Incense

DinoBot

Hi,

Why is incense used so much within Buddhism ? I see it in all the temples and also at graves ?

Also, I love the stuff :-) I got a huge amount two years in Dublin at the chinese new year celibrations but I have not been able to get the same again. It was from one of the buddhist temples in dublin.

Does anyone know where I can get some ? (at a good price, most shops charge 35c / stick :eek:

Asiaprod

DinoBot wrote:

Hi,

Why is incense used so much within Buddhism ? I see it in all the temples and also at graves ?

Good question. I understood it to be a way of purifying the area one is in. At funerals in Japan they burn a huge amount; the Japanese have many cultural issues around spirits and devils.
The following is what Wiki has to say:

Incense use in religious ritual was first widely developed in China, and eventually transmitted to Korea and Japan. Incense holds an invaluable role in East Asian Buddhist ceremonies and rites as well as in those of Chinese Taoist and Japanese Shinto shrines. It is reputed to be a method of purifying the surroundings, bringing forth the Buddhist Alamkaraka (Realm of Adornment).

In Chinese Taoist and Buddhist temples, the inner spaces are scented with thick coiled incense, which are either hung from the ceiling or on special stands. Worshippers at the temples light and burn sticks of incense in large bundles, which they wave while bowing to the statues or plaques of a deity or an ancestor. Individual sticks of incense are then vertically placed into individual censers located in front of the statues or plaques either singularly or in threes, depending on the status of the deity or the feelings of the individual.

In Japanese and Buddhist temples, the sticks of incense are placed horizonally into censers on top of the ash since the sticks used normally lack a supporting core that does not burn.

The formula and scent of the incense sticks used in various temples throughout Asia vary widely.

As to buying incense, have you thought of buying it on line?

DinoBot

Asiaprod wrote:

As to buying incense, have you thought of buying it on line?

Where, I checked ebay with no luck :rolleyes:

Any tips ?

Asiaprod

DinoBot wrote:

Where, I checked ebay with no luck :rolleyes:

Any tips ?

Yes, buy it from a shop, not ebay.
Do a google search, there will be millions to choose from:)

DinoBot

Couldnt see the woods for the trees................. thanks, found LOADS!

Asiaprod

DinoBot wrote:

Couldnt see the woods for the trees................. thanks, found LOADS!

Cool:)

DublinWriter

Asiaprod wrote:

Good question. I understood it to be a way of purifying the area one is in.

As also are bells used for the same principle, especially in the Japanese Shintoist tradition and most Korean Buddhist schools.

god's toy

I love Nag-champa! Often been known to put sticks in my work bag just to get the sent on my jacket!
Love to chill out after a hard day with the stuff.