Incense in India

Incense being sold in a market in Bangalore

India is the world's main incense producing country,[1][2] and is also a major exporter to other countries.[3] In India, incense sticks are called Agarbatti (Agar: from Dravidian[4][5] probably Tamil அகில் (agil), அகிர் (agir),[6] Sanskrit varti, meaning "stick".[7] An older term "Dhūpavarti" is more commonly used in ancient and medieval texts which encompasses various types of stick incense recipes.[7] Incense is part of the cottage industry in India and important part of many religions in the region since ancient times. The method of incense making with a bamboo stick as a core originated in India at the end of the 19th century, largely replacing the rolled, extruded or shaped method which is still used in India for dhoop.

Dhūpa (incense) and gandhā (perfumes) are two of five accessories of religious worship in Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism; others being puṣpa (flowers), dīpa (lamp) and nivedya (food). Worshipping deities with these five accessories is generally considered as a way for achieving the four ends of human life; dharma, artha, kama and moksha.[8]

  1. ^ "Incense Sticks". techno-preneur.ne. September 2009.
  2. ^ "The Current Scenario of Indian Incense Sticks Market and Their Impact on the Indian Economy". ResearchGate.
  3. ^ Raj Chengappa (September 15, 1981). "Incense sticks: The fading fragrance". indiatoday.intoday.in.
  4. ^ Burrow, T.; M. B. Emeneau (1984). A Dravidian etymological dictionary (2 ed.). Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press. p. 4. Ta. akil (in cpds. akiṛ-) eagle-wood, Aquilaria agallocha; the drug agar obtained from the tree; akku eagle-wood. Ma. akil aloe wood, A. agallocha. Ka. agil the balsam tree which yields bdellium, Amyris agallocha; the dark species of Agallochum; fragrance. Tu. agilů a kind of tree; kari agilů Agallochum. / Cf. Skt. aguru-, agaru-; Pali akalu, akaḷu, agaru, agalu, agaḷu; Turner, CDIAL, no. 49. DED 14.
  5. ^ Turner, R. L. (1962–66). A Comparative Dictionary of the Indo-Aryan Languages. London: Oxford University Press. p. 3. agaru m.n. ' fragrant Aloe -- tree and wood, Aquilaria agallocha ' lex., aguru -- R. [← Drav. Mayrhofer EWA i 17 with lit.] Pa. agalu -- , aggalu -- m., akalu -- m. ' a partic. ointment '; Pk. agaru -- , agaluya -- , agaru(a) -- m.n. ' Aloe -- tree and wood '; K. agara -- kāth ' sandal -- wood '; S. agaru m. ' aloe ', P. N. agar m., A. B. agaru, Or. agarū, H. agar, agur m.; G. agar, agru n. ' aloe or sandal -- wood '; M. agar m.n. ' aloe ', Si. ayal (agil ← Tam. akil).
  6. ^ Shulman, David (2016). Tamil: A biography. Harvard University Press. pp. 19–20. We have ahalim [in Hebrew], probably derived directly from Tamil akil rather than from Sanskrit aguru, itself a loan from the Tamil (Numbers 24.8; Proverbs 7.17; Song of Songs 4.14; Psalms 45.9--the latter two instances with the feminine plural form ahalot. Akil is, we think, native to South India, and it is thus not surprising that the word was borrowed by cultures that imported this plant.
  7. ^ a b McHugh, James (29 November 2012). Sandalwood and Carrion: Smell in Indian Religion and Culture. OUP USA. p. 132. ISBN 9780199916320. Retrieved 29 November 2012.
  8. ^ Sociology of Religion in India (2001) - Page 287, M. G. Nayar