve by breaking down their structure by burning them with a candle. To do this, hold the sieve over the flame using tongs to melt the remaining resins. You can then brush off the residue with a metal brush.
- Always let delicate herbs, such as rose petals, smoulder at the edge of the stainless steel sieve so that you can enjoy their gentle scent for longer.
- When burning incense, it’s best to place the resins on a small piece of aluminium foil. A more eco-friendly solution is to use the aluminium container from a used tea light. After using the candle, simply remove the wick and clean the container. Then place the resin inside and set the container on the sieve – and you’re ready to start burning!
Incense burning with a smudge bundle
Burning incense with smudge bundles follows an ancient tradition. The herbs are freshly gathered, tied into bundles and hung up to dry. You can then use the fully dried smudge bundles straight away for burning incense. Mugwort and sage are particularly well suited to this purpose, as both plants aid deep cleansing.
Incense burning with a shell
Burning incense using a shell has a particularly mystical effect and helps to create a positive, regenerative field in the room. Shells act as magical symbols that hold within them the power of transformation. They offer protection, and their shape evokes the feminine, emotional side of nature.
Scallops or abalone shells are ideal for incense burning. To burn incense using a shell, you should grind the incense mixture into a fine powder. Then place the powder in the shells and light it. Enjoy!
The roots, resins and plants used for incense burning
What substances can I burn as incense?
The effects of the various types of incense vary greatly and are manifold. When burning incense, people generally use incense sticks, incense cones or natural incense made from plants, resins, woods, bark, leaves, roots, flowers and needles. So you can choose from many alternatives to suit your taste, but I would recommend…
Most people associate incense burning with scented incense sticks or incense originating from Far Eastern countries. Yet there are so many effective and healing herbs, roots, woods, flowers, leaves and resins all around us that are perfectly suited to burning. Many people knowledgeable about herbs, who have made burning incense an integral part of their lives, say:
Burning herbs that grow in our part of the world has a much more intense effect than burning incense from other countries. The experience is even more intense if you collect the herbs, resins or bark yourself: you could simply head out into nature, pick certain herbs by the wayside and immerse yourself in the abundance of wonderful plants. Nature has exciting, restorative and even magical scent experiences in store for you! The following incense materials, with their healing properties, are the ideal companions for incense rituals:
Elecampane root
Scent: spicy, violet-like
Effect: Elecampane promotes deep relaxation, lifts the spirits and instils a zest for life and strength. In particular, burning this herb as incense strengthens our willpower and self-confidence.
Rituals: rituals for cleansing and blessing spaces, protection rituals, relaxation and revitalisation rituals, rituals for vision quests and meditative exercises
Angelica root
Scent: earthy, woody, balsamic and sweet
Effect: When burned as incense, angelica root creates a gentle atmosphere that envelops the person like a luminous, fragrant protective cloak.
Rituals: protection rituals, empowerment rituals, ancestral rituals, atmospheric clearing of rooms
Calamus root
Scent: herbaceous, spicy
Effect: strengthens personal expression; has a protective and inspiring effect. Promotes physical relaxation and enables the person to consciously perceive their centre. Calms unsettling, distressing thoughts. When used in feel-good incense burning, the dried roots of calamus impart strength and vigour with their herbaceous, bitter-spicy smoke.
Rituals: love incense ceremonies, relaxation rituals, meditation rituals, vision quest rituals, shamanic journeys, protection rituals, space-clearing rituals
Dammar
Scent: slightly lemony, spicy
Effect: clarifying, relaxing, mood-lifting. This resin instils a zest for life and supports the development of intuition, enhances the ability to concentrate and strengthens mental clarity.
Rituals: cleansing and protection rituals, meditation rituals, rituals for vision quests, shamanic journeys, rites of passage, rituals to balance feminine and masculine energies
Frankincense
Scent: balsamic, spicy
Effect: Frankincense has a purifying, clarifying, heart-opening, relaxing and, at the same time, regenerating effect. It promotes concentration and serenity. Thanks to its powerful purifying effect, this special resin enables you to clear away the old to make room for the new.
Rituals: space-cleansing rituals, meditation rituals, rituals that support intuitive dreaming, protection rituals
Propolis
Scent: soft, honey-like
Effect: Propolis has a heart-opening, purifying and clarifying effect. It promotes relaxation and regeneration, and inspires inner clarity. Furthermore, it stimulates our sensuality.
Rituals: Rituals that connect the individual with their inner light and truth, meditations, empowerment rituals, love incense ceremonies, vision quest rituals
Note on the use of propolis: Place a small piece of aluminium foil on your incense sieve to prevent the resin from dripping onto the candle as it smoulders and blocking the holes in the sieve.
Spruce resin
Scent: balsamic, spicy
Effect: clarifying, heart-opening
Spruce resin gives us a sense of freedom and strengthens our intuition. It also has a very powerful protective effect.
Rituals: protection rituals, cleansing rituals, meditative exercises, purification rituals for clearing houses, plots of land and, in particular, children’s bedrooms and bedrooms
Myrrh
Scent: resinous, pungent, bitter, balsamic
Effect: During relaxing, meditative moments, this extraordinary resin with its intense fragrance has a grounding and invigorating effect. Myrrh sharpens our senses, heightens our focus and fosters a zest for life and harmony.
Rituals: incense rituals, love incense ceremonies, filling rituals, vision quest rituals, meditation rituals, shamanic journeys, relaxation rituals
Juniper twigs and needles
Scent: resinous, balsamic
Effect: This plant enchants with its resinous and balsamic smoke. The juniper twigs induce deep relaxation in the body and invigorate the mind with their spicy smoke.
Rituals: incense rituals, cleansing rituals, ancestral rituals, shamanic journeys, relaxation rituals. Letting-go rituals.
Rose petals
Scent: warm and soft, harmonious
Effect: Rose petals have a relaxing, clarifying and reconciling effect. They promote relationships and mental clarity. With their mild effect, dried rose petals provide gentle relaxation.
Rituals: love incense, atmospheric incense, gratitude rituals, relaxation rituals
Lavender
Scent: fresh, floral, delicate, slightly spicy
Effect: Lavender flowers induce deep physical relaxation and mental clarity. The lavender flowers used for incense burning produce a mild to very pungent, herbaceous smoke, depending on the variety.
Rituals: meditation, vision quests, and practising breathing, Qigong and physical exercises
Lemongrass
Scent: spicy, lemony
Effect: Lemongrass promotes letting go and a sense of centre; it inspires cheerfulness and serenity and creates a clear, positive atmosphere.
Rituals: meditation, empowerment, rite-of-passage and meditation rituals with children
Sage
Scent: herbaceous, spicy, fresh
Effect: Sage promotes concentration and clarity; it enhances the purification of spaces and aids meditation. Sage helps to release old burdens and relieve tension; it also neutralises odours.
Rituals: cleansing rituals, meditation rituals, healing rituals, space-clearing rituals, letting-go rituals
Mistletoe
Scent: herbaceous, slightly sweet
Effect: Mistletoe has a relaxing effect, aids concentration and helps to create a positive, luminous energy field.
Burning this herb helps to open up access to one’s own intuition and mental clarity, enabling one to enter the inner world of dreams.
Rituals: shamanic journeys, transmeditations, protection rituals, blessing rituals, space-clearing rituals, shamanic journeys to the underworld, healing rituals
Mugwort
Scent: spicy, strong, slightly bitter
Effect: Incense blend for mental clarity
1 part rosemary, 1 part frankincense, 1 part rose petals
This blend is a wonderful accompaniment to meditation, space-clearing, protection and relaxation rituals, as well as vision quests.
Mugwort helps to relieve stressful tension,
clears rooms optimally and helps you to let go, imparting strength, self-confidence and a sense of being rooted in your own centre. Mugwort is also very well suited to clearing spaces.
Elder
Scent: honey-like, slightly spicy
Effect: This incense has a protective effect and aids in activating the body’s self-healing powers and during shamanic journeys. It strengthens our connection to our inner voice and intuition.
Rituals: meditative exercises, vision quests, shamanic journeys to the middle and upper worlds, rituals for strength and protection, ritual incense burning. This herb provides support and, above all, protection during shamanic journeys to the underworld.
Jasmine
Scent: honey-like, sweet and intense
Effect: The scent of jasmine blossoms inspires sensuality, eroticism and passion.
Rituals: love incense rituals, gratitude rituals, ancestral rituals and space-cleansing rituals.
St John’s Wort
Scent: balsamic-sweet, slightly spicy
Effect: St John’s wort has a calming, mood-lifting and relaxing effect, and offers protection and support during processes of letting go and grieving. The plant’s flowers are usually burned as incense.
Rituals: This sunny herb is particularly beneficial during meditation rituals and shamanic journeys, and its solar qualities bestow light and warmth.
Mullein
Scent: honey-like, gentle
Effect: Mullein promotes relaxation, protection and the easing of tense and stressful moods.
Rituals: relaxation, meditation, space clearing and protection rituals, as well as ritual practices that support the development of one’s own power and the clarification of one’s own vision.
Incense burning ritual: Intensive cleansing and purification of a burdened place
Objective
This ritual helps you to carry out an intensive, atmospheric cleansing and purification of a place that is emotionally charged – for example, where sad events have taken place or where people have had distressing experiences. It is particularly suitable for purifying your home after moving into a new flat or house.
Duration
1.5 to 3 hours, depending on the size of the place
Incense blend
The ideal incense blend for this ritual consists of 1/3 sage, 1/3 mugwort and 1/3 rosemary. The herbs should be chopped. The ritual is particularly effective if you personally collect and dry the herbs for the incense blend yourself.
Preparation
To prepare for this ritual, you will need several incense bowls, as it is necessary to use a separate bowl for each room to ensure an intensive and particularly effective cleansing. You can also use plates, ashtrays or other fireproof containers that you already have to hand for this purpose. For each bowl, you will need incense, sand and incense charcoal.
When choosing incense charcoal, please ensure you use good-quality products. You can find more information about suitable herbs and plant mixtures in this blog’s article on incense burning. Also, have a pair of tweezers to hand.
If you wish to cleanse and clear rooms larger than 30 square metres, it is advisable to use two incense bowls per room. If you are cleansing an entire house, it is advisable to carry out the room cleansing floor by floor, starting in the cellar and finishing in the loft. Find a place – the kitchen is ideal for this – where you can fill all the incense bowls you need.
Before you prepare the bowls, the sand, the incense charcoal and the incense, pause for a moment, close your eyes and relax, and ask that, through this ritual, all old information and distressing memories of the previous tenants and past events may leave the premises.
Now fill all the bowls with sand. This provides a good, stable base for the incense charcoal. Then light the incense charcoal whilst holding it over the bowl with a pair of tweezers. As soon as a white rim has formed on the charcoal, carefully place it on the sand and sprinkle approximately 1 teaspoon of the herbal mixture on top. Then arrange the incense bowls in the rooms you wish to purify.
Place the bowls on the floor in the centre of each room. When arranging the bowls, ensure they are stable and placed on a fireproof surface (e.g. on a plate or a wooden board) so that nobody can trip over them and they are not accidentally knocked over. If you have pets, ensure they are kept in a secure area during the ritual and cannot reach the bowls. Keep all windows closed whilst burning the incense.
Implementation
Once you have distributed all the incense bowls, walk through the rooms and go to the respective incense bowl in the centre of each room. Observe how the smoke moves, rises and eventually fills the entire room. Imagine that the smoke binds up all the burdensome information in the room and carries it away. In each corner of the room, a spiral of light forms, rotating anti-clockwise. The four spirals move towards the centre of the room and bind all the burdensome information in the room. This disappears into the incense bowl (if you are not using incense, it disappears into the floor).
Repeat this process in every room and check that there is enough incense charcoal. Add another portion of incense mixture if necessary. Allow the incense charcoal to burn out completely in every room.
When you return to the room where you began the ritual, sit down comfortably, close your eyes and give thanks for the opportunity to carry out this space clearing. Take a sheet of paper and write down all the emotions, qualities, moods and characteristics you would like to have in the room. Then go through every room in the flat with the list, imagining how the words on the paper turn into light and spread across the floor like a carpet of light. This carpet of light gradually covers the walls and spreads towards the ceiling until it envelops the entire room.
Repeat this process in every room. By now, there should be no smoke visible. In each room, take a moment to sense how the atmosphere feels after the incense burning. Now return to the room where you started with the first incense bowl. Afterwards, keep this list in a room where you spend time regularly and which serves as a central focal point of your flat or house.
Then remove all incense bowls from the rooms and open all doors and windows, taking care to ensure they cannot be blown shut again by a draught. Air the rooms thoroughly for at least 15 to 30 minutes. In the meantime, you can empty the remaining sand, charcoal and incense into a fireproof container. Wait for a while (up to 12 hours) before throwing the remains into the bin, as the charcoal will continue to smoulder for several hours and thus poses a fire hazard.
Then clean the incense bowls and store all the items you used for the incense ritual in a suitable vessel or container. Store this in the cellar or in your garage. Do not keep it in your flat. Now, whilst you’re airing the flat, go through each room once more and consciously notice how much the atmosphere in each one has changed.
Close all windows and doors again and go to the centre of your flat or house. Bring your hands together in a prayer position in front of your heart and give thanks for the opportunity to carry out this cleansing. Consciously connect with the place where you are and convey your personal message to your living spaces from the very depths of your heart.
Repeat
To achieve a deep cleansing, I recommend that you – particularly if the place is very old or serious events have taken place there – clear it using this ritual three to four times over the course of a year.
You can pick up the sheet of paper you’ve written time and again, read it through and add to it, and in this way build a relationship with your living spaces in your everyday life.
I hope this article has given you an insight into the fascinating world of incense burning. Has it sparked your curiosity and made you want to give it a go straight away? Then do let us know in the comments! All your experiences and thoughts are welcome. It would also be great if you could share this article with your loved ones so that they too can learn more about incense burning and its benefits.
If you enjoyed this article, please feel free to share it with your friends and leave us a comment with your experiences and thoughts. We look forward to hearing from you and hope you enjoy your incense burning!
Thank you for your time, and see you next time!
Ernestina Mazza
Leave a Reply