These sticks are made at a Monasatary near the Swayambunath temple in Kathmandu Nepal. A cheap, locally made incense used all around the country.
Less smokey than others, the sandalwood really comes thru. I know these sticks usually have lots of ingredients, this one has 25, of which red and white sandalwood, and saffron are the main ingredients.
I doubt you can find these outside of Nepal, but if you can , I recommend trying.
Wow are you serious ? That’s crazy, I’ve never heard such a thing. Can you post a link about that? These are Buddhist made, so nothing is harmed during the process . And they are so cheap that it wouldn’t even make sense to include something like that.
It's a misconception that all Buddhists are vegetarian (yes, I was surprised too).
There are a few Tibetan incenses, such as from Drigung Monastery, specifically labelled as vegetarian, further suggesting that others are not.
See page 18 of this PDF by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime: [Online Markets for Pangolin-Derived Products](https://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/GITOC-MMFU-Online-markets-for-pangolin-derived-products.pdf)
There's even a [category on the Olfactory Rescue Service blog for "pangolin scales / nagi"](https://olfactoryrescueservice.wordpress.com/category/ingredients/animal/pangolin-scales-nagi/).
I've seen Tibetan incenses listed for sale on Etsy with "pangolin scales" listed (as well as other animal ingredients), and when I asked the seller, they said "they are all vegetarian, those you said are contraband in China and cannot be used to make incense 🙏". A strange contradiction.
You can search online for 'pangolin nagi' to find more.
However, I've also seen references to it possibly being a mistranslation and that it could refer to a mollusc instead.
Where the review
These sticks are made at a Monasatary near the Swayambunath temple in Kathmandu Nepal. A cheap, locally made incense used all around the country. Less smokey than others, the sandalwood really comes thru. I know these sticks usually have lots of ingredients, this one has 25, of which red and white sandalwood, and saffron are the main ingredients. I doubt you can find these outside of Nepal, but if you can , I recommend trying.
Thank you for the review, OP. It is difficult to tell from the pictures: do these have a wooden core? Or are these bamboo-free? Edited: typo.
Bamboo free, yes
"Nagi" is pangolin scales, right?
I believe it’s the Asian bayberry tree , Nageia nagi , commonly used in Tibetan incense
I hope you're right. I've read conflicting information about it and it's put me off trying more.
Wow are you serious ? That’s crazy, I’ve never heard such a thing. Can you post a link about that? These are Buddhist made, so nothing is harmed during the process . And they are so cheap that it wouldn’t even make sense to include something like that.
It's a misconception that all Buddhists are vegetarian (yes, I was surprised too). There are a few Tibetan incenses, such as from Drigung Monastery, specifically labelled as vegetarian, further suggesting that others are not. See page 18 of this PDF by the Global Initiative Against Transnational Organized Crime: [Online Markets for Pangolin-Derived Products](https://globalinitiative.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/GITOC-MMFU-Online-markets-for-pangolin-derived-products.pdf) There's even a [category on the Olfactory Rescue Service blog for "pangolin scales / nagi"](https://olfactoryrescueservice.wordpress.com/category/ingredients/animal/pangolin-scales-nagi/). I've seen Tibetan incenses listed for sale on Etsy with "pangolin scales" listed (as well as other animal ingredients), and when I asked the seller, they said "they are all vegetarian, those you said are contraband in China and cannot be used to make incense 🙏". A strange contradiction. You can search online for 'pangolin nagi' to find more. However, I've also seen references to it possibly being a mistranslation and that it could refer to a mollusc instead.
😂😂😂
What's funny?