Incense

Gather all incense materials for you recipe and tools you will use.

Grind all incense materials into a fine powder with a mortar and pestle or spice grinder. Sift with a mesh to remove larger pieces.

Measure your powdered woods, herbs, and resins from your recipe.

Add all of the dry ingredients (optional: add essential oils and/or a little honey).

Slowly add liquid to the dry ingredients and mix. Start off with less liquid and add as needed.

When the incense starts to form a dough, knead it with your hands until smooth and soft.

Break off small pieces of the dough and shape in to cones.

For more uniform cones, you can use a cone mold instead.

For more uniform sticks, you can use an incense extruder. Extruder the incense and cut into sticks.

Let incense dry for 2-3 days in a cool, dark area away from sunlight. Flip incense over after one day to let dry evenly.

Tools for incense ceremonies. Metal tongs, metal chopsticks, mica plates, + ash press. Mica Plate: Thin sheets of mica, a translucent silicate mineral, have been used in Japan for hundreds of years for the purpose of heating - rather than burning - raw aromatics wood chips and kneaded incense.

Tools for incense ceremonies. Metal tongs, metal chopsticks, feather, scraper, flat ash press, fan ash press, + spoon.

White ash is used to fill an incense burner as a base to support burning incense sticks, cones, makko trails, or charcoal (for wood chips, granules, pellets, pressed tablets). The ash is lightweight and breathable to permit the flow of oxygen to the surface. White ash is typically made from ash of wood or rice husks.

Incense charcoal for warming incense and for incense ceremonies. Circular incense charcoal on left is for more formal ceremonies. Square incense charcoal on right is scented and for various uses. These charcoals are from Japan and made from bamboo, which is more natural.

Various ceramic and brass incense burners. Some are used with white ash and other can be used directly with incense.

Stir white ash in a ceramic bowl with metal chopsticks to make light and fluffy.

With the fan ash press, lightly compress the ash.

White ash is used to fill an incense burner as a base to support burning incense sticks, cones, makko trails, or charcoal (for wood chips, granules, pellets, pressed tablets). The ash is lightweight and breathable to permit the flow of oxygen to the surface. White ash is typically made from ash of wood or rice husks.

Light tip of the incense for a few seconds and blow out the flame.

Enjoy!

Light tip of the incense for a few seconds and blow out the flame.

Enjoy!

Light tip of the incense for a few seconds and blow out the flame.

Enjoy!

Light tip of the incense for a few seconds and blow out the flame. Enjoy!

Thoroughly light an incense charcoal until the charcoal starts burning.

Let the charcoal sit until halfway white to ensure it will not go out.

With the metal chopsticks, place the charcoal in the center of the ash. Insert it about 1/4" below the surface.

With the fan ash press, lightly compress the ash.

With the metal chopstick, poke a hole in the ash towards the incense charcoal.

With the metal tongs, carefully place the mica plate on the ash.

For wood granules, use the metal spoon to carefully place on the mica plate.

For incense pellets, pressed incense, and wood chips, use the metal chopsticks and place on the mica plate.

Wait about 10 minutes and the charcoal will warm the incense to emit a fragrance.