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A BRIEF HISTORY OF INCENSE AND SPIRITUALITY
Page 5
Where indeed did frankincense come from? It came from wild trees, which grew in the kingdom of Shiba, a land which spanned the modern
states of Oman and Yemen. Many people think of Arabia as the source of spice and incense. Some
of it actually does come from there specifically. Camel caravans come to mind traversing the desert carrying their precious cargo under
a grueling sun. In the Middle East incense has been burnt in mosques and shrines as well as by
people in their homes for it's positive influences. During the 27th day of Ramadan, the holy fasting month of Islam, incense is burnt to
ward off negative influences. The prophet of Islam, Mohammed, is purported to have loved three
things most in life, women, the pleasant fragrance musk, and prayers. There are stories of the ancient people of Arabia mixing musk into
the cement from which they constructed mosques. Also the walls of the mosques were sprayed with
rosewater. In Sufism, a mystical form of Islam, incense plays a roll as the rose was considered to be the mother of fragrances while
ambergris is considered to be the father of fragrances.
In Malaysia, there is a tribal people called the Chewong. In the shamanic rites of these people smell and incense play a vital role. The
children are told to wear a piece of wild ginger around their necks to ward off evil spirits.
In contrast, good spirits are fed by an incense of fragrant wood, which is offered to them every night. The shaman will, during this
rite, take some of the incense smoke in his fist and then blow the smoke toward the four directions,
after which he will pray to the spirits for protection. If for some reason this incense ritual is neglected, then communication with
this good spirits will be interrupted and the community may be endangered. Furthermore, the spirit
guides of the Chewong shamans are called the 'leaf-people'. Leaf-people live in flowers and leaves, and are thus part of the natural
world. These spirits are especially fond of and associated with aromatic smells. To the shamans
these leaf-people provide magical songs as well as preside at seances.
A neighboring tribe of the Chewong is the Batek Negrito. For this tribe as well do scents factor into their relationships with the
spirit world. The spirits, the hala', are said to live in a paradise filled with the smells of fruit
blossoms. These hala' spirits may be placated with pleasant odors. If a threatening storm approaches the Batek Netrito, incense made
of wild ginger and aromatic gums will be burned to help convince the hala' spirits to abate the storm.
If a taboo had been broken, then a rite of atonement is performed. The last act in this rite is to burn a fragrant leaf as incense to
communicate with the spirits through odor.
As one can see, incense has played a pivotal roll in the spiritual and religious practices of people all around the world throughout
history. From Asia, North America, South
America, Europe, Japan, wherever people have lived, burning incense provided a link between the worshipers and the supernatural. Even
today people still use incense for worship and meditation. In mosques, temples, churches, and even
in our homes we can still find incense being used to loft prayers upwards to the heavenly abodes. Perhaps you yourself can find solace
and comfort in one of humanities oldest practices. Or, perhaps you may only burn incense for personal
enjoyment. In any case I imagine that this art will survive until the end of time itself.
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