Homemade Incense Blends

Herbs, woods, resins and gums have been burned for centuries both in ritual settings and in domestic spaces to purify, cleanse, create sacred atmospheres and simply cover up cooking or, um, bathroom smells, though I once saw an interview with a Chinese Buddhist monk, who found it absolutely hilarious that the western home habitually reserved incense burning for toilets instead of devotional practices! He may have had a point!

I first encountered incense like many people, during my teens, in the form of dhoop (like stick versions of incense cones) then quickly moved on to the longer, thinner joss sticks but it wasn't until my adult years that I discovered the more natural incense blends that require a charcoal disc to burn. Sticks and cones certainly have their place but sometimes you just can't beat the 'real' stuff; actual burning of botanical materials with no artifical boosters, binders or bulking! I suppose it's the aromatic and ritual equivalent of loose leaves in a pot as opposed to the convenience of tea bags!

​There are some totally gorgeous blends commercially available and when I'm visiting Glastonbury, I'll usually treat myself to a jar from Starchild but I'm also a firm believer in the power of homebrew and if I want to use incense ritually with a particular intention, I consider it far more powerful to make my own blend, using local homegrown or foraged ingredients where possible. 

Now I don't live in a place where I can forage frankincense or myrrh but you'd be surprised what you might have growing (or sitting in the kitchen!) ready to add to more exotic purchases for all sorts of fragrant delights and it doesn't take much to create your own blend. Depending on your ingredients, a pestle and mortar is perfectly adequate to crush and blend many ingredients though I do reach out to our electric coffee grinder at times. I try and keep that to a minimum though, as the heat it generates can compromise the aromatic compounds and hand-blending is a more effective method of investing the incense with your intention. You can't really get it wrong, but here are a couple of my favourite 'recipe' ideas to get you started; begin with roughly equal amounts of each ingredient and adjust to your tastes!

Self Care Blend:

Rose petals, Lavender flowers (both home grown and dried gently if possible) and Myrrh
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For 'me time' and helping cultivate self love and compassion, great for inner child work. I use it when I'm concentrating on healing around the heart and throat chakras

Cleansing Blend:

Frankincense, Sage (homegrown or use Taos/White Sages or a blend of all the above!) and Palo Santo chips
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For energetically clearing a space, preparing the ground for other energetic work or simply to help clear out stuck and stagnant energy from your home, body or mind! A good way to prepare for meditation, I find.