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Incense
Incense (Lat., incendere, ‘to burn’). Substances which produce a sweet scent when burned, and are thus used in worship. Among many such substances are aloe, sandalwood, myrrh, frank-incense, balsam, cedar, and juniper. In China, incense (hsiang) was used to enhance appreciation and thus (especially in Taoism) to assist in the realization of the Tao—though incense was also used to ward off evil spirits or disease. In India, incense is used as an act of homage to the divine manifestation, especially in a temple. In early Judaism, incense may have been associated with the smoke of sacrifice: the Heb. ketoret is derived from √ktr, ‘cause to smoke’, which may be the smoke from a sacrifice (1 Samuel 2. 15). In Christianity, incense first appears in Christian worship c.500.
Incense is an important part of Hindu offerings, both in the home and in the temple. It forms a part of the daily ritual in invoking the presence of God in preparation for worship. In Buddhism, this ritual was transferred to the representations of the Buddha (or bodhisattvas) as a part of dāna. |
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JOHN BOWKER. "Incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. JOHN BOWKER. "Incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Incense.html JOHN BOWKER. "Incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions. 1997. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O101-Incense.html |
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incense
incense The term is used of those woods and resins which give off a pleasant smell when burnt. Frankincense, or olibanum, is made from the resin of trees in southern Arabia. It was much used not only in pre-Christian pagan religions in sacrificial rites, but also in the tent of meeting (Exod. 40: 27) and in the Temple, where it symbolized the offering of prayer (Ps. 141: 2, Luke 1: 10). The Christian Church was reluctant to burn incense in the first three centuries on account of its use in the cult of the Roman emperor; a token offering of it was demanded of Christians as evidence of their patriotism—which for the Church could only be apostasy. Later generations were less inhibited and noticed that incense had been offered to the infant Jesus (Matt. 2: 11). In some Christian Churches persons and objects regarded as representing Christ were and still are censed in the Eucharist.
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W. R. F. BROWNING. "incense." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. W. R. F. BROWNING. "incense." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O94-incense.html W. R. F. BROWNING. "incense." A Dictionary of the Bible. 1997. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O94-incense.html |
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incense
in·cense1 • n. / ˈinˌsens/ a gum, spice, or other substance that is burned for the sweet smell it produces. ∎ the smoke or perfume of such a substance. • v. / inˈsens/ [tr.] perfume with incense or a similar fragrance: the aroma of cannabis incensed the air. DERIVATIVES: in·cen·sa·tion / ˌinsenˈsāshən/ n. ORIGIN: Middle English (originally as encense): from Old French encens (noun), encenser (verb), from ecclesiastical Latin incensum ‘something burned, incense,’ neuter past participle of incendere ‘set fire to,’ from in- ‘in’ + the base of candere ‘to glow.’ in·cense2 / inˈsens/ • v. [tr.] (usu. be incensed) make very angry: she was incensed by the accusations. |
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"incense." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "incense." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-incense.html "incense." The Oxford Pocket Dictionary of Current English. 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O999-incense.html |
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Incense
INCENSE
Frankincense and myrrh are taken from trees that grow in Dhufar, Oman, and in Hadramawt, Yemen. Recent archaeological discoveries confirm their export from about 3000 b.c.e. through an extensive commercial network. The trade, reaching as far as Rome and India, helped create considerable prosperity and interstate rivalry in southwest Arabia. Exports and prosperity declined when Rome made Christianity its official religion and the use of incense at funerals largely ceased. See also dhufar; hadramawt. BibliographyAllen, Calvin H., Jr. Oman: The Modernization of the Sultanate. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1987. malcolm c. peck |
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Peck, Malcolm C.. "Incense." Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. Peck, Malcolm C.. "Incense." Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. 2004. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3424601325.html Peck, Malcolm C.. "Incense." Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East and North Africa. 2004. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1G2-3424601325.html |
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incense
incense. Incense is used in many religious rites, the smoke being considered symbolic of prayer. There is no clear evidence of its Christian use until the last quarter of the 4th cent. The incensing of the altar, church, people, etc., is first recorded in the late 5th cent. in the E. and in the W. in the 9th cent. In the W. incense was long used only at solemn services, but since 1969 it has been more widely permitted, e.g. at any Eucharist. In the E. it is used at most services.
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E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-incense.html E. A. LIVINGSTONE. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church. 2000. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O95-incense.html |
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incense
incense perfume diffused by the burning of aromatic gums or spices. Incense was used in ancient Egypt, Greece, and Rome and is mentioned in the Old and the New Testaments. It is also found in the major religions of Asia. The Babylonians used it while praying in the 6th and 5th cent. BC and the Greeks used it as protection against demons during the 8th cent. BC The earliest clear record of its use in public worship in the Roman Catholic Church is c.500. |
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"incense." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. "incense." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-incense.html "incense." The Columbia Encyclopedia, 6th ed.. 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1E1-incense.html |
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incense
incense1 aromatic gum burnt to produce a sweet smell XIII; smoke of this XIV. ME. ansens, encens — (O)F. encens — ecclL. incensum, sb. use of n. of incensus, pp. of incendere set fire to, f. IN-1 + *candere cause to glow (candēre glow).
Hence vb. XIV. |
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T. F. HOAD. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-incense.html T. F. HOAD. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-incense.html |
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incense
incense2 †set on fire; inflame with wrath. XV. — OF. incenser, f. L. incens-, pp. stem of incendere (see prec.).
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Cite this article
T. F. HOAD. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. 26 May. 2012 <http://www.encyclopedia.com>. T. F. HOAD. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Encyclopedia.com. (May 26, 2012). http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-incense1.html T. F. HOAD. "incense." The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Etymology. 1996. Retrieved May 26, 2012 from Encyclopedia.com: http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1O27-incense1.html |
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