TSU FWEI SAN

Incense in Chinais traditionally used in a wide range ofChinese culturalactivities includingreligiousceremonies,ancestor veneration,traditional medicine, and in daily life.​​​‍​​‍​​​​‍​​‍‍ Known asxiang(Chinese:香;pinyin:xiāng;Wade–Giles:hsiang;lit.'fragrance'),incensewas used by the Chinese cultures starting from Neolithic times with it coming to greater prominence starting from theXia,Shang, andZhoudynasties. One study shows that during theHan dynasty(206 BC – AD 220)there was increased trade and acquisitions of more fragrant foreign incense materials when local incense materials were considered "poor man's incense". It reached its height during theSong dynastywith its nobility enjoying incense as a popular cultural pastime, to the extent of building rooms specifically for the use of incense ceremonies. Besides meaning "incense", theChinesewordxiang(香) also means "fragrance; scent; aroma; perfume; spice". The sinologist and historianEdward H. Schafersaid that in medieval China: there was little clear-cut distinction among drugs, spices, perfumes, and incenses – that is, among substances which nourish the body and those which nourish the spirit, those which attract a lover and those which attract a divinity. — The Golden Peaches of Samarkand, a Study of T'ang Exotics, Edward H. Schafer