INCENSE BLENDS

Smoking with incense mixtures - an ancient tradition revisited

The beneficial effects of herbs and spices were already known to our ancestors. They knew exactly which incense helped against mental and physical ailments, which calmed and which had a mood-lifting and activating effect. In most high cultures incense is still used for all imaginable occasions - to protect oneself from evil spirits, to convey a message to the gods or to cleanse the mind, soul and environment. You too can benefit from the beneficial effects of smoking - with incense mixtures that are available in a wide variety of compositions.

What exactly are incense blends?

Incense mixtures, often also referred to as herbal mixtures, are a potpourri of various herbs, spices, blossoms, seeds, bark, roots and resins. They are not intended for inhalation or oral consumption, but are intended to spread a unique, pleasant scent in the room by smoking. According to historical records, the ancient Egyptians were the first to trade in such mixtures. They were already aware that the fragrances affect both the body and consciousness.

How do incense blends work?

When smoking the herbal mixtures, certain aromas are released which, depending on the composition, invite you to relax, increase concentration, improve mood or have an energizing effect. Whether these effects occur to you depends primarily on your own attitude towards them and on the amount smoked.

If you ignore all warnings and take the incense directly, it can lead to unwanted high states, the intensity of which depends on your physical tolerance and your level of experience. So far, there have been no studies on lasting physical damage from long-term use. With the wide variety of herbal blends, it would also be difficult to do this as each herb and each combination of different herbs works differently.

When and how often can or should one smoke?

There is no instruction or restriction for this. Some people smoke daily, others only occasionally. So just smoke when you feel like it, for example:

• to get out of the hustle and bustle of everyday life,
• to expand consciousness,
• to increase concentration and creativity,
• to free you from stressful emotions and negative energies,
• to support healing processes,
• accompanying yoga or meditation or
• to fill your home with a pleasant scent.

For every application you will find incense mixtures with matching herbs.

How are incense blends smoked?

In the classic form of smoking, the smoldering of the incense mixture on charcoal, you place an ignited charcoal tablet in a suitable container, wait until it has glowed through and then start laying on the herbs. You can use a special incense burner for this, but you can also use another fireproof container in which you put some sand beforehand. You can tell that the charcoal has glowed through by the white ash coating.

Smoking with an aroma lamp is gentler. Instead of the bowl that usually contains the water-oil mixture, you need a special sieve to put the herbal mixture on. This slowly glows over the flame of the candle below. The intensity of the smoke is determined by the distance between the flame and the herbs. This method produces significantly less smoke than smoking with charcoal. It is therefore particularly suitable for the first attempts at smoking.

Instead of the aroma lamp you can also use a warmer with an incense sieve. In addition, there are closed incense burners.

Are Incense Blends Legal?

If they do not contain any substances prohibited by the Narcotics Act (BtMG), herbal mixtures are permitted in Germany.