Incense

What is the Japanese Incense Ceremony?

The culture of incense appreciation in Japan began around A.D. 538. At the time it was an indulgence reserved for the Imperial Court or Buddhist ritual but it gradually evolved and gained a much wider appeal. The Japanese incense ceremony, or Kodo (the way of tea, in direct translation) developed during the Muromachi period (1336-1473) when the rules and principles of appreciating incense became known as "listening to incense" or monkoh.

Still a pastime reserved for the upper class, Kodo involved an orchestrated "listening" of incense that became like a game. With many different variations, the game involved people "listening" to different fragrances and then having to differentiate the various fragrances from one another from memory. It involved appreciation of tiny pieces of rare South East Asian woods heated over a small charcoal censer that was carefully passed from person to person. The participants would record their guesses using emblems unique to the game.

Kodo experienced a decline in popularity after the middle of the 19th century, when the Japanese shogunate government began to crumble, but has shown signs of revival. While the traditional Kodo games are reserved and quite formal, the ceremonial approach to appreciating fine fragrances is open to modern interpretation. Create your own game and discover a deeper level of understanding the world of fragrances.

Monkoh - Listening to Incense