INCENSE INFORMATION

Incense can be divided into two main classes: direct burning and indirect burning. Each class comes in many different forms and degrees of processing. Preference for which class and which form of incense varies with culture, tradition, and personal taste.

Indirect Burning Incense

Indirect burning incense, also called non-combustible incense, is made from raw ingredients that are mostly unsuitable for direct combustion. These materials generally do not kindle a fire capable of burning themselves and may not ignite at all under normal conditions. Therefore, a separate heat source is required to burn these materials. Several types of heat sources are charcoal, burning embers, and makko powder.

The texture of the material that is used for indirect burning incense has a large effect on how long it burns. Finer ingredients tend to burn more rapidly, while coarsely ground or whole chunks tend to burn very gradually.

The most well known indirect burning incense materials are Frankincense and Myrrh, which are widely know due to the story of the three wise men in the Bible. In fact, in many European languages, the word “Frankincense” is used to refer to any form of incense.

The different forms of indirect burning incense are whole, powdered or granulated, paste, and recombined.

Indirect Burning Incense
Whole pieces of Peruvian entheogenic Trichocereus cacti incense Whole incense is burned directly in its raw unprocessed form on top of coal embers.
Aloeswood incense powder Powdered or granulated incense is ground up or broken down into finer bits. It burns quickly and provides a short period of intense smells.
Bakhoor incense balls Paste incense is made from mixing powdered or granulated incense with a sticky and incombustible binder, such as dried fruit, honey, or a soft resin and then formed into balls or small cakes. The balls or cakes may then be allowed to mature in a controlled environment where the fragrances can commingle and unite. Much Arabian incense, also called Bukhoor or Bakhoor, is of this type, and Japan has a history of kneaded incense, called nerikō or awasekō, using this method.
Frankincense pieces Recombined incense is powdered incense mixed with various sweet smelling essential oils that is then rolled out in a slab approx ¼” thick and allowed to dry for about a week until the slab is firm. It is then cut into small pieces for burning over hot coals. In Eastern Orthodox Christian tradition, recombined incense made from raw frankincense mixed with floral or citrus fragrance is burned in a censer during mass.

Direct Burning Incense

Direct burning incense, also called combustible incense, does not require a separate heat source to burn. When lit directly by a flame and then fanned out, the glowing ember on the incense will continue to smolder and burn away the rest of the incense without continued application of heat or flame from an outside source.

Direct burning incense is made from a moldable substrate of fragrant finely ground (or liquid) incense materials and odorless binder. The binder and incense materials must be combined in a ratio that provides fragrance in the proper concentration while ensuring even burning.

The different forms of direct burning incense are cone, cored stick, solid stick, and dipped or hand-dipped.

Direct Burning Incense
Incense cones burn relatively fast and burn all the way through. Cone Incense is made entirely of incense material that is molded into the shape of a cone for easy burning. Cone incense containing mugwort are used in Traditional Chinese medicine for moxibustion treatment.
Drying Vietnamese cored stick incense Cored stick incense has a supporting core of bamboo that is coated by a thick layer of incense material. Sandalwood is used for the core in higher quality varieties of this form. The Indians and the Chinese use this form of incense widely. When used for worship in Chinese folk religion, cored incensed sticks are sometimes known as Joss sticks
Healing Tibetan solid stick incense Solid stick incense is completely made of incense material and has no supporting core. It is easily broken into pieces, allowing one to burn only a little at a time. It is the most commonly produced form of incense in Japan and Tibet
Hand dipped incense Dipped or Hand-dipped incense is made by dipping incense blanks into any kind of essential or fragrance oil. It was made popular in American Flea markets by vendors who wanted their own style.

Direct burning incense of these forms is either extruded, pressed into forms, or coated onto a supporting material.

It should be noted that the type of incense does not determine whether it is direct burning or indirect burning as much as what form it is in. For example, Cedar incense in its raw unprocessed form or powder form has to be burned indirectly but it also comes in stick form and dipped form, which can be burned directly.