The Story of Incense

Incense has been used for purposes ranging from the spiritual to the medicinal for thousands of years, in many countries, and on many different continents. It's use can be traced back to the days of the Pharaohs, and appears in the Vedas, the most sacred and oldest book of the Hindu Religions.

The use of incense in a religious context goes so far back, that it is impossible to pinpoint the exact time it began. It may have originated in Egypt where the gums and resins of aromatic trees were imported from the Arabian and Somali coasts to be used in the religious ceremonies of the time. It was also used by the Pharaohs to counteract unpleasant odours, drive away demons and gratify the gods. It was mentioned in the Egyptian Book of the Dead, the earliest written record of religious and mystical ceremony.

In early times gums, resins and spices were sprinkled on lighted charcoal on an incense alter or in a 'censer', or it could be applied to the person in the form of an unguent. However in more modern times it is very often burned in stick form, although in the Middle East, censers are still widely used.

The Babylonians used incense extensively while offering prayers or divining oracles, while the Egyptians were so fond of it that the Pharaohs sent out expeditions to find the best incense bearing trees. It was imported into Palestine in the 5th Century BC to be used in religious offerings, from where it spread to Greece, Rome and India; where even today, both Hindus and Buddhists still burn it in their rituals and festivals. And it was one of the gifts of the three wise men from the east, to the infant Jesus. Incense has had and still has a great significance in the East too. The origin of the name Hong Kong relates to the production of incense in that region, ' Hong' means 'fragrant' or 'incense' and 'Kong' means 'harbour'.

Introduced from North Vietnam, the incense tree Aquilaria Sinenis flourished in the soils around Hong Kong. The wood was collected from growers throughout the area, assembled at Tsim Sha Tsui and shipped in junks to Hong Kong Island. There it was loaded onto large sailing vessels and shipped all over the world.

Brought to Japan in the sixth century by Buddhist monks who used the mystical aromas in their purification rites, the delicate scents of Koh, a Japanese high quality incense became a source of amusement and entertainment with nobles in the Imperial Court during the Heian Period 200 years later. The Trees from which true frankincense and myrrh were extracted, however, grew only in southern Arabia, and over the course of time developed into a regular and substantial trade that lasted for over a thousand years. The Arabs who controlled it, gained a reputation for enormous wealth derived from its profits. Their country became known as Arabia Felix - Happy Arabia or Arabia the Blessed - and to the rest of the world was synonymous with incense.

In pre-Islamic Southern Arabia, frankincense was a sacred commodity and its harvesters worked under ritualistic restraints. It was stored in the temples and burned as offerings to the gods. South Arabian incense burners of those times were small cube-shaped alters with a cavity in the top surface, and normally had four short legs.

Even in the very early days incense was not just used for religious ceremony; it was a highly prized commodity. The ancient Egyptians understood it's more practical properties, so that after the sacking of Memphis in the 8th Century BC, the king appointed men to purify the city with incense. Incense has also had a considerable part to play in the medicine of the ancient world, especially in the Greek and Roman eras. There are prescriptions for it's use in treatments for pains in the chest, paralysed limbs, ulcers, headaches and nosebleeds,

wounded and broken heads and even an antidote for hemlock. An early veterinary tract recommends incense to cure worms in animals.

Frankincense continued to be used in the Middle Ages. It is still used in southern Arabia today. In India it is applied to swellings, used as a local astringent, detergent and fumigant. In China it has been regarded as a remedy for leprosy. In the Yemen a beverage prepared with pounded frankincense was thought to combat urinary tract infections and shock paralysis. It was also used by sections of the community at funeral processions and to assist labour during childbirth.

Also in Yemen and Hadramawt frankincense was used as a deodorant, a chewing gum, a tooth-filling and even a method of sealing cracks in cooking utensils. The Bedouin tribes of south Arabia have used it to fumigate their hair and in some parts of Arabia it was burned when taking an oath.

Today incense is still used in Arab home as a delightful way to perfume rooms and to sweeten garments or fresher tumbler before use. The dhows that still ply their trade along the coasts of Arabia and India often are filled with the sweet smell of incense to drive out the smells of stale water that accumulate in the stern. Over the past decade incense has become increasing popular throughout America and Europe, and can now be found in all kinds of shops from exotic boutiques to discount department stores and users range from teenagers to pensioners.

Perhaps people in the west have once again discovered the magical effects of a simple stick of incense.