The Association Of Incenses, How were they formulated beyond the basics? Options

I do a lot of work blending and experimenting with my own incenses. It started with just some planetary incenses and combining them for different effects and to see what influence they hold on ritual. Recently I've been branching out more and more in what I use and experiment with.

I used some of the traditionally listed incenses, but I loved Crowley's more freeform method from 777, with such things as "all evil odours" for Saturn or "all generous odours" for Jupiter. As a system I prefer that, and it makes the incenses make sense to me. I'm the type that always asked why things were associated, cause not all the connections people drew made sense to me, but his "all _____ odours" do. But that brings me to the question of this post.

How were the Aleph-beth incenses figured out? With the seven planetary letters it is easy enough, but what about the rest? In some cases a scent for a letter matches the planet that the letter rules the sign of...hard to phrase. So Samekh is Sagitarrius, and Aloes is listed as the scent, Sag is ruled by Jupiter, and Aloes is a Jovial scent. Is that all that is done to decipher what scents belong to what letter, or is there another method/system I'm not aware of?

Upon entering into and apprehending the hebrew letters as well as the sephiroth, through pathworking, meditation, etc., those things which resonate with their energies become self-evident. I have experienced this first hand with some of the letters. So my guess is that long long ago, mystics of various traditions did the research themselves. There is, however, supposedly a process of 'binding' such things to oneself such that they gain the magickal efficacy that they purportedly have; in 'full' as it were, as one's mystical connection to it becomes more fully realized in a conscious way. Until they they function largely on the unconscious levels, still workable, but less effective in comparison.

peace

Check out my class lesson on Books of Power. One of the lesson posts has each hebrew letter and its corresponding scent/s.

From a shamanistic point of view...I've always journeyed/meditated on the substance to ascertain its associations, etc. This method has never failed me before but to each their own. Again, you end up taking for granted what is published in any old book as to what to use. Since you are doing this operation and we are personally linked to our work...violet to me may be fine whereas wood betony would be better for someone else. In this wonderful age of too much info we rely, still, on others for our needs. How do you 'feel' about it? You must learn to be in tune with yourself and your environment in order for this to work...other than that...find one or a couple of tried and true source books out there and stay consistent. Incense and scents are oft times reliquated to a back burner in Magic. What a shame! Keep a Happy Thought! (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

I do a lot of work blending and experimenting with my own incenses. It started with just some planetary incenses and combining them for different effects and to see what influence they hold on ritual. Recently I've been branching out more and more in what I use and experiment with.

I used some of the traditionally listed incenses, but I loved Crowley's more freeform method from 777, with such things as "all evil odours" for Saturn or "all generous odours" for Jupiter. As a system I prefer that, and it makes the incenses make sense to me. I'm the type that always asked why things were associated, cause not all the connections people drew made sense to me, but his "all _____ odours" do. But that brings me to the question of this post.

How were the Aleph-beth incenses figured out? With the seven planetary letters it is easy enough, but what about the rest? In some cases a scent for a letter matches the planet that the letter rules the sign of...hard to phrase. So Samekh is Sagitarrius, and Aloes is listed as the scent, Sag is ruled by Jupiter, and Aloes is a Jovial scent. Is that all that is done to decipher what scents belong to what letter, or is there another method/system I'm not aware of?

I'd seen a method of combining planetary scents, according to their position on The Tree of Life and the flow of the path by which the two Sephiroth are connected. I.E. A base scent of majority parts corresponding to Geburah, and Mars with another scent corresponding to Binah and Saturn at lesser parts, because the flow of the path ruled by Cheth is positive when flowing downward. This combination thereby increases the potency of the effects of both incense due to their correlation in a positive position on The Tree of Life.

(I know this is an old post)

If you are looking for historical accuracies.

Most of the associations written by authors these days are simply made up by them.
If you want to check for accuracies you have to refer to history books of that particular plant & its uses & their geographic origin .

For starters you have to study which plants are "Old World plants" vs "New World plants".
For example certain authors claim tobacco is associated to Geburah. But how do they know that? When in fact tobacco is a New World plant and was not known to the Old World until Christopher Columbus introduced it to Europe.

Or how about cinnamon. Which comes from Asia. Certain authors claim their recipe is "ancient" but has cinanamon as one of their ingredients. You have to find that author's claim some what dubious.

I recall one author (I think it was Conway) who claimed of an "ancient" Irish potatoe Godess. But upon examination you find out potatoes didnt originate in Ireland. It originated in the New World.

Now of course this doesnt mean you cant find your own correspondences through trial and error.

Good points. An Incan potato goddess might make more sense.