The Incense Bible

Cover......Page 1
Half Title......Page 2
Title......Page 4
Copyright......Page 5
Dedication......Page 6
CONTENTS......Page 8
Preface......Page 12
Acknowledgments......Page 14
A Worldwide Ritual......Page 16
Honoring the Divinity in Nature......Page 19
Unification of Mind, Body, and Spirit......Page 21
What Is Incense?......Page 23
A Quick Tour of Incense History......Page 26
Is Incense Safe?......Page 27
How Can I Use Incense?......Page 29
Chapter 2. The Sacred Sense......Page 32
Scent Through Time......Page 34
Scents in Ancient and Classical Times......Page 35
Christianity and the Odor of Sanctity......Page 36
The “Olfactory Revolution”......Page 37
The Essence of Cultural, Class, and Gender Differences......Page 42
Seduction and Scents......Page 44
Scents in Non-Western Cultures......Page 47
Synthetic versus Natural Scents......Page 49
How the Sense of Smell Works......Page 53
The Link Between Taste and Scent......Page 55
Scent and Memory......Page 57
Scent As a Direct Path to the Soul......Page 59
Perfume and Fragrance Allergies and Sensitivities......Page 60
Essential Oils and Flower Essences for Healing......Page 62
Incense for Keeping Time......Page 65
The Divinity of Scents......Page 68
The Early Incense Trail in Egyptian, Greek, and Roman Times......Page 72
Arabian Secrets......Page 75
India’s Bridges to Inner Awareness......Page 77
Following the Buddhist Path to China......Page 80
Israel: Incense Arising from the Holy Land......Page 91
The Catholic Church and Christianity......Page 93
North America: The New World’s Indigenous Incense Traditions......Page 98
Europe: The Old World of Incense......Page 101
From the High Andes to Deep in the Rainforest: Incense Use in South America......Page 103
Africa: The Origin of Man and Incense?......Page 106
Agarwood (Aloeswood/Jinkoh/Eaglewood): Promoting the Soul’s Development to Its Highest Levels......Page 108
Balsam of Peru/Balsam of Tolu: Two Soothing Incenses with Similar Names......Page 115
Benzoin: A Sweet, Fast-Burning Fragrance......Page 117
Camphor: Cool and Camphorous......Page 121
Cedar: Helping You to Find Your Vision......Page 123
Copal: Latin American Food of the Gods......Page 126
Dragon’s Blood: Smoke from the Dragon......Page 130
Eucalyptus: Beats the Toxins Out of You......Page 133
Frankincense: The Choice Incense......Page 134
Mugwort and Moxa: Protection and Medicine Worldwide......Page 139
Myrrh: The Female Quality of Incense......Page 143
Sandalwood: Sweet Sensuousness......Page 146
Sweetgrass: A Braid to Attract Good Spirits......Page 149
Vetiver: A Cool Relaxing Scent......Page 152
White Sage: Big Medicine......Page 153
Making Incense......Page 174
Forms of Incense......Page 176
Some Incense Materials and Symbols......Page 181
Chapter 6. Nature’s Divinity Awaits......Page 188
Different Uses of Incense......Page 189
Becoming More Alive......Page 208
Appendix A. Resource Directory......Page 210
Appendix B. Selected Experts......Page 212
References......Page 214
Index......Page 224