An ancient tradition
What is traditional Chinese scholarly incense?
Created by the scholars and artists who used it, traditional Chinese scholarly incense accompanied moments of reading, calligraphy, sharing tea and quiet contemplation.
Made from natural aromatic materials, it was valued less for scenting a room than for the atmosphere it created: a quieter, more attentive way of being in the moment.
A scholar's art
Incense, tea, painting and flowers
Incense had been burned in China for a thousand years before the scholars of the Song dynasty made it their own. They counted it among the four refined pastimes of a cultivated life, alongside preparing tea, hanging paintings and arranging flowers. Scholars blended it, wrote about it and gave their favourite formulas names.
That is what we mean by scholarly incense: not incense in general, but the personal practice that grew up in the studies of poets, painters and calligraphers.
The materials
Aromatic woods, resins, herbs and roots
Traditional scholarly incense brings together natural aromatic materials such as woods, seeds, resins, herbs and roots. Agarwood and sandalwood are its foundation, and were commonly found in most incense stick, plaque and sachet formulas.
Each ingredient has its own character. Through careful selection, processing and blending, they come together to create a fragrance that is layered, balanced and refined. The beauty lies not in any single ingredient, but in the harmony between them.
Liwei teaching at a workshop in Shanghai, China
Today
The same practice, in a different room
The way we live has changed, but the desire for quiet moments has not.
Incense still does what it did in the scholar's study: it softens the room and gives the mind somewhere to settle. Whether you are entertaining, studying, meditating or spending a moment with someone special, the practice is the same. That is the tradition Yunora brings to Aotearoa.
Questions
Not sure where to begin?
If you'd like help choosing a scent, or want to know more about the tradition, write to us. We're glad to talk about it.
- Incense sticks
- Eight blends, each suited to a different moment of the day
- Workshops
- Learn to make incense by hand with Liwei in Auckland