How to Make
Incense 

Incense has been burning on alters and in
homes for over 5,000 years. There are four
basic forms of incense--loose, cone, cylinder
or stick. Choices of scents come from
berries, bark, flowers, gums, leaves, roots,
seeds, spices, wood. Some herbs do not burn
like they smell, such as peppermint, which
smells quite unpleasant when burned. You
can test a scent by sprinkling a pinch of
your mix on charcoal first, keeping a
record of what works and smells pleasing. 

A recipe for incense always has five
ingredients: an aromatic substance, a base
of wood powder (sandalwood, vetiver,
cedar etc.) saltpeter or potassium nitrate
(the igniting substance), a glue (gum
arabic or tragacanth) and liquid (water,
wine, brandy, olive oil, rosewater, etc.).
Frequently used ingredients are
(frankincense, myrrh, benzoin, copal, rose
petals, bay, cinnamon, pine needle resin
and others. 

Loose noncombustible incense is easiest to
make. Combine finely powdered leaf, bark,
flower, root etc. with a few drops of liquid
or oils. Mix by hand, label and store in a
jar. Burn this incense on charcoal. You
may also scent a "blank" incense stick with
a few drops of your favorite essential
oil--very simple! 

 

   Recipe for Cone Incense
    6 parts powdered sandlewood (or
        cedar, pine or juniper) 
       2 parts powdered benzoin
      (frankincense, myrrh etc.) 
       1 part ground orris root 
        6 drops of essential oil 
   3 to 5 parts loose incense mixture
                                     
 Mix all ingredients in the order given
 and weigh. Add 10% of total weight of
 saltpeter, mix and add gum arabic
 "glue" one teaspoon at a time - it's a bit
 messy and sticky. Roll cones thin and
 shape approximately 1 3/4" long. Cones
 will shrink and dry in two to seven
 days. Continue to turn cones to assure
 even drying without cracking. Start
 drying in upright position. Cones will
 burn 10-25 minutes.


Stick incense involves dipping bamboo
sticks repeatedly into your cone incense
mix until your desired thickness is
achieved, changing the mixture between
dippings. Are there "rules" for making
combustible incense? YES: Never add more
than 10% saltpeter of total incense weight,
keep woods and gum resin in
proportion--use twice the amount of
powdered woods as resin. Frankincense,
myrrh etc. should never be more than a
third of the final mixture. 

For more wonderful formulas and recipe
ideas, refer to the sourcebooks listed below.
Add the magic of scent to your daily
ritual, personally created by you! 

Sources: 
Wylund's Book of Incense, Samuel
Weiser Press 
The Complete Book of Incense, Oila
and Brews, by Scott Cunningham 


Moon Incense

This incense is used in many rituals and is
a common spell component. It
is an incense of increase that is
deceivingly easy to make. Use all of your
focus and energy, your will and intention,
while making this scent. You
may find as I have, that this is one of the
best powdered incenses you've
ever made! It is used over charcoals (the
one's specifically made for
incense that come in rolls) or over a
ritual fire. 

CAUTION! Warning and Yikes! If used over
a ritual fire, flames
will leap up along the dust trail of this
incense powder! There will be sparkling
(sparks) of incense outside of this trial of
flames as well! This is an impressive
effect, but dangerous if you are not
practiced at it! Start out small and toss
about 1
teaspoon of it over the glowing coals or
flames, all at once, don't trail the dust or
sprinkle it. Stand away from the fire, and
upwind. Use in areas that do not require
burn permits, and have something to
douse the fire nearby. Do not use if you
are
wearing gauzy or loose ritual robes and
costumes. Be very careful! You are
responsible for your actions, as always.

and finally, after all that! THE RECIPE!!
"yea!" 

Within the three days prior to the actual
full moon, but not
after! Gather the ingredients required,
along with a pestil and
mortar to blend them in. If desired, you
can use your
cauldron, and some sort of crushing or
mixing tool. 

1 ounce (about 30 grams) of the finest
sandalwood
powder you can find (santalum album) 

5 grams (a marble sized nugget) of amber
resin, NOT
the stone! The soft, sweet smelling resin
that is often
imported from India, available at health
food stores,
and of course herb and occult shops. 

3 drops of vanilla essential oil. NOT the
perfume or
fragrance oil, only true vanilla from the
orchid
(Vanilla planifolia or Vanilla aromatica) If
this is
cost prohibitive or unavailable, use real
vanilla extract
available at most any grocery store.

Preferably outside, under the actual full
moon, or indoors
near a window where the moon is visible:
Fill the mortar or
cauldron with the sandalwood powder, and
crush the amber
into it with the pestil or tool of your
choice. Use
CLOCKWISE or DEOSIL blending motions.
Focus on the
energy of the full moon, or if you are
making the incense for
a specific spell, focus on the goal of that
spell alone. You
can incorporate your favorite words of
power or chant while
doing this. 

When the powder is smooth and consistent,
add the vanilla,
one drop at a time while saying your
chosen words of
power, (which is best) or the following
(which will suffice in
most cases): Drop of moon, grant my boon. 

Blend in the drops in the same way you
blended in the
amber resin. Place the mixture in a clear
glass jar with an
airtight lid. Keep it away from heat,
sunlight, and moisture.
Charge it under the light of the full moon
on the three days
prior to it becoming actually full. The full
moon light
penetration is the reason for not storing
this in an opaque jar.
It is ready for use immediately, but can be
charged more if
desired.