Nag champa is a popular Indian scent used in incense, soaps, lotions, scented oils, and candles. It has a heavy and earthy aroma and is associated with the hippie counterculture. It is made with plumeria and a resin extracted from the Ailanthus tree. It is used in temples and is readily available in health food stores and Asian markets.
Nag champa is an Indian perfume famously used in incense, although it also appears in soaps, lotions, scented oils, and candles, among other things. Many people think of this scent when they think of incense, as the smell is so ubiquitous and is quite popular with many people around the world. It is especially closely associated with the hippie counterculture community, since many people traveled to India in the 1960s, where they acquired a taste for its distinctive smell.
This incense is part of a family of Indian scents known as champa incenses, because they all resemble the champa flower, better known to Westerners as plumeria. Many champa incenses also include plumeria as an ingredient, taking advantage of its rich, sweet and heavy scent. Nag champa traditionally also includes a resin extracted from the Ailanthus tree, an Asian native, along with sandalwood.
People who have smelled nag champa often comment on its very heavy and earthy aroma. It also has lighter notes than sandalwood. Because the scent of this incense can be very heavy, many people like to burn it in a well-ventilated room to ensure it doesn’t become cloying. Many Indian companies make sticks that include this scent, which tend to burn for around 30 minutes, and incense is also available in coils and cones for people who prefer these formats.
In India, nag champa is used in many temples as an incense stick, or agarbatti as they are known in India. Joss sticks are burned as offerings in front of statues of deities and tend to create a very special atmosphere in temples. Worshipers typically leave offerings of food, handicrafts, and flowers when they pray, to further cultivate the goodwill of the gods. Joss sticks are also burned on home altars.
Since this is such a well-known incense, it is typically very readily available. Health food stores and other establishments that cater to the counterculture typically carry it, and it’s also available in Indian and Asian markets. Buyers can recognize good quality incense by its grayish color and strong earthy scent, which is evident even before the incense is burned.
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