Traditional Incense: Understanding The Different Beliefs and Traditions Of Burning Incense

In some parts of the world, families celebrate different special occasions by feasting and burning traditional incense. Asian families, especially the Japanese and the Chinese are so fund with incense that some of their celebrations can not be considered as complete without the ritual of burning the traditional incense.

What Made Traditional Incense Burning Very Popular In Some Cultures?

In the olden times, the burning of incense is considered as part of some religious rituals in some parts of the world. According to historians, the monks in China use incenses as aid for meditation. The smell of traditional incense is very pleasing to the senses that a person can easily relax and feel at peace with it. Monks need to clear up their minds to be able to reach a higher level of meditation thus burning of incense is a very important part of their everyday lives.

The burning of traditional incense is an important part of cleansing. According to some ancient beliefs, the smell of burning incense can cleanse the place of all evil spirits and other impurities. In the United States, the Native Americans burn incense and herbs as part of their purification rituals. All spaces and tools that are used for worship or for healing must be purified by burning incense and herbs before they can be used as such. At present, some Native Americans still perform the purification process by burning traditional incense and herbs. The practice of purifying living spaces and places of worship is also being practiced in many countries in Europe. The purification process which is commonly referred to as "smudging" involves the burning of different types of herbs to that are believed to have some cleansing qualities. To this day, the practice of 'smudging" can still be observed in some parts of Europe.

In many parts of the world, the burning of traditional incense signifies a change of mood especially after somebody dies in the family. According to beliefs in some Asian countries, the burning of traditional incense is a way of saying goodbye to their departed loved ones. The smells of the incense is said to accompany the dead love ones to another world and will help him or her find his or way to the next life. Whether or not there is some truth to this belief, nobody can really tell. However, what is significant about this belief is that this brings Asian families closer together and gives them hope that they will soon be reunited with their loved ones in the after life.