Incense in China is traditionally used in a wide range of Chinese cultural activities including

religious Religion is a range of social- cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural ...

ceremonies,

ancestor veneration The veneration of the dead, including one's ancestors, is based on love and respect for the deceased. In some cultures, it is related to beliefs that the dead have a continued existence, and may possess the ability to influence the fortune of t ...

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) refers to the knowledge, skills, and practices rooted in the cultural beliefs of various societies, especially Indigenous groups, used for maintaining health and treatin ...

, and in daily life. Known as ''xiang'' (),

incense Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

was used by the Chinese cultures starting from Neolithic times with it coming to greater prominence starting from the Xia,

Shang The Shang dynasty (), also known as the Yin dynasty (), was a Chinese royal dynasty that ruled in the Yellow River valley during the second millennium BC, traditionally succeeding the Xia dynasty and followed by the Western Zhou dyn ...

, and Zhou dynasties.�

，2003 One study shows that during the

Han dynasty The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

(206 BC – AD 220) there was increased trade and acquisitions of more fragrant foreign incense materials when local incense materials were considered "poor man's incense". It reached its height during the

Song dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...

with its nobility enjoying incense as a popular cultural pastime, to the extent of building rooms specifically for the use of incense ceremonies. Besides meaning "incense", the Chinese word ''xiang'' () also means "fragrance; scent; aroma; perfume; spice". The sinologist and historian Edward H. Schafer said that in medieval China:

Chinese censers

The earliest vessels identified as

censer A censer, incense burner, perfume burner or pastille burner is a vessel made for burning incense or perfume in some solid form. They vary greatly in size, form, and material of construction, and have been in use since ancient times throughout t ...

s date to the mid-fifth to late fourth centuries BCE during the

Warring States period The Warring States period in history of China, Chinese history (221 BC) comprises the final two and a half centuries of the Zhou dynasty (256 BC), which were characterized by frequent warfare, bureaucratic and military reforms, and ...

. The modern Chinese term for "censer," ''xianglu'' (香爐, "incense burner"), is a compound of ''xiang'' ("incense, aromatics") and ''lu'' (爐, "brazier; stove; furnace"). Another common term is ''xunlu'' (熏爐, "a brazier for fumigating and perfuming"). Early Chinese censer designs, often crafted as a round, single-footed stemmed basin, are believed to have derived from earlier ritual bronzes, such as the ''dou'' 豆 sacrificial chalice. Among the most celebrated early incense burner designs is the

hill censer A hill is a landform that extends above the surrounding terrain. It often has a distinct summit, and is usually applied to peaks which are above elevation compared to the relative landmass, though not as prominent as mountains. Hills fall und ...

(''boshanlu'' 博山爐), a form that became popular during the reign of

Emperor Wu of Han Emperor Wu of Han (156 – 29 March 87BC), born Liu Che and courtesy name Tong, was the seventh Emperor of China, emperor of the Han dynasty from 141 to 87 BC. His reign lasted 54 years – a record not broken until the reign of the Kangxi ...

(r. 141–87 BCE). Some scholars believe hill censers depict a

sacred mountain Sacred mountains are central to certain religions, and are usually the subjects of many legends. For many, the most symbolic aspect of a mountain is the peak because it is believed that it is closest to heaven or other religious realms. Many reli ...

, such as

Mount Kunlun The Kunlun Mountains constitute one of the longest mountain chains in Asia, extending for more than . In the broadest sense, the chain forms the northern edge of the Tibetan Plateau south of the Tarim Basin. Located in Western China, the Kunlun ...

Mount Penglai Penglai ( zh, t=蓬萊仙島, l=Penglai Immortal Island) is a legendary land of Chinese mythology. It is known in Japanese mythology as Hōrai and Bồng Lai in Vietnam. McCullough, Helen. ''Classical Japanese Prose'', p. 570. Stanford Univ. P ...

. These elaborate vessels were designed with apertures that made rising incense smoke appear like clouds or mist swirling around a mountain peak. Other popular designs include censers shaped to look like birds or animals, small "scenting globes" (''xiangqiu'' 香球), and hand-held censers (''shoulu'' 手爐). Very large censers, sometimes made to resemble ancient

ritual bronze vessels From , elaborately decorated bronze vessels were deposited as grave goods in the tombs of royalty and nobility during the Chinese Bronze Age. Documented excavations have found over 200 pieces in a single royal tomb. They were produced for an ind ...

, are often placed in the courtyards of

Buddhist Buddhism, also known as Buddhadharma and Dharmavinaya, is an Indian religion and List of philosophies, philosophical tradition based on Pre-sectarian Buddhism, teachings attributed to the Buddha, a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or ...

and Daoist temples.

Uses

Medicine

Similar ingredients and processing techniques are involved in production of both incense and

Traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medicine, alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. A large share of its claims are pseudoscientific, with the majority of treatments having no robust evidence ...

s. For example, take ''jiu'' ( "

moxibustion Moxibustion () is a traditional Chinese medicine therapy which consists of burning dried mugwort ('' moxa'') on particular points on the body. It plays an important role in the traditional medical systems of China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and ...

"). Incense is believed to have physiological and psychological benefits. For instance, according to the ''

Bencao Gangmu The ''Bencao gangmu'', known in English as the ''Compendium of Materia Medica'' or ''Great Pharmacopoeia'', is an encyclopedic gathering of medicine, natural history, and Chinese herbology compiled and edited by Li Shizhen and published in the ...

'' pharmacopoeia, "camphor cured evil vapors in heart and belly, and was especially recommended for eye troubles, including cataract."

Time-keeping

Along with the introduction of

Buddhism in China Buddhism in China refers to Buddhism that has been developed and practiced in China, based on the geographical location and administrative region instead of a particular Buddhist branch. Buddhism is the largest officially recognized religion i ...

came calibrated incense sticks and

incense clock The incense clock () is a timekeeping device that originated from China during the Song dynasty (960–1279) and spread to neighboring East Asian countries such as Japan and Korea. The clocks' bodies are effectively specialized censers that ho ...

s (''xiangzhong'' "incense clock" or ''xiangyin'' "incense seal"). The poet Yu Jianwu (, 487–551) first recorded them: "By burning incense we know the o'clock of the night, With graduated candles we confirm the tally of the watches." The use of these incense timekeeping devices spread from Buddhist monasteries into secular society.

Religion

''Xiangbang'' (, with "stick; club") means "incense stick;

joss stick Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

". Two "incense" synonyms specifying religious offerings to ancestors or deities are ''gāoxiāng'' (, ''"high incense"'') and ''gōngxiāng'' (, ''"offering incense"''). The Sunni Muslim Hui

Gedimu Gedimu () or ''Qadim'' () is the earliest school of Islam in China. It is a Hanafi, non-Sufi school of the Sunni tradition. Its supporters are centered on local mosques, which function as relatively independent units. It is numerically the larges ...

and the

Yihewani Yihewani (), or Ikhwan (), (also known as al-Ikhwan al-Muslimun, which means Muslim Brotherhood, not to be confused with the Middle Eastern Muslim Brotherhood, or Ahl al-Sunni) is an Islamic sect in China. Its adherents are called Sunnaiti. It is ...

burned incense during worship. This was viewed as

Daoist Taoism or Daoism (, ) is a diverse philosophical and religious tradition indigenous to China, emphasizing harmony with the Tao ( zh, p=dào, w=tao4). With a range of meaning in Chinese philosophy, translations of Tao include 'way', 'road', ' ...

influence. The Hui, also known as "White-capped HuiHui", used incense during worship, while the Salar, also known as "black-capped HuiHui" considered this to be a heathen ritual and denounced it.

As an art form

The Chinese developed a sophisticated art form with incense burning like with tea and calligraphy called xiangdao (). It involves various paraphernalia and utensils in various ceramic containers utilised to burn incense. Examples include tongs, spatulas, special moulds to create ideograms with incense powder, etc. all placed on a special small table. It is most often used as an enhancement to a personal space to accompany other arts such as tea drinking and

guqin The ''guqin'' (; ) is a plucked seven-string Chinese musical instrument. It has been played since ancient times, and has traditionally been favoured by scholars and literati as an instrument of great subtlety and refinement, as highlighted b ...

playing.

Production

Bamboo processing

Bamboo species with good burning characteristics are harvested and dried. The most common type of bamboo used for producing the sticks is ''Phyllostachys heterocycla cv. pubescens'' () since this species produces thick wood and easily burns to ashes in the incense stick. Other types of bamboos such as ''

Phyllostachys edulis ''Phyllostachys edulis'', the bamboo, or tortoise-shell bamboo, or (), (), () is a temperate species of giant timber bamboo native to China and Taiwan and naturalised elsewhere, including Japan where it is widely distributed from south of Hok ...

'' () may be used, however due to their fiberous surfaces or relatively thin wood producing good bamboo sticks is more difficult. Longer incense stick are produced using cao bamboo (). The dried bamboo poles of around 10 cm in diameter are first manually trimmed to length, soak, peeled, and then continuously split in halves until thin sticks of bamboo with square cross sections of less than 3mm width have been produced. This process has largely been replaced by machines in modern incense production.

Incense materials

Chinese incense is made from diverse ingredients with much overlap into the traditional Chinese herbal pharmacopoeia. Of all the incense ingredients some of the most commonly used include: *''Chenxiang'' (, "

Agarwood Agarwood, aloeswood, eaglewood, gharuwood or the Wood of Gods, commonly referred to as oud or oudh (from , ), is a fragrant, dark and resinous wood used in incense, perfume, and small Woodworking, hand carvings. It forms in the heartwood of ...

, aloeswood") *''Tanxiang'' ( "

Sandalwood Sandalwood is a class of woods from trees in the genus ''Santalum''. The woods are heavy, yellow, and fine-grained, and, unlike many other aromatic woods, they retain their fragrance for decades. Sandalwood oil is extracted from the woods. Sanda ...

") *''Anxixiang'' ( "

Benzoin resin Benzoin or benjamin (corrupted pronunciation) is a balsamic resin obtained from the bark of several species of trees in the genus '' Styrax''. It is used in perfumes and some kinds of incense and as a flavoring and medicine (see tincture of ...

and wood, gum guggul") *''Cuibai'' ( " Calocedrus macrolepis, Chinese incense-cedar") *''Zhangnao'' ( "

Camphor Camphor () is a waxy, colorless solid with a strong aroma. It is classified as a terpenoid and a cyclic ketone. It is found in the wood of the camphor laurel (''Cinnamomum camphora''), a large evergreen tree found in East Asia; and in the kapu ...

"). *''Ruxiang'' (, "

Frankincense Frankincense, also known as olibanum (), is an Aroma compound, aromatic resin used in incense and perfumes, obtained from trees of the genus ''Boswellia'' in the family (biology), family Burseraceae. The word is from Old French ('high-quality in ...

") *''Dingxiang'' (, "

Cloves Cloves are the aromatic flower buds of a tree in the family Myrtaceae, ''Syzygium aromaticum'' (). They are native to the Maluku Islands, or Moluccas, in Indonesia, and are commonly used as a spice, flavoring, or fragrance in consumer products, ...

") *''Bajiao'' (, "

Star anise ''Illicium verum'' (star anise or badian, Chinese star anise, star anise seed, star aniseed and star of anise) is a medium-sized evergreen tree native to South China and northeast Vietnam. Its star-shaped pericarps harvested just before ripen ...

") *''Guipi'' (, "

Cinnamomum cassia ''Cinnamomum cassia'', called Chinese cassia or Chinese cinnamon, is an evergreen tree originating in southern China and widely cultivated there and elsewhere in South and Southeast Asia. It is one of several species of ''Cinnamomum'' used prim ...

") *''Dahuixiang'' (, "Fennel,

Foeniculum vulgare Fennel (''Foeniculum vulgare'') is a flowering plant species in the carrot family. It is a hardy, perennial herb with yellow flowers and feathery leaves. It is indigenous to the shores of the Mediterranean but has become widely naturalized ...

") *''Dahuang'' (, "Chinese Rhubarb,

Rheum officinale ''Rheum officinale'', the Chinese rhubarb, or Indian rhubarb is a Rheum (plant), rhubarb from the family Polygonaceae native to western China and Tibet. In Chinese language, Chinese it is called ''yào yòng dà huáng'' (), literally meaning ''m ...

") *''Hupo'' (, ''Fossil

Amber Amber is fossilized tree resin. Examples of it have been appreciated for its color and natural beauty since the Neolithic times, and worked as a gemstone since antiquity."Amber" (2004). In Maxine N. Lurie and Marc Mappen (eds.) ''Encyclopedia ...

'') *''Gansong'' ( ''

Spikenard Spikenard, also called nard, nardin, and muskroot, is a class of aromatic amber-colored essential oil derived from '' Nardostachys jatamansi'', a flowering plant in the honeysuckle family which grows in the Himalayas of Nepal, China, and India. T ...

'') *''Chuanxiong'' ( ''Sichuan Lovage, Ligusticum wallichii'') *''Wujia'' ( ''Siberian Ginseng,

Eleutherococcus senticosus ''Eleutherococcus senticosus'' is a species of small, woody shrub in the family Araliaceae native to Northeastern Asia. It may be colloquially called devil's bush, Siberian ginseng, taiga root, eleuthero, ''ciwujia'', ''Devil's shrub'', ''shigo ...

(Acanthopanax senticosus)'') *''Beijiaxiang'' ( East African marine snails

*''Jiangzhenxiang'' () also known as ''zitengxiang'' (),

Lakawood Lakawood, or laka wood (), is a reddish aromatic heartwood used as incense in China, India and South East Asia. It also had a number of other uses in the past, for example as a dye and for medicinal purposes. The name lakawood can refer to the wo ...

The dried powdered bark of '' Persea nanmu''() is used extensively for its mucilaginous qualities, which helps to bind the other powdered ingredients together.

Processes

Incense powder is formed into the final product through various methods. In the Lin-xiang process incense powder is tossed over wet sticks. Nuo-xiang is when incense paste is kneaded around sticks. For large incense pillars, incense paste is piled around a single bamboo stick and sculpted to shape. Incense paste may be extruded and wound to produce spiral incense.

References

External links

Fragrant Pouches
, Global Chinese Language and Culture Center Online Folklore
Frangant Pouches in TaiwanDivine Fragrances
''Taiwan Review'', 06/01-2008, Oscar Chung

Chinese Incense Culture Website

China Central Television China Central Television (CCTV) is the State media, national television broadcaster of China, established in 1958. CCTV is operated by the National Radio and Television Administration which reports directly to the Publicity Department of th ...

Chinese Incense Art Association
, A government-certified non-profit organization promoting the study and practice of incense arts {{DEFAULTSORT:Incense in China Chinese culture Chinese inventions

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Traditional Chinese medicine