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Jupiter Incense Pastilles

Jupiter Incense Pastilles
Today being Thursday is a perfect day to finally complete my Jupiter planetary incense pastilles!
This special incense does not have the exact same formula like I had created originally (due to some limits on import of certain botanicals outside of North America). But it has lots of great new ingredients that keep it in the same spirit. The main components are piñon pine resin, juniper berries, spruce pitch, fir needles from Canada and other forest treasures. It is very forest-like in line with the character of Jupiter and it being so closely aligned with plant medicine and teaching, hunting and forests.
Jupiter Incense Pastilles
After pounding and compounding all the materials, which was a process that was stretched out over a month or even more - it was time to finally put them all together. They smelled much better after marring for a while!
Jupiter Incense Pastilles
I decided to add some colour to these pastilles, even though I like to usually keep my incense very natural and real looking. It's been a while since I've made coloured incense and I finally got some colourful minerals on my hand. This shimmering blue is just the perfect colour for this planet.
Jupiter Incense Pastilles
Here is a shimmering filet of incense, all ready to get cut into pieces...
Jupiter Incense Pastilles
Except it is still very sticky incense "dough". So I had to wait 24hrs between cutting the two sets of lines (note my attempt at the very bottom left corner).
Jupiter Incense Pastilles
Here it is finally cut up into its final pieces, and waiting to be dried completely before being packaged. It is meant to be burnt on hot charcoal, or warmed gently in an aromatherapy diffuser (I recommend placing a tiny piece of aluminum foil because it will otherwise stick to your vessel and create a mess).

Planetary Prescription Incense

Incense As Medicine
Today is an especially magical day, being the midway point between the Vernal Equinox and the Summer Solstice. So that's a great timing to work on new incense and share with you what I've been brewing these past nine months (there has been plenty of incensing happening lately!).

It's been my life-long mission to create incense for the seven ancient planets. I am finally coming close to completing this series to my satisfaction. So far, I only liked the Jupiter incense I've created many years ago, in the very beginning of my incense path. I made a few other incense pastilles but I have taken a break from this technique for many years.

This year I've been catching up and refining my incense-making skills big time. Partly because the space allows it, and partly because I find the actual making of incense very calming, centring, sensual and magical all around. Incense to me is the purest form of perfume. Its most natural state. The manipulation of the raw materials is minimal. The ingredients may be exotic or simple. Lastly there is the actual use of incense, which is healing and transformative on so many planes - physical, psychological and spiritual.

The planetary incense is mostly botanical (except the lunar one, which has a tiny bit of ambergris in it). They are resin-based incense with added herbs, spices and essential oils, and are formed into small candy-like resin crystals. The Saturn ones are Nerikoh - a Japanese style soft-candy incense that is mostly wood and spice based, and glued together with honey or dried plums. Nerikoh were originally compounded as edible medicine - the honey there to preserve as well as ease the consumption of these remedies' rather bitter, acrid and hot flavours.

Solar Incense Pastilles:
Heart opening, sweet, warm and healing.
Includes: Frankincense, Gold Copal, Chamomile, Saffron

Moon Drops Incense Pastilles:
Mysterious, watery, dark womb, new beginnings.
Black copal, Sandalwood, Ambergris, Jasmine, Artemisia

Mercury Incense Pastilles:
Swift, uplifting, communication, ideas, mental clarity, intellectual connection. 
Mastic, Elemi, Mimosa, Yuzu, Sandarac, Sandalwood

Noga (Venus) Incense Pastilles:
Inspires love, beauty and harmony. 
Includes: Galbanum, Benzoin, Roses, Labdanum, Myrtle, Tonka Bean

Mars Incense Pastilles:
Protective, powerful, transformative, healing that comes from destruction and breaking down of old and unnecessary things/thoughts/desires. 
Dragon's Blood, Ponderosa Pine, Tobacco, Palo Santo 

Jupiter Incense Pastilles:  
The teacher, especially plant teachings, healing, cleansing, brings luck and abundance. 
Pinon Pine, Star Anise, Juniper, Sage 

Saturn Nerikoh (Soft Incense Pastilles):
Discipline, analogue to the world and the physical world's lessons, Gives form and manifestation to ideas, Wisdom. 
Myrrh, Patchouli, Cypress, Spices, Vetiver, Agarwood

As if closing a circle, I'm now running very low on the Jupiter incense, so will have to make some more (it's been in the planning for about a month, with all the ingredients measured and set up, just waiting to be pounded, compounded and formed into a very special kind of incense candy!). More on that in the next post! 

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