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Incense Resin - Fragrant Nectar of the Tree

There are thousands of different types of fragrant tree resins used all around the world by almost every culture. These sacred resins are used for spiritual, religious, medicinal, psychological, and practical purposes. From the holy Frankincense of Biblical origins to the Copal burned on the steps of the Mayan temples of ancient Central America, the lifeblood of the Tree People has aided mankind for millennia.

In traditional incense crafting there are many different materials of the natural world used to create various incenses: fragrant flowers, leaves, stems, roots, seeds, fruits, tree resins, woods, barks, even minerals. Perhaps one of the most popular of these are sacred tree resins. In many incense mixtures, especially those of older origins, resins are used for their rich aroma and for their binding and fixative qualities. Often times a resin is powdered after it is dried and mixed with hot or warm water, bringing out its sticky gum-like properties, binding the herbal ingredients together and aiding in the formation of cone or stick incense.

© 2016 Evan Purcell, Higher Mind Incense LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Incense resins offer a variety of different aromas. They can produce rich, sweet, bitter, spicy, pungent, citrusy, earthy, sharp, balsamic, piney, even slightly floral flavors. Not all trees produce this precious aromatic substance, however, various types of evergreen, coniferous, deciduous, and flowering trees alike all naturally exude resin in some form.

Incense resin is in essence the defense mechanism of a tree, most often produced on the outside of the trunk or branches of a tree when there is injury, cuts, intrusions, or lost branches or bark. This resin is quite sticky and honey-like in consistency. It hardens over time due to exposure to oxygen, sealing off the inside of the tree from the outside environment, harmful insects, infections, bacteria, molds and funguses. This is why most resins are found to have anti-fungal and antimicrobial properties. It is also thought that the antiseptic qualities of resins help to prevent decay.

Resin is produced by the secretions of essential oils, volatile oils, and other organic compounds of a particular tree. The strong aromatic qualities of resin are due to its high essential oil content, and they are often very complex in chemical composition. Resin can be exuded through the bark, exposed wood, flowers or buds.

This aromatic liquid is stored in cavities or ducts within a plant or tree trunk and is released when the tree is in jeopardy. For instance, when a ponderosa pine looses a limb in a wind storm, it produces resin as a healing agent on the exposed surface which solidifies over the affected area, forming something like a scab or bandaid, not allowing anything harmful in from the outside world. You’ve probably seen this many times out in nature; oozing resin or sap running down the trunk of a tree.

© 2016 Evan Purcell, Higher Mind Incense LLC. All Rights Reserved.

The ancients have been collecting resins all over the Earth for millennia. In commercial production of conifer resins, incisions on the trunk surface are made, causing a flow of resin which runs down the trunk and into a collection basin. They are then allowed to harden and are sold or made into certain commercial products. With resins such as frankincense and myrrh (technically both gum resins), the trees naturally weep large amounts of resin through the surface of the bark in droplets which harden and are collected. These droplets are what are commonly referred to as ‘tears.’

Incense resins have been traditionally used for spiritual and religious purposes for thousands of years. They are mentioned in many ancient religious texts and are referenced throughout ancient European, Chinese, Arabic, and Roman literature, to name a few. One of the most well known resins used religiously is Frankincense. It has been used in Judaism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Catholicism, Taoism, Islam, and many other religions.

In Christian rites Frankincense and Myrrh have been used since the beginning of Christianity, particularly by the Roman Catholic church and Eastern Christian churches. A thurible, a type of censer (incense burner), is filled with hot charcoal and resin, and is swung on a chain by a priest. This practice can be linked back to its early roots in the daily Judaic rituals that took place at Solomon’s Temple and the Second Temple, with the burning of the holy Ketoret incense mixture. The smoke from the burning incense was a symbol of the prayer rising to heaven. It was also used to purify the human soul.

In other parts of the world, different tree resins are used in other spiritual ways. They are employed in the use of prayer, protection, purification, cleansing, spiritual journeying, spiritual healing ways, and much more. There are many types of copal found in southeastern Asia, Mexico, Central America, and South America. They carry similarities but have different aromatic signatures and purposes. At the same time, it is found that a majority of the many types of copal found around the world are used for spiritual, energetic, and physical protection.

In essence, tree resins have a protective nature. The ancients observed this long ago and began employing them for personal protection as well. Traditional Indigenous healers and shamans deal with all aspects of life: the good, the bad and the ugly. When practicing spiritual healing ways there is always a dark side that balances the light. Sometimes when healing a person who is very ill, who has been cursed by another, or who has found themselves in some sort of trouble by doing something they should not have done, there can be negativity of some form that must be dealt with. Other times there are dark or malevolent spirits or energies that need to be cleansed or dealt with. With a deep connection to the natural world and the plant kingdom, medicine people burn these resins that they hold sacred during ceremony and ritual to protect themselves and others from harm as they venture into the spirit world, perform healings, or lead various ceremonies or rites.

In a lighter sense, ordinary people have burned incense resins for personal protection during deep meditation, in cities where energies are intense or overwhelming, in times of vulnerability, in times of grief, and during personal ceremony or ritual. Today there are many

© 2016 Evan Purcell, Higher Mind Incense LLC. All Rights Reserved.

people practicing spiritual ways where burning incense resins can be beneficial, such as during shamanic journeying, cleansing or purifications rituals, releasing rituals, and so on.

Just as a tree produces this precious protective resin to seal and heal its own wounds, resins have been used topically to treat wounds, cuts, abrasions, and other external skin issues of humans for ages. Mayan and Aztec warriors were treated after battle with melted resin or resin ointments to prevent infection and speed recovery and healing. Due to their antibiotic and antimicrobial qualities, as well as their energetic and spiritual virtues, indigenous medicine people used resins such as copal topically to treat almost any skin disorder and heal injuries, minor to severe. All aromatic tree resins have been used medicinally by indigenous peoples for internal and external treatments, from respiratory and kidney problems, to eczema.

Many traditional cultures, past and present, also burn tree resins to heal psychological and emotional imbalances. There are shamans in Ecuador who heal anxiety, depression, and sadness by exposing the patient to heavy incense resin smoke alone. Tree resins are dense materials, compromised of complex chemical compounds of highly medicinal qualities. Most tree resins are used to treat some type of mental or emotional disorder: anxiety, stress, agitation, frustration, anger, sadness, depression, self-doubt, worry, grief, even schizophrenia and bi-polar disorder in some cases. It is sage to say that most resins are often a good medicine for the nervous system.

Incense resins are also very popular substances that have been long used in a more practical sense. For thousands of years, resinous products have been created as waterproofing and

© 2016 Evan Purcell, Higher Mind Incense LLC. All Rights Reserved.

protective agents for woodworking, sacred objects, buildings, ships, and other crafts. Egyptians once used resins in mummification and for sealing objects that were placed in tombs to help them last for thousands of years.

Resin-based varnishes have been traditionally used throughout the Mediterranean, India, China, Japan, and many other parts of the world for ages. The liquid form of resin was commonly used in ship building to seal seams, and was commonly used by many navies of antiquity. To this day, resins are the base of most commercial varnishes, lacquers, and sealing agents. As they dry solid and are not water soluble, they are ideal for the job.

Often times the term ‘gum’ is used with incense resins, however, the two are actually of a different nature. True gums are in fact formed from disintegrating plant tissues, are water soluble, and contain high amounts of sugar. They can be extremely sticky, such as gum tragacanth from the Ashwaganda plant, which is commonly used as an unscented binder in incense crafting. Gums are usually derived from plants which grow in arid regions such as North Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. Like resins, they exude from cuts and surface wounds of the tree or plant, are allowed to dry, and are collected in the form of ‘tears.’ Frankincense and Myrrh are known as ‘gum resins,’ which share qualities of both a true gum and a resin. Gum Arabic, a common incense material, is a good example of a gum that is used commercially for a variety of practical purposes. It is an additive in adhesives, binders, lacquers, polishes, textiles, candy, cosmetics, medicine, incense, and much more.

The term ‘resin’ is used indiscriminately today. In many forms of commerce there are hard resins, soft resins, varnish resins, balsams, gum resins, damar resins, and many others. Resins are used in cosmetics, construction, home improvement products, chewing gum, modern and alternative medicine, woodworking, printing, paper making, and many other industries. Luckily for us, we’re dealing with incense resins, which is a much more refined group that is used in perfume, incense crafting, or burned by themselves as incense.

As we can see, tree resins are a very important gift from nature that have been utilized by nearly every culture for a vast variety of purposes. Resins are created to protect the trees and in the same way are used to protect us, our spirits, our energy fields, our bodies, and our crafts. They have the potential to lift us up emotionally, give us inner strength, and help us overcome difficult emotions and ungroundedness. Whether used for waterproofing the bow of a canoe, or banishing a dark entity, the tree resins of the world continue to be of service to the human family, and the Tree People who produce them should be shown respect, honor, and gratitude for this precious, lasting gift.

Some of the most popular incense resins of the Earth are frankincense, myrrh, copal, dragon’s blood, benzoin, palo santo, mastic, dammar, and amber (fossilized resin). For most of these resins, many varieties can be found, with a wide range of different qualities. Some of the most common resins that can be found in North America are pine, juniper, fir, spruce, and cedar.

© 2016 Evan Purcell, Higher Mind Incense LLC. All Rights Reserved.