Close-Up: China’s Xiāng — Das Incense in Hand, Sniff Your Way to Zen-Land

It’s an unruly little thing that could scream, murmur, and everything in between. Ultimate versus wanton, this almighty, sinful, polarizing piece of weaponry is in fact per fumus — “through smoke” or “perfume” in Latin. 

Perfumes Are a Taoist’s Best Friend

Chinese culture was built on three pillars: Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. And Taoism, dating as far back as third or fourth century BC, the jury’s still out on that one, pursued body-spirit harmony through xiāng. Practitioners saw a parallel between the transformation of solid incense to vaporized scents and that of mortal stagnation to spiritual awakening.

In essence, one-third of Chinese culture had deemed xiāng a salvation for centuries, when Communist China from 1949 onwards ruled it a decadent disgrace in the country’s not-so-distant past. Yet lo and behold, check out the Chanel No. 5-XXX dominating China’s Snuffleupagus market today.

Times they are a-changing.

Even Royalty, For Pete’s Sake

Indeed, xiāng was revered by those who were sick of the material and political games at hand. But guess what? It was equally sought after by feudalists.

Fragrant oils, flowers, sandalwood, and spices brought from the Silk Road were — for lack of a better word — rampant in the Chinese imperial court. Ministers from the Han dynasty (260 BC-220 AD) were required to aromatize their robes with incense made from cinnamon, clove, cassia, and star anise before meeting with the Emperor.

The most iconic celebrity fan of xiāng would be the original Dragon Lady, Empress Dowager Cixi (1835-1908), whose lifeline traveled from teenage concubine to mastermind behind the glory and downfall of China’s last dynasty, the Qing (1644-1911). Just on that unsolicited educational note. Among her favorites were jasmine, rose, orange blossom, and honeysuckle, which she applied both on her body and in her tea.

Girls (and Boys) Just Want to Have Xiāng

While Cixi’s xiāng-infused tea party in the Qing dynasty sounds all fine and dandy, cool kids hamming it up in the Tang (618-907) and Song (907-1279) dynasties enjoyed something fancier.

It was commonplace for people to place incense burners in their houses and by their bedsides. Women would douse themselves in nectars distilled from lily, lotus, and chrysanthemum, as depicted throughout classic Chinese literature and art. Naturally, social gatherings, especially among the high society, would include sniffing and appreciating special incenses.

These peers called it dòuxiāng (鬥香| “incense battle” in Chinese) as they rejoiced in incense making, spice identification, and poetry or art creation based on lauding that wonderful xiāng.

The art of smoking it up, anyone?