At the end of our lives we hope we will look back and,
like an incense stick completely burned away,
will have poured forth all our fragrance into the world.

Prem Prakash

The Spiritual Use of Incense

Incense is an aromatic herbal material that releases fragrant smoke when burned. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremony. It may also be used as a simple deodorant or insect repellent. Incense is composed of aromatic plant materials, often combined with essential oils.The forms taken by incense differ with the underlying culture, and have changed with advances in technology and increasing number of uses.

Religious use of incense has its origins in antiquity. The burned incense may be intended as a symbolic or sacrificial offering to various deities or spirits, or to serve as an aid in prayer. A thurible, a type of censer, is used to contain incense as it is burned.

In religious rituals, a server called a censer (or thurber) that holds hot charcoal is used for the burning of incense. When hung on a chain it is refered to as a thurible, which is used in religious ceremonies to bless or cleanse people and/or objects, usually with a prescribed number of swings or gestures. Incense, in the form of pebbly grains or powder, is blessed with a prayer and spooned onto the coals. The thurible is then closed, and taken by the chain and swung by the priest, deacon or acolyte towards who or what is being blessed.

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 an assembly of buddhas, bodhisattvas, gods, demons, and the like. 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. Worshipers at the temples light and burn sticks of incense in small or large bundles, which they wave or raise above the head 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.

Incense has also been employed in the worship of the vast majority of Christian groups as well, particularly in the Eastern Christian churches, the Roman Catholic Church, and some Anglican and Lutheran Churches. The practice is probably rooted in the earlier traditions of Judaism in the time of the Second Temple. The smoke of burning incense is interpreted by the Roman Catholic Church and Eastern Christian churches as a symbol of the prayer of the faithful rising to heaven. It is often used in the manner of a purification ritual which is often referred to in pagan rituals as "smudging".

A broken soul is not the absence of beauty,
but a cracked and torn soul,
reeks of the sweet incense it contains.

C. JoyBell C.

The Magical Use Of Incense

 

Witchcraft and Paganism have a long history of the use of incense as a valuable ritual tool. Incense is associated with the element Air and helps us to create and open the way to a Sacred space. In the past people would burn magical herbs and aromatic woods to help cleanse, purify, and sanctify their homes and temples as well as spaces in which they were going to perform ritual magick.

History tells us that Incense has been used as a sacrifice to both Goddesses and Gods, as a smudge to help drive away evil spirits, and as a tool to draw in good luck, love and wealth. The ancient Egyptians and Jews were but two such peoples who blended and produced high-quality Incense for ritual use. You can even find mention of such recipes in the Bible and other older texts for some of these wonderful fragrant incense blends.

“We had incense and rock’n’roll posters,
and we sold records and rolling papers.
People could just, like, hang out.
We had a cool vibe going."

 Tommy Hilfiger

Varieties of Incense

ACACIA: Burned with sandalwood to stimulate the psychic powers.

AFRICAN VIOLET: to promote spirituality inside the home and for protection.

ALLSPICE: Burned to bring both good luck and money.

ALOES: Burned to attract good fortune, love, spiritual vibrations, and strength.

ALTHEA: Burned for protection and also to stimulate the psychic powers.

AMBER: Use it for wisdom and truth-seeking, as well as rituals of love and desire. As the components of Amber have been used in sacred rites for thousands of years, it is said to be excellent for past-life recall and initiation rituals.

ANGELICA: Good for protection, harmony, integration of body/mind/spirit, insight, understanding, and stability; helps with meditation.

ANISE SEEDS: Burned as a meditation incense.

APPLE: Refreshes the household and curbs the appetite. 

APPLE BLOSSOM: Brings happiness, love and friendship.

APRICOT: An aphrodisiac.

AZALEA: Encourages happiness and lightness of spirit.

BAMBOO: Enhances divination and protection. Can be used for luck and breaking hexes and spells.

BASIL: Burned to exorcise and shield against evil entities and also to bring fidelity, love, good luck, sympathy, and prosperity. This is also an outstanding incense to use when performing love divinations.

BAY: Burned to ease the psychic powers, and also to induce prophetic dream-visions.

BAYBERRY: Burned mainly to attract money.

BENZOIN: Burned for purification and to attract prosperity.

BIRCH: Encourages spiritual and psychic opening and helps connect humans with spirit helpers. Promotes balance and harmony.

BISTORT: Burned (frequently with frankincense) as a powerful incense to assist divination.

BLUEBERRY: Purifies and brings positive energy into sacred spaces.

BRACKEN: Burned in outdoor fires to magickally produce rain.

CAMPHOR: Helps to increase a person’s powers of persuasion.

CARAWAY: Draws luck, good fortune and prosperity. Also encourages passion and enjoyment of sensuality.

CARDOMOM: Mental clarity, concentration, confidence, courage, enthusiasm and motivation.

CARNATION: Protection, healing, strength, love and lust.

CAYENNE: Cleansing, purifying and banishing negativity. It speeds up the effects of any incense, scent or spell it’s added to.

CEDAR: Burned for purification, to stimulate or strengthen the psychic powers, attract love, prevent nightmares, and cure many ailments, including headache.

CHAMOMILE: Inspires peace, calm, serenity and harmony.

CHERRY:  In Japan this tree is part of the culture and it is customary to hold a festival in its honor. Used for stimulating the sexual appetite of a couple. 

CINNAMON: Burned for protection and to bring money, stimulate or strengthen the psychic abilities, and aid in healing.

CITRONELLA: Insect repellant. Burn for cleansing, healing and exorcism.

COFFEE: Use for grounding protection from negativity and peace of mind. It also dispels negative thought forms and nightmares.

CORIANDER: Used for love, healing and protection.

CITRON: Burned in rituals to assist healing and also to strengthen the psychic powers.

CLOVE: Burned to dispel negativity, purify sacred and magickal spaces, attract money, and stop or prevent the spread of gossip.

COCONUT: Feminine/Lunar domain of divination and love magick.

COPAL: Burned for purification and to bring love.

CRAB APPLE: Promotes calm and tranquility. Also settles anxiety and mental unrest.

CUMIN: Used to bring peace and tranquility to the home.

CYPRESS: Encourages strength, comfort, healing, eases anxiety and stress, promotes confidence, self-assurance and physical vitality. Supports willpower and concentration. Helps ease the pain of grief and loss.

DAMIANA: Burned to facilitate psychic visions.

DILL: Promotes mental strength and quickness, focus and concentration.

DITTANY OF CRETE: Burned to conjure spirits and to aid in astral projection (especially when mixed with equal parts of benzoin, sandalwood, and vanilla).

DRAGONS BLOOD: Burned to dispel negativity, exorcise evil supernatural entities, bring love, and restore male potency. Many Witches also burn dragons blood for protection when spell casting and invoking. When added to other incenses, dragons blood makes thier magickal powers more powerful.

ELECAMPANE: Burned to strengthen the clairvoyant abilities and scrying (divination by gazing) abilities.

EUCALYPTUS: Burn for healing, purification and protection.

EVERGREEN: Used for wisdom, cleansing, and protection. Evergreen incenses are also popular for money magick. 

FENNEL: Encourages strength.

FERN: Burned in outdoor fires to magickally produce rain. Used to supernatural entities.

FRANKINCENSE: Burned to dispel negativity, purify magickal spaces, protect against evil, help meditation, induce psychic visions, attract good luck, and honor Pagan deities.

FULL MOON: Burned to commune with a lunar deity and for all intentions connected to the Moon. Used to increase your intuitive abilities and to have prophetic dreams.

FUMITORY: Burned to exorcise demons, poltergeist, and evil supernatural entities.

GALANGAL: Burned to break the curses cast by sorcerers.

GARDENIA: Used in love spells and to attract good, peaceful spirits during rituals. Possesses very high spiritual vibrations. A must for moon rituals.

GARLIC: Use for cleansing, purification and exorcism.

GINGER: Encourages wealth, lust, love and magickal ability.

GINSENG ROOT: Burned to keep wicked spirits at bay, and for protection against all forms of evil.

GOTU KOLA: Burned to Help meditation.

HEATHER: Burned to conjure beneficial spirits, and to magickally produce rain.

HIBISCUS FLOWERS: Burned to attract love.

HONEY/HONEYSUCKLE: Used for rituals of prosperity and seduction. They are also a good choice for Faery offerings.

HOREHOUND: Burned as an offertory incense to the ancient Egyptian god Horus.

HYACINTH: Brings happiness and protection. Can prevent nightmares.

IRIS: Improves popularity, persuasiveness and personal success. Helps draw love and romance and assists with communication.

JASMINE: Burned to attract love and money, and to induce dreams of a prophetic nature.

JUNIPER: Burned to stimulate or increase the psychic powers, and to break curses and hexes cast by evil sorcerers.

LAVENDER: Burned to induce rest and sleep, and also to attract love (especially of a man).

LEMON: Burned for pain relief and to increase alertness & concentration

LEMONGRASS: Burned as a psychic enhancer.

LICORICE: Used as a common ingredient in formulas to control others and gain power

LILAC: Burned to stimulate or increase the psychic powers, and tp draw harmony into ones life.

LILY OF THE VALLEY: Soothes and calms jangled emotions and draws peace and tranquility. Dispels negativity.

LIME: Calming, and draws love and tranquility. Also promotes cleansing and purification.

LOTUS: Generally associated with mental clarity, increased focus, and heightened intelligence. 

MACE: Burned to stimulate or increase the psychic powers.

MAGNOLIA: Burned for fidelity and love.

MANDRAKE: Used for vitality, strength and personal power. Amplifies sex drive and sexual attractiveness.

MARIGOLD: A healing scent that also encourages psychic opening and clairvoyance.

MAROJAM: Another scent that purifies, cleanses and dispels negativity.

MASTIC: Burned to conjure beneficial spirits, stimulate or increase the psychic powers, and enhance sexual desires. The magickal powers of different incenses are greatly increades when a little adhesive is added.

MESQUITE: The magickal powers of healing incenses are greatly increased when mesquite is inserted.

MINT: Burned to increase sexual appetite, exorcise evil supernatural entities, conjure beneficial spirits, and bring money. Mint incense also possesses strong healing vibrations and protective abilities.

MUSK: Musk comes from the secretions of mammal reproductive glands. It’s a perfume of Earth. In magick, Musk is used for getting a mate or marking one’s territory. 

MUSTARD SEED: Brings courage, faith and endurance.

MYRRH: Burned (frequently with frankincense) for purification, consecration, healing, exorcism, and banishing evil. Myrrh also aids meditation rituals, and was burned on altars in ancient Egypt as an offering to the deities Isis and Ra.

NAG CHAMPA: First blended in India, Nag Champa is now the most popular incense fragrance worldwide. Used as an aid to meditation and may be used as a general magickal incense, while helping keep you grounded in the here and now.

NUTMEG: Burned to aid meditation, stimulate or increase the psychic powers, and bring prosperity.

OPIUM: Opium incenses are supposed to mimic the scent of the fresh opium poppy. Opium is well-known for inducing sleep, dreams, and visions. Opium incense may be used for dream and trance magick. Some Witches use it when seeking forbidden knowledge or consulting with unholy spirits. 

ORANGE: Orange incense has a meaning of joy, good fortune, and prosperity. Orange or Orange Blossom is a traditional incense for happiness in marriage.

ORCHID: Helps with concentration, focus, will power and memory.

OREGANO: Increases joy, strength, energy and vitality.

PASSIONFLOWER: Provides peace of mind, soothes troubles and aids sleep.

PATCHOULI: Burned to attract money and love, and also to promote fertility.

PEPERMINT: Helps provide healing and positive energy and stimulates the working of the mind.

PINEAPLE: Promotes luck and chastity.

PINE: Burned for purification, and to banish negative energies, exorcise evil supernatural entities, and bring money, and to break hexes and return them to their senders.

POPPY SEEDS: Burned to promote female fertility, and to attract love, good luck, and money.

RAIN: Usually a mix of watery florals, Rain-type fragrances are ideal for cleansing, healing, and relaxation. 

ROSE: Burned to boost courge, indue prophetic dreams, and bring love. Rose incense is used in all forms of love enchantment and possesses the strongest love vibration of any magickal incense.

ROSEMARY: Burned to purify, aid in healing, prevent nightmares, preserve youthfulness, dispel depression, attract fairy folk, and promote restful sleep and pleasant dreams.

RUE: Burned to help restore health.

SAGE: Burned for protection against all forms of evil, and to purify sacred spaces and ritual tools, promote wisdom, attract money, and aid in healing the body, mind, and soul.

SAFFRON: Burned for love, healing, happiness, lust, strength and clairvoyance.

SAGEBRUSH: Burned to aid healing, and to banish negative energies and evil supernatural entities.

SAINT JOHN'S WORT: A protective incense that also dispels depression and negativity.

SANDALWOOD: Burned to exorcise demons and evil ghosts, conjure beneficial spirits, and promote spiritual awareness. Sandalwood incense is also used by many Witches in healing rituals and in wish-magick.

SASSAFRAS: It can be used as incense to ward off evil influences. 

SOLOMONS SEAL: Burned mainly as an offertory incense to early Pagen deities.

STAR ANISE SEEDS: Burned to stimulate or increase the psychic powers.

STRAWBERRY: Burned to attract love.

SWEET GRASS: Burned to conjure beneficial spirits prior to spell casting.

THYME: Burned for the purification of magivkal spaces prior to rituals, to aid in healin, and to attract good health.

VANILLA: Burned to attract love, increase sexual desire, enhance the abilities of the mind.

VERVAIN: Burned to exorcise evil supernatural entities.

VETIVERT: Burned to break curses, and for protection against sorcery (black magick) and thieves.

VIOLET: Good for protection, healing, luck and love.

WILLOW: Burned to avert evil, bring love, and promote healing. Additionally it is used by many Witches as an offertory incense for Pagan lunar deities.

WISTERIA: Burned for protection against all kinds of evil.

WORMWOOD: Burned to stimulate or increase the psychic powers. When mixed with sandalwood and burnt at night in a cemetery, wormwood is reported to have the ability to conjure spirits from their graves.

YARROW: Inspires courage and exorcises negative spirits.

“The praise of a fool is incense to the wisest of us.” 

Benjamin Disraeli