Shoyeido Incense Sticks

In Kyoto the heart of ancient Japan is still beating. From 794 to 1868 there was the seat of the imperial court. That made Kyoto or Heian-kyō, as it was then called, the capital of Japan for 1,000 years. Today, the city is considered the cultural and spiritual center of the country. There are still 1,600 Buddhist temples and 400 Shinto sites in the city area. This creates a fascinating contrast between tradition and modernity. Shrines from the 16th century crouch among new office buildings, and mendicant friars with wide straw hats sit in front of western coffee shops. The old imperial palace provides a pleasantly quiet counterpart to the hustle and bustle of Kyoto's loud and endless passages. Behind the thick walls of its park you will not notice the hectic life of the metropolis. The locals do not see the charm of their city in the numerous ancient sights, anyway, but in the hidden oases of peace. These are unique places that captivate the visitor with the quiet magic of bygone eras. The fascinating atmosphere in the temples and Shinto shrines is enhanced by traditional incense.

In the ”Nihonshoki“, the second oldest existing history book of Japan, it is reported that in the year 595 a special piece of driftwood was washed ashore onto the island of Awaji. When the coastal inhabitants threw pieces of it into the fire, a wonderful fragrance spread. The rest of the wood was brought to the court of empress Suiko as a gift. Her son-in-law prince Shōtoku was already familiar with the Buddhist rituals of incense burning. He notices that it was a piece of the argan tree, for the first Buddhist temples in Japan imported the precious scented wood from China and Korea for a ritual called ”sonaekō“. For a festive atmosphere, a combination of scented wood and other aromatic ingredients such as herbs was burned.

In the 14th century, even the warrior caste discovered incense burning. The evening before the battles, the samurai usually spent meditating and taking care of their swords. When meditating, the incense should help purify the mind of fear and negative thoughts. Some warriors also used it to scent their helmet. They did that to give off even a pleasant smell in the case of a decapitation. In the long peace period from 1603 to 1868, however, the samurai were hardly needed for fighting. Many of them devoted themselves to the study of the Japanese arts. In addition to the martial arts (budō) there were, among others, the tea ceremony (chadō) or calligraphy (shodō). A representative of traditional Japanese arts almost unknown in Europe is Kōdō.

Kōdō can be translated as ”the way of the scent“. It is about special ceremonial rules of conduct and the appreciation of fragrances and incense. Traditionally, a piece of burning incense charcoal is placed in a bowl filled with ash. Above the coal, an ash pile is formed for a small heat-resistant tile on which a tiny piece of aroma wood is laid with the help of two sticks. The participants of the Kōdō ceremony now point the fragrance bowl towards the nose in turn. Just as in the tea ceremony the preparation and the enjoyment of the tea follows certain rituals, also in the Kōdō ceremony special rules of conduct apply. Under the guidance of a master, the entire ceremony lasts about an hour. Advanced participants pass the fragrance bowl after seven breaths of air. This is to prevent that the nose is ”numb“ and the fragrance is no longer adequately perceived. Less elaborate than the Kōdō ceremony is ”Soradaki“. This is what the Japanese call incense burning at home, without a special ritual effort. The simplest way to create a positive indoor climate with fragrant smoke, however, are incense sticks. In Japan, these often glimmer in front of the house altar, next to the meditation cushion or in a beautiful holder on the desk.

Unlike, for example, in India, incense sticks in Japan have been made for centuries without a stick of wood on the inside. The incense of the Japanese family business Shoyeido has been made in Kyoto for over 300 years and is nowadays famous around the world. The Incense Sticks Kin-kaku were inspired by the legendary Kinkaku, the golden pavilion in Kyoto and contain, among other things, sandalwood, patchouli and cinnamon. The formulation of the Incense Sticks Gozan is determined by cloves and sandalwood. This variant is well suited to creating a positive atmosphere at the desk. Shoyeido Incense Sticks Nokiba Moss Garden with a mixture of sandalwood, patchouli and benzoin are reminiscent of flowering plum trees and quiet afternoons in the spring sunshine. In Japan, the blossoming Zakura cherry blossoms are a symbol of spring. Shoyeido Incense Sticks Kyo-zakura Kyoto cherry blossoms awaken spring feelings with an artful mixture of rhubarb, cloves, cinnamon and other herbs. The company Shoyeido is one of the oldest Japanese manufacturers of incense sticks. Experience the pleasant scents and the positive energy of exquisite mixtures of selected natural ingredients. With Shoyeido you can discover the world of traditional Japanese fragrances.