Incense, Magic & Spirituality
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and may only be used with permission.
Throughout every culture in the world, their
religious and spiritual heritage, tells their own unique stories concerning
sacred rituals and ceremonies, which were held at certain times of the day or
year in relation to Spirituality. In ancient times, Mother Earth, was indeed
comprehended as being a sacred living organism with a consciousness that was
alive, pulsating across the land like a unified web of intricately established
relationships. This web traveled through rivers, lakes, wells, mountains,
standing stones, trees, ancient track ways and burial mounds; a great many of
which were known to be Holy Places. These places were where people for
centuries had worshiped the Divinity in Nature, and were able to tap into this
web.
Communication
with these Holy places was done through song, dance, music, poetry and story
telling for example, at times of Life Cycle and Fertility Rites, and when
Seasonal Festivals were held, such as the Equinoxes and Solstices.
These
special places in nature, were not only Holy, they were also gateways to other
dimensions within the cosmos, and people such as Shamans, Priests and
Priestesses, could during ceremonial and ritual activities, travel into, to
seek both power and assistance for divination and healing purposes, as well as
gain information about the mysteries which lay between death and rebirth.
Knowledge was quite often received here from the ancestral realms, through
these gateways, which were the accessing points to where the collective body of
wisdom resided. Another medium used for accessing these dimensions
in the cosmos, was through dreaming and sleep
One of the main activities which played a major
part in these rituals was Incense Burning Ceremonies, either in a group setting
or individually. Unlike other cultures, which sacrificed animals, for the
purposes of receiving the power to heal or receiving special knowledge for
success in hunting; when consciously offering certain resins, herbs and gums,
at these power places, activities such as burning fragrant herbs and resins,
was seen as a ritual, which was both a creative and powerful 'medium' for
invocation with reference to directing prayers to God, and also as a way of
seeking renewal of oneself, through communion with Mother Nature and the Earth.
About 500
years ago, because of the arrival of the industrial era and the modernisation
of the world which followed, many stories, poems, and songs, about the
sacredness of these holy places and the powers to be found there, were written
into fables and fairy stories, so that they might survive, and this is the one
of the main reason why the Druids, gain inspiration through story-telling,
singing, poetry, and dance, during ceremonial and ritual activities.
In the
world today, we see a huge interest in Spirituality and Healing, as a response
to the on-going ecological crisis which the planet continues to under go, as a
great many people are horrified over the extent of the appalling damage that
human beings have done to the earth through greed and ignorance.
At the
present day, there is a re-emergence of the 'Old Ways', where Western Contemporary thinking and life, is
taking on a different meaning, where people are striving to unify consciousness,
through ceremony and ritual. The revival of Druidry and Wicca are evidence of
this, as is interest by Westerners in Native American Spirituality.
There has been a huge interest, more so over
the last decade, to restore, or maybe reawaken is a better word to use here,
the creative inspirational powers of these special places, inspiration, that
was put to 'sleep' by religious leaders (through spells and incantations). Many
seekers, have come to believe, that when the inspiration or power of a place
are renewed, it gives new life to the place itself, thus protecting the land to
recover and helping Mother Nature herself.
Incense
Burning and Nature Spirits: Within
the realms of Nature, exists a multitude of different dimensions, where nature
beings such as Elves, Gnomes, Goblins, Dwarfs, Trolls and Elementals such as
Fairy beings and Devas, who reside in rocks, trees, water, hills, plants and in
the Sauna. There are also Wizards and Witches, Wise Men and Women, who despite
being hundreds or thousands of years old, have the ability to still walk
through the worlds, and many of whom still work alongside Mother Nature,
helping to protect the land, despite being in absolute futility sometimes in
different situations, with reference to what human beings are doing to the
planet.
What the ancient peoples
knew, was that when the use of drums, song, dance, poetry, and burning incense
was combined together, it fed and nourished these guardians and helpers, in
some cases giving them power to grow in size, and carry out very difficult
tasks, such as dealing with harmful forces, and helping to direct human kind in
their daily lives. They also assist with healing and difficult situations on
the earth, and also in their kingdoms, concerning departed loved ones, who are
making the transition in to the world of spirit.
In ancient times which predate the
bible, Shamans believed that a Fire was a gift bestowed to people on Earth from
the Gods and Goddesses, who resided in the Heavens. They knew that not only did
the aromatic plants when burned, change the atmosphere in a room, but the aroma
was a medium, through which the power and mysticism of a special place could be
accessed. For example, skilled Celtic Priests and Priestesses, who used tools,
such as drums, runes, crystals and bones for divining future events, would
contact their helping spirits, prior to divination, by burning fragrant
substances, thus increasing their awareness. For spiritual cleansing, incense
that was warm and harmonizing, was also burned by Shamans, before they began to
drum, chant and dance, as the aromatic substances released from the plants
helped the shaman move from the physical reality into altered states of
consciousness. For this certain fragrances, for example, such as Sage Leaf ,
Sweet Grass, Copal Gum and Frankincense would, when burned, cleanse and purify
the ritual space, thus creating an atmosphere of healing power and establishing
contact with Spiritual Guides and Healers.
In the
North, Shamans from Lapland and Siberia melted down Spruce resin into a glue like substance,
and used it in the construction of drums and other ritual tools.
In contemporary life,
many therapists (Dentists especially!), use incense for space clearing the
therapeutic environment in which they work, especially in waiting rooms, and
where people hang their coats, where anxiety and stress in often left!
As part
of the inspiration for the work that I am doing, I have carefully brought
together a number of Incense blends, which can be purchased and used for a
variety of different activities. The list and activity of each mixture, is found on the page: 'Magical Incense Blends'.
An
important note about incense burning.
There are some herbs which are Contra Indicated (irritants when used), by
people who are pregnant and who have medical conditions such as Epilepsy. Do
not use the incense, if you have any chronic medical condition or allergy.