"also ""wu"" and ""tongji"" shamans, may perform services within these temples. Shenist temples are usually small and decorated with traditional figures on their roofs (dragons and deities), although some evolve into significant structures. Chinese temples can be found throughout Mainland China, Taiwan and also where Chinese expatriate communities settled over centuries. An old name in English for Chinese traditional temples is ""joss house"". ""Joss"" is an Anglicized spelling of the Portuguese word for ""god"", ""deus"". ""Joss house"" was in common use in English in western North America during frontier times, when joss houses were a common feature of Chinatowns. The"
"particularly appreciated by Taoists, and it therefore gained the name ""jiangzhenxiang"" meaning ""the incense that summons the Perfected Ones to descend among us"". Historical records however used two similar terms, ""jiangzhenxiang"" and ""jiangzhen"", which may have been two different products. Lakawood was also once referred to as ""Tanarius major"" in some English sources. The wood has been used as incense in China from an early period, and it was said to be particularly favoured by the Taoists. It is powdered and mixed with other substances to make incense, commonly in the form of joss sticks. It was first mentioned in"
"Deus Deus () is Latin for ""god"" or ""deity"". Latin ""deus"" and ""dīvus"" ""divine"", are descended from Proto-Indo-European *""deiwos"", ""celestial"" or ""shining"", from the same root as ""*Dyēus"", the reconstructed chief god of the Proto-Indo-European pantheon. In Classical Latin, ""deus"" (feminine ""dea"") was a general noun referring to a deity, while in technical usage a ""divus"" or ""diva"" was a figure who had become divine, such as a divinized emperor. In Late Latin, ""Deus"" came to be used mostly for the Christian God. It was inherited by the Romance languages in French ""Dieu"", Spanish ""Dios"", Portuguese and Galician ""Deus"", Italian"
"may be termed joss sticks, especially in parts of East Asia, South Asia and Southeast Asia. Among ethnic Chinese and Chinese-influenced communities these are traditionally burned at temples, before the threshold of a home or business, before an image of a religious divinity or local spirit, or in shrines, large and small, found at the main entrance of every village. Here the earth god is propitiated in the hope of bringing wealth and health to the village. They can also be burned in front of a door or open window as an offering to heaven, or the devas. The word"
"originally an adjective meaning ""celestial"" or ""shining"", which is a (not synchronic Sanskrit) vrddhi derivative from the root ""*diw"" meaning ""to shine"", especially as the day-lit sky. The feminine form of ""*deiwos"" is ""*deiwih"", which descends into Indic languages as ""devi"", in that context meaning ""female deity"". Also deriving from ""*deiwos"", and thus cognates of ""deva"", are Lithuanian Dievas (Latvian Dievs, Prussian Deiwas), Germanic Tiwaz (seen in English """"Tue""sday"") and the related Old Norse Tivar (gods), and Latin ""deus"" ""god"" and ""divus"" ""divine"", from which the English words ""divine"", ""deity"", French ""dieu"", Portuguese ""deus"", Spanish ""dios"" and Italian ""dio"", also"
"is the Latin word for deity, ""deus"". The Latin word is also continued in English ""divine"", ""deity"", and the original Germanic word remains visible in ""Tuesday"" (""Day of Tīwaz"") and Old Norse ""tívar"", which may be continued in the toponym ""Tiveden"" (""Wood of the Gods"", or of Týr). The following names derive from the related ""*deiwos"": Estonian ""Tharapita"" bears similarity to ""Dyaus Pita"" in name, although it has been interpreted as being related to the god Thor. Although some of the more iconic reflexes of Dyeus are storm deities, such as Zeus and Jupiter, this is thought to be a"
"Singapore, or Malaysia, where they celebrate the Ghost Festival, large, pillar-like dragon incense sticks are sometimes used. These generate so much smoke and heat that they are only burned outside. Chinese incense sticks for use in popular religion are generally odorless or only use the slightest trace of jasmine or rose, since it is the smoke, not the scent, which is important in conveying the prayers of the faithful to heaven. They are composed of the dried powdered bark of a non-scented species of cinnamon native to Cambodia, ""Cinnamomum cambodianum"". Inexpensive packs of 300 are often found for sale in"
"up and perforated at one end to hold the incense. They serve to catch the ash of the burning incense stick. In Taoist and Buddhist temples, the inner spaces are scented with thick coiled incense, which are either hung from the ceiling or on special stands. Worshipers at the temples light and burn sticks of incense. Individual sticks of incense are then vertically placed into individual censers. The history of censers in Chinese culture probably began in the late Eastern Zhou Dynasty (770–256 BCE). The Chinese words meaning ""censer"" are compounds of ""lu"" ( or ""brazier; stove; furnace""), which originated"
"incense burner (censer) similar to the Somali Dabqaad. It is customary in many Arab countries to pass bakhoor among the guests in the ""majlis"" ('congregation'). This is done as a gesture of hospitality. For over two thousand years, the Chinese have used incense in religious ceremonies, ancestor veneration, Traditional Chinese medicine, and daily life. Agarwood (""chénxiāng"") and sandalwood (""tánxiāng"") are the two most important ingredients in Chinese incense. Along with the introduction of Buddhism in China came calibrated incense sticks and incense clocks. The first known record is by poet Yu Jianwu (487-551): ""By burning incense we know the o'clock"
"Lithuanian ""Dievas""). The name ""Deivos"" was abandoned when the Slavs, in line with the parallel developments in Proto-Indo-Iranian religion, shifted the meaning of the Indo-European descriptor of heavenly deities (Avestan ""daeva"", Old Church Slavonic ""div"", both going back to Proto-Indo-European *""deiwos"", ""celestial"") to the designation of evil entities, and began to describe gods by the term for both ""wealth"" and its ""givers"" (Avestan ""baga"", Old Church Slavonic ""bog""). At first the term ""Deivos"" was replaced with the term for ""clouds"", cf. Slavic ""Nebo"". In modern Slavic Native Faith, Rod is largely aniconic. Traditional iconography shows Rod governing the four elements:"
"else in common. One common motif is incense as a form of sacrificial offering to a deity. Such use was common in Judaic worship and remains in use for example in the Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican churches, Taoist and Buddhist Chinese ""jingxiang"" (敬香 ""offer incense [to ancestors/gods]), etc. Aphrodisiac Incense has been used as an aphrodisiac in some cultures. Both ancient Greek and ancient Egyptian mythology suggest the usage of incense by goddesses and nymphs. Incense is thought to heighten sexual desires and sexual attraction. Time-keeper Incense clocks are used to time social, medical and religious practices in parts of"
"major changes in the history and production of incense. Senkō incense sticks became more widely available to the general public as production method shifted to an industrial scale. At the start of the 20th century, mainichi-kō, or ""everyday incense"" was developed by the master craftsman Kitō Yujiro during the Meiji and Taishō era. Today companies such as Nippon Kodo, Shoyeido, and Baieido are some of the most established suppliers for incense. The fragrant woods agarwood and sandalwood are the main ingredients used in Japanese incense. Agarwood is produced in certain parts of southeast Asia such as Vietnam. Japanese incense companies"
"rejected alternative terms such as ""Tiān"" (天, ""Heaven"") and ""Shàngdì"" (上帝, ""Supreme Emperor""). ""Catholicism"" is most commonly rendered as ""Tiānzhǔjiào"" (天主教, ""Religion of the Lord of Heaven""). An individual Catholic is ""Tiānzhŭjiào tú""; ""tú"" includes the meanings ""disciple"" and ""believer."" The same ""hanja"" characters are used in the Korean words for Catholicism and Catholic believer. Tianzhu (Chinese name of God) Tianzhu (Chinese: 天主, Tiānzhǔ), meaning ""Heavenly Master"" or ""Lord of Heaven,"" was the Chinese word used by the Jesuit China missions to designate God. The word first appeared in Michele Ruggieri's Chinese translation of the ""Decalogo"", or ""Ten Commandments"". In"
"the stacte here mentioned was the gum known as Benzoin, or Gum Benjamin, which is an important ingredient in the incense now used in churches and mosks, and is the produce of another storax-tree (""Styrax benzoin"") that grows in Java and Sumatra."" Benzoin has a history steeped in antiquity and was once employed by the ancient Egyptians in the art of perfumery and incense. The apothecary of Shemot (""Book of Exodus"") would have been familiar with its aromatic uses. All the compounds identified in benzoin resin were detected in an archaeological organic residue from an Egyptian ceramic censer, thus proving"
"Chinese supermarkets. Though they contain no sandalwood, they often include the Chinese character for sandalwood on the label, as a generic term for incense. Highly scented Chinese incense sticks are used by some Buddhists. These are often quite expensive due to the use of large amounts of sandalwood, agarwood, or floral scents used. The sandalwood used in Chinese incenses does not come from India, its native home, but rather from groves planted within Chinese territory. Sites belonging to Tzu Chi, Chung Tai Shan, Dharma Drum Mountain, Xingtian Temple, or City of Ten Thousand Buddhas do not use incense. Incense sticks,"
"or plants. Dievas Lithuanian Dievas, Latvian Dievs, Latgalian Dīvs, Prussian Deywis, Yotvingian Deivas was the supreme god in the Baltic mythology and one of the most important deities together with Perkūnas. Dievas is a direct successor of the Proto-Indo-European supreme god *Dyēus of the root ""*deiwo-"". Its Proto-Baltic form was *""Deivas"". In recent Lithuanian and Latvian, this word may refer to the deity of any kind (Pagan, Christian, fictional and the like). In English, Dievas may be used as a word to describe the God (or, the supreme god) in the pre-Christian religion of Balts, where Dievas was understood to"
"a mark of devotion and respect. Sandalwood, along with agarwood, is the most commonly used incense material by the Chinese and Japanese in worship and various ceremonies. However, some sects of Taoists, following the Ming Dynasty Taoist Manual, do not use sandalwood (as well as benzoin resin, frankincense, foreign produced) incense and instead either use agarwood, or better still ""Acronychia pedunculata"", in worship. In Korean Shamanism, sandalwood is considered the Tree of Life. Zoroastrians offer sandalwood twigs to the ""afarganyu,"" the urn in which the fire is kept at the fire temple (called ""agiyari"" in Gujarati and ""dar-e mehr"" in"
"Devarajah Devarajah (""English:"" Divine King or God King) is an ancient and uncommon surname of Indo-European origin. See Sacred Kingship Dēva derives from the Proto-Indo-European (PIE) word, *deiwos, originally an adjective meaning ""celestial"" or ""shining"", which is a PIE (not synchronic Sanskrit) vrddhi derivative from the root *diw meaning ""to shine"", especially as the day-lit sky(words such as the English ""Day"", Spanish ""Día"", Sanksirt ""Div/Dina"", Lithuanian ""Diena"" stem from *diw - literally the day-lit sky). Zeus, Týr, Jupiter, Dyauṣ Pitār and the names of various other Indo-European gods are closely linked derivatives of the PIE *deiwos, specifically from Dyeus and"
"stick. Many of the current incense companies have been in existence for more than 300 years. The word incense (""kō"") in Japan is written in the Chinese Kangxi radical 186 composed of nine strokes, 香, which can also be expanded up to 27 strokes 馫. A literal translation is ""fragrance"", though in context it is understood as ""incense"". The word 道 ""dō"" may be added, which means ""way"", both literally (street) and metaphorically (a stream of life experience), to give kōdō: the ""way of incense"", which involves using incense within a structure of codified conduct. ""Nihon Shoki"", a book of"
"of the night, With graduated candles we confirm the tally of the watches."" The use of these incense timekeeping devices spread from Buddhist monasteries into Chinese secular society. Incense-stick burning is an everyday practice in traditional Chinese religion. There are many different types of stick used for different purposes or on different festive days. Many of them are long and thin. Sticks are mostly coloured yellow, red, or more rarely, black. Thick sticks are used for special ceremonies, such as funerals. Spiral incense, with exceedingly long burn times, is often hung from temple ceilings. In some states, such as Taiwan,"
"""incense carrier"", and from which is derived the English equivalent, ""thurifer"". This comes from the Latin words ""thus"", meaning incense, and ""fero"", meaning ""carry"". There is a comparable term in Spanish, a ""turiferario"". One tradition has it that the use of a swinging censer in the Santiago de Compostela Cathedral began in the 11th century. Arriving pilgrims were tired and unwashed. It was also believed that incense smoke had a prophylactic effect at the time of plagues and epidemics. Incense burning is also an important part of the liturgy, being an ""oration to God"", or form of prayer. In the"
"deities. Jingxiang Jìngxiāng (敬香 ""offering incense with respect""), shàngxiāng (上香 ""offering incense""), bàishén (拜神 ""worshipping gods""), is a ritual of offering incense accompanied by tea and or fruits in Chinese traditional religion. In ancestral religious worship it's ""jìngzǔ"" (敬祖 ""veneration of the ancestor"") or ""bàizǔ"" 拜祖 (""worship of the ancestor""). It is observed by a devotee holding joss incense with both hands in front of an altar while praying or meditating. For added respect the devotee or descendent is expected to kneel during and after placing the incense in the urn or at the altar. Jiangxiang is practiced in diffused"
"for human beings who gain merit through an ethical life, where they become guardian deities and live blissfully in heaven, but are also subject to death when their merit is lost. The English language word ""deity"" derives from Old French ""deité,"" the Latin ""deitatem"" or ""divine nature"", coined by Augustine of Hippo from ""deus"" (""god""). Deus is related through a common Proto-Indo-European (PIE) origin to ""*deiwos"". This root yields the ancient Indian word ""Deva"" meaning ""to gleam, a shining one"", from *div- ""to shine"", as well as Greek ""dios"" ""divine"" and Zeus; and Latin ""deus"" ""god"" (Old Latin ""deivos""). Deva"
"Tianzhu (Chinese name of God) Tianzhu (Chinese: 天主, Tiānzhǔ), meaning ""Heavenly Master"" or ""Lord of Heaven,"" was the Chinese word used by the Jesuit China missions to designate God. The word first appeared in Michele Ruggieri's Chinese translation of the ""Decalogo"", or ""Ten Commandments"". In 1584, Ruggieri and Matteo Ricci published their first catechism, ""Tiānzhǔ shílù"" (天主實錄, ""The Veritable Record of the Lord of Heaven""). Matteo Ricci later wrote a catechism entitled ""Tiānzhŭ Shíyì"" (天主實義, ""The True Meaning of the Lord of Heaven""). Following the Chinese rites controversy, the term ""Tiānzhŭ"" was officially adopted by the Pope in 1715, who"
"Dennis Dennis or Denis is a first or last name from the Greco-Roman name Dionysius, via one of the Christian saints named Dionysius. The name came from Dionysus, the Greek god of ecstatic states, particularly those produced by wine, which is sometimes said to be derived from the Greek Dios (Διός, ""of Zeus"") and Nysos or Nysa (Νῦσα), where the young god was raised. Dionysus (or Dionysos; also known as Bacchus in Roman mythology and associated with the Italic Liber), the Thracian god of wine, represents not only the intoxicating power of wine, but also its social and beneficent influences."
"into censers on top of the ash since the sticks used normally lack a supporting core that does not burn. The formula and scent of the incense sticks used in various temples throughout Asia vary widely. Incense has been employed in worship by Christians since antiquity, particularly in the Eastern Christian churches, the Roman Catholic Church/Eastern Catholic, Old Catholic/Liberal Catholic Churches and some Anglican and Lutheran Churches. Incense is being increasingly used among some other Christian groups as well, for example, the ""Book of Worship"" of The United Methodist Church calls for incense in the Evening Praise and Prayer service."
"and ritual, dating from around the time of the Nara and Heian periods (8th–12th century). The word ""Shinto"" (""Way of the Gods"") was adopted, originally as ""Jindō"" or ""Shindō"", from the written Chinese ""Shendao"" (神道, ), combining two ""kanji"": , meaning ""spirit"" or ""kami""; and , ""path"", meaning a philosophical path or study (from the Chinese word ""dào""). The oldest recorded usage of the word ""Shindo"" is from the second half of the 6th century. ""Kami"" is rendered in English as ""spirits"", ""essences"", or ""gods"", and refers to the energy generating the phenomena. Since the Japanese language does not distinguish"
"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"", the Chinese word ""xiang"" () also means ""fragrance; scent; aroma; perfume; spice"". The sinologist and historian Edward H. Schafer said that in medieval China: Words meaning ""censer; incense burner"" are compounds of ""lu"" ( or ) ""brazier; stove; furnace"", which was a category of ancient Chinese bronzes. ""Xianglu"" (香爐, with ""incense"") means ""incense burner; censer"" in general. ""Xunlu"" (熏爐, with ""smoke; fumigate; cure (food) with smoke"", or 薰爐, with ""fragrance (of plants); an aromatic grass,"
"for long periods of use, and often hung from the roofs of homes and temples. In fact one of the side jobs of the time keeper in ancient Chinese cities was to mark calibrated incense with individual lines, to denote length of a burn for sale to the public. This was done to supplement the individual's often meager incomes. In Chinese medicine doctors would make multiple partial breaks on an incense stick as instructions to the patient such that the patient would take a dose of medication every time the incense has burned to one of these breaks. In Japan,"
"used for censing. A famous thurible is the huge ""Botafumeiro"" in Santiago de Compostela Cathedral, Spain The word ""thurible"" comes from the Old French ""thurible"", which in turn is derived from the Latin term ""thuribulum"". The Latin ""thuribulum"" is further formed from the root ""thus"", meaning incense. ""Thus"" is an alteration of the Greek word ""θύος"" (thuos), which is derived from ""θύειν"" (thuein) ""to sacrifice"". Due to the ceremonial use of incense, its cultural importance in western Catholicism can be seen e.g. in the introduction of a incense smelling fragrance ""Avignon"" in 2002. Avignon was created for Comme des Garçons"
"Pair of Incense Boxes in the Shape of Mandarin Ducks The Metropolitan Museum of Art has a pair of 17th-century Japanese lacquered wood incense boxes in the shape of mandarin ducks in its collection. The pair of boxes (""Kōgō"") were used to hold sticks of incense, used in Zen Buddhist ceremonies. The two boxes are shaped like mandarin ducks (""Aix galericulata""), which were considered symbols of marital bliss and fidelity. Both the ducks and their stand are made from wood covered in gold lacquer. The top of the stand is decorated with groups of pond plants. The ducks were donated"
"cups of two statues. The English word ""libation"" derives from the Latin ""libatio"", an act of pouring, from the verb ""libare"", ""to taste, sip; pour out, make a libation"" (Indo-European root ""*leib-"", ""pour, make a libation""). In ancient Roman religion, the libation was an act of worship in the form of a liquid offering, most often unmixed wine and perfumed oil. The Roman god ""Liber Pater"" (""Father Liber""), later identified with the Greek Dionysus or Bacchus, was the divinity of ""libamina"", ""libations,"" and ""liba"", sacrificial cakes drizzled with honey. In Roman art, the libation is shown performed at an altar,"
"is nicknamed ""Pulau Dewata"" (Indonesian: ""islands of devata or island of gods""), because of its vivid Hindu culture and traditions. In Bali, there are many offerings dedicated to hyang, the guardian spirits associated with devata. Devata Deva is the Hindu term for deity; however, devata (Devanagari: देवता; Khmer: ទេវតា (""tevoda""); Javanese, Balinese, Sundanese, Malay and Indonesian: ""dewata""; Batak languages: ""debata"" (Toba), ""dibata"" (Karo), ""naibata"" (Simalungun); Philippine languages: ""diwata"") is a smaller, more focused deva. The term ""devata"" can also mean deva (pl: devatas, meaning the gods). There are male and female devatas. There are many kinds of devatas: vanadevatas (forest"