Incense & Oil Burners

Ancient Mood Incense Sticks Price: 12.95 100 incense sticks -- 20 each of 5 timeless scents that include Sandalwood, Frankincense, Nag Champa, Egyptian Musk and Tranquility.

Floral Mood Incense Sticks Price: 12.95 100 incense sticks -- 20 each of 5 timeless scents that include Rose, Orange Blossom, Lavender, Lilac and Hawaiian Flowers.

Fruity Mood Incense Sticks Price: 12.95 100 incense sticks -- 20 each of 5 timeless scents that include Strawberry, Watermelon, Green Apple, Banana and Creamy Coconut.

Romantic Mood Incense Sticks Price: 12.95 100 incense sticks -- 20 each of 5 timeless scents that include Romance, Rose, Ocean Mist, Love of Allah and Rain.

NOTE: Prices Subject To Change Without Prior Notice.

The Fine Art of Smudging

An Aboriginal Canadian friend of mine who teaches at the Whispering Lodge in Toronto was explaining to me how physical or emotional healing cannot take place until the person is cleansed of any of the following conditions:

1. Emotional conditions such as resentment, bitterness, envy, jealousy and guilt
2. Negative thoughts about others or one's past or future
3. Negative emotions such as grief, hatred, desire 4) Bad or evil spirits
4. Attachments or negative energy sent to us from other people

In most Aboriginal traditions, a sweat lodge, basically a tent or teepee or cave filled with smoke and heat, is used to remedy the sick person of these conditions. In ancient Rome, buildings called purgatoriums were used for the same purpose. These smoke and heat filled places were considered sacred spaces in which the spirits or God could lift negative entities and energies from an individual without interference with others.

Many indigenous cultures throughout the world use burning herbs, plants and resins to accomplish the same purpose. In some cultures the smoke is taken into one's hands and rubbed over the body to blacken it. This is where the modern day practice got its nickname -- smudging.

Below is a list of common herb, plants, grasses and resins that are commonly used in smudging ceremonies. You can light these substances yourself and carry a bundle of the substance around your home in a counter-clockwise circle to cleanse your space. I highly recommend cleansing the body outside, however, as I have found that sage can burn very fast and create a lot of rapid whirling smoke that easily sets off the fire alarm.

• Sage Sprigs - the most common substance used for cleansing is sage. The word sage comes from the Latin word Salvia which means, "to heal." There are also varieties of sage, which are from the Artemisia family of plants. This includes mugwort which s used for cleansing and protection. White sage is used for cleansing and protection. Combining branches of pine and white sages together and burning them is used to attract prosperity.
  
• Cedar and Juniper branches - These evergreen boughs have historically been used to help cleanse, purify and protect ones belongings. Sometimes brooms are made from them to use the smoke "sweep" to cleanse a home during a house blessing.
  
• Sweetgrass - This musty smelling grass is used to drive out bad influences and draw good influences into the home. It is often used after a prayer or ritual to "hold the magic" in its place.
  
• Copal - this aromatic plant resin is mainly used in South American rituals. The touch of the strongly scented smoke from burning copal is thought to cleanse and purify any object or person.
  
• Frankincense and Myrrh - these "biblical" resins are used in Africa, the Middle East and Europe for ceremonies and rituals. Burned together they are thought to balance yin and yang, or the masculine and feminine energies in a place or dwelling. Either is thought to draw blessings into a home.
  
• Tobacco - Tobacco is burned to float prayers upwards to the Creator where they will be heard and answered. Burning a tobacco along with sage, cedar or sweet grass is thought to enhance the magical intentions of the smudge.
  
• Smudges and resins can be bought commercially from occult, new age and gift shops. I usually put the branches, plants or resins in the bowl and blacken my hands and face with it. While doing this I pray for protection, purification and blessings from above. If healing another person or purifying a room I will sometimes use a feather or a branch to waft the smoke in the desired direction. Smudging is not all hooey and voodoo. The practice is also thought to created negative ions in the air that remove static and create a positive atmosphere. Not only do people usually feel good afterwards, it also creates a space for the free flowing of positive energies and prayers.

About the Author

Samantha Stevens was a professional psychic at http://www.psychicrealm.com/ for many years. Read more of her articles at http://www.newagenotebook.com/ If you wish to buy Samantha's books about metaphysics click here http://www.insomniacpress.com/author.php?id=110

Aromatherapy History

A Brief History of Aromatherapy from Around the Globe

If you mention aromatherapy to a majority of people they immediately think of it being just one of the many new fads that has come to light with the hope of promising relief and a miracle cure for all ills. However, this is far from true. Aromatherapy is no fad.

While aromatherapy can bring relief to a number of conditions and is one of the leading aids for helping with stress related disorders, it has been around for thousands of years. In fact, aromatherapy is actually one of the oldest kinds of holistic medicine used throughout the world. During the prehistoric times they did not’t have the resources that we have today, and there were very little sanitary measures and certainly no drug stores or doctors.

However, people still got sick and this meant they had to find resources of their own and rely on what they had in their surroundings. One of the ways by which they learned during these times were by watching animals; they learned that animals would eat certain herbs and plants while avoiding others.

This is how the basis of aromatherapy started. It was found that not only could the herbs and plants be eaten to relieve many ailments, but they also could be crushed and used as infusions and even their smell brought relief. This was the birth of aromatherapy.

Aromatherapy as we know it and practice it today was first given to us by the Egyptians. The Egyptians learned not only were the plants and herbs useful when crushed but also oils could be extracted. This oil was a more potent way of using the flowers and herbs for medicinal remedies.
While the Egyptians were developing their aromatherapy techniques, so were the Chinese. One of the earliest books on aromatherapy dates back to 2,700 BC and lists over 300 plants and herbs and their uses.

However, it was the Greeks who went on to discover that oils extracted from certain flowers were more useful for relaxation purposes while others for more medical reasons. It was the Greeks who also introduced the base of olive oil into which to put the extracted essence. The Romans quickly adopted this from the Greeks, and it was here that the aromatherapy baths were introduced; these baths were then followed by a hot oil massage.

The popularity of aromatics used for a wide range of ills increased, and this led to the importation of exotic spices, flowers, and oils from India, China, and Arabia.

When Europe descended into the dark ages, aromatherapy went with it, as anything that was not’t classed as traditional Western medicine was put into the “Witchcraft” bracket and those who practiced aromatherapy were branded as a witch. Aromatherapy resurfaced again during the Middle Ages when the bubonic plague was prevalent; it was found that the scent from burning cedar and pine would help to fumigate infected enclosures.

When European settlers came to America they were surprised to find that the Native Americans had been using aromatic oils for a long time for a wide variety of uses. Finally, around the 19th century, the value of aromatherapy was truly recognized and traditional medicine started taking aromatherapy seriously.

Today aromatherapy is available to be used in the home, and although a little knowledge and understanding of the herbs and their uses is needed, you don’t have to be an expert to be able to make the remedies for yourself.

Learn more about infusions and applying aromatherapy in our list of articles found here.