You throw a small coin into the wooden box through the slats on top and then take a stick of incense from the side. At some temples, they don't rely on the honour system though. You have to pay a set price (usually 100 yen -- about $1) to an attendant who then hands over a little bundle of incense.
Once the transaction is complete, you light your incense at the open flame provided and stick it in the fine white sand of the burner. People say a little prayer and presumably rely on the smoke to carry their words up to the Buddha or Bodhisattvas. As you can see, a lot of sweet-smelling smoke emanates from the incense burner. I'm sure there must be a purification aspect as well of both the sacred space and the people.
[Photos by Debra She Who Seeks]
25 comments:
I always loved the smell of incense as a child when I was an alter boy, and now too!
Ooh wow!!! At the Buddhist center, I attend, we just have incense burning, but we light candles(honor system)...If it wasn't for the smell and pictures of the Buddha and Dalai Lama, it would almost look Catholic. That bottom pic is simply beautiful...
I love incense. It reminds me of being a teenager, holed up in my room and listening to The Cure. : }
So spiritual!
My dad used to burn incense all the time. His house reeked of it. After he died, there have been a couple times when I could smell it in my house.
I don't burn incense so I think he was there with me.
I've always loved incense. Hubby doesn't like it, though, so I rarely have it in the house anymore. I use scented candles instead.
Mary
That is lovely. Incense can give me headaches now, so I don't burn it too often, but used to all the time. I'm becoming a wimp as I grow older. I burn it outside, to cleanse the air though of my toxic neighbour! Really stinky stuff. :)
I remember in Mexico having to pay a few pesos to use the public washroom, and being handed a few squares of toilet paper...
What a beautiful structure, the sand incense burner. We also use little sand containers for both incense and candles. It's very practical (mess-wise)! :-)
The incense burner is a work of art.
a ritual i can relate to....really healing and hopeful.....
amazing, that must have been such a wonderful experience
seems ancient!
Japan seems so much more spiritual than we are. Do you think it is our British heritage? Can't be just an old world/new world thing. I did notice quite a few outdoor grottos with candles burning in Bavaria but nothing similar in Britain. Anyway it must have been a wonderful experience!
Cool. I bet it smells good for miles.
What an amazing place to experience. And I love the smell of incense. My intro to it was at our community church where I grew up.
great stuff... thx deb :)
I'm 68 and I still burn incense....
I love incense. In my next life I'm going to travel and experience this firsthand!
Thank you for sharing this wonderful traditional ritual with us. I too love the scent of incense.
These photos along with the information are absolutely superb, thank you so much for posting this post of yours!!!
I used to love incense. My mom burned it all of the time. Now, I can't stand anything scented...my house smells neutral.
I really got into burning incense when I was a kid, and it is something I never outgrew. I usually buy mine in Chinatown for super cheap.
A lot of the world's sandalwood is endangered as they don't always re-vegetate. WA's sandalwood is now sought after because it is a sustainable industry here :) It would have to be one of the ugliest trees I've ever seen and the flowers stink to attract blowflies which spread the pollen. Seems strange for a tree that produces such aromatic oil!
Oh how beautiful! Ritual and burner!
I was visiting Canada once about 5 years ago and we stumbled upon a Buddhist Temple. We had 3 kids in tow and all went inside. The energy was amazing. I've never felt such peace inside a public building. The monks handing each of the children an orange from the altar and to say they were excited is an understatement. The Boy still talks about it to this day.
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