Smudge stick

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A smudge stick is a bundle of dried herbs, most commonly white sage. Often other herbs or plants are used or added and the leaves are usually bound with string in a small bundle and dried. Some other herbs and spices that are often used include cilantro, cedar, lavender, and mugwort, none of which are native to the Americas. They have a strong pleasant aroma when burnt.

History

The term "smudge stick" entered the English language through Indigenous American Indian traditions in America via cultural exchange and were propagated in New Age traditions of shamanism. The binding of smudge sticks for many traditions was a sacred intentional process in and of itself. The process of employing scent in rites of purification, be it in censers, through burning incense or smudging (the process of using a smudge stick) is endemic throughout traditional rites captured by Ethnography, Anthropology and Sociology.

Usage

Smudge stick ceremonies are quite significant at aphelion (when the earth is furthest from the sun), perihelion (when the earth is closest to the sun), equinoxes, and solstices.

Smudging in Indigenous American peoples

Ojibway and Cree ceremonies often use smudges of sage, sweet grass, and/or juniper to cleanse with, and to give prayers to the Creator, or Gitche Manitou. Smudges with hot coals underneath can provide a lot of smoke for many hours or days to repel mosquitos and other insects.

See also

• Midewiwin
• rite
• process art
• Environmental metaphysics
• Moxibustion

External links

• About Smudging and Smudge Sticks

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Last updated on Wednesday February 06, 2008 at 21:33:26 PST (GMT -0800)
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