I am at last reviewing Corey of Absolute Bliss's range of Happy Hari incense, and at the same time reviewing the range of Happy Hari incense being sold at Padma Store.
At the same time I am re-reviewing my old Happy Hari incenses, and marking them as Vintage Incense (that the incense is no longer available under the original brand).
Rummaging in my confused collection of incense - various bags, boxes, shelves, and drawers, looking for examples of Fluxo and Flora incenses, as that is my kick at the moment, I find a bag of Happy Hari incense, mostly Oud Masala (price marked £1.75), an old favourite of mine, with a couple of others, including this Niyama Sutra, which I have never reviewed. So, here goes.
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| The Yoga Sutra range |
This is part of Paul Eagle's Yoga Sutra range - I reviewed the Asana Sutra in the range in 2019. I think I must have got this at the same time as I got that, from a head shop in the UK. I think these Yoga Sutra were Paul's last series of incense. They were not among the samples he sent me to try, so I think they were later, and they have barcodes on them, which few of his other incense did. Stocks are available on at least two sites in America - Absolute Bliss for $5, and EssenceOfTheAges for $3.28 (who have a number of other Happy Hari stocks, and are doing a clearance sale, with a number of products - as of Sept 2021 - selling out - grab them now!), but I can't see them available anywhere else.
There is a tangy oil on the stick, quite interesting with orange, leather, licorice, benzoin, and something mineral, though it's a little artificial smelling, so may be more fragrance oil based than essential oil. It burns really nicely. Soft and herbal, with more than an awareness of patchouli. The base notes are soft wood, but mainly herbal, some cannabis, some mineral, with elusive floral notes, soft and waxy suggesting lily of the valley. Vanilla. White chocolate. Aromas come and go - there is so much going on! It's soft, subtle, and very beautiful. It would certainly work as a meditative incense when doing yoga, or as a sensual prelude to sex - or you could combine the two and have yoga sex.
I love this. It is a beautiful, sensual, somewhat elusive incense that can be used for all sorts of purposes. Soft, flexible, engaging and charming. Yes. Oh yes.
Date: Sept 2021 Score: 47
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| Happy Hari Incense |
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| Vintage Incense (Incense brand not available) |
What a lineup HH has given us. While they are expensive, the quality remains very high. The Niyama Sutra is a hand rolled and dusted stick with a handmade bamboo stick. The burn gives off an immediate blast of sweetness that is complex and not cloying. I detect both vanilla and rose scents joined with the halmaddi rich base, but no patchouli. This is another top notch stick in the HH lineup. Temple of Incense's Dancing Sufi is supposedly the same stick as the Niyama. These two companies share several sticks as both buy from the same maker who is unknown to us, but Temple of Incense is significantly less money.
ReplyDelete"While they are expensive". Happy Hari was never expensive. And if you find an authentic old stock, they are cheaper than ever. I have bought loads of Meena Supreme at rock bottom prices. If you find Happy Hari at expensive prices then someone is exploiting the Happy Hari name.
ReplyDeleteLess cheap, but a wider selection: EssenceOftheAges
DeletePadmaStore
DeleteBe aware that I have just checked back on the last four companies I bought Happy Hari Meena Supreme from, and they are either out of stock or are no longer trading. Grab whatever stocks are still available as quick as you can. Cheap as chips, and authentic as fuck.
DeleteAbsolute Bliss in the USA is the primary source of HH nowadays. Cheap they are not. Paul died 6 years ago and the world has changed dramatically, Steve. The price of the the Niyama Sutra sticks: 6 sticks/10g/ $5 + shipping. That is not cheap, my man. Temple of Incense, Dancing Sufi sticks said to be the same as Niyama, 20 sticks/£8. Temple of Incense is considered high priced and high end and even they are way less expensive than Absolute Bliss but their packaging is first class as well as their descriptions of their sticks. AB doesn't tell you squat and comes in the cheapest, flimsiest clear plastic sleeves made. It's almost a joke to receive them. But I do love HH and feel they are mostly top quality. Paul Eagle knew what he was doing. Now, HH is unavailable as fuck from your above sources and I've heard rumors of fake HH circulating. Have another beer and mourn those days of wonder and inexpensive incense.
ReplyDeleteCory has shown me correspondence from Paul that does indicate that Paul wanted Cory to take over Happy Hari, and he has told me that Paul told him the sources, so it is likely to be the original incense, albeit more expensive.
DeleteI don't know what is being sold in the Padma Store as I've not had any of that. It could be one of the fakes, but I honestly don't know.
Just Aromatherapy stocks are genuine, as I have bought Happy Hari from them. But when I clicked through just now there was a problem with the website, so maybe they are out of stock. Worth getting in touch with them to confirm, as those are good prices for a bloody good incense.
These look genuine: Happy Hari Champa Gold. Certainly at that price it's worth a punt.
DeleteAh. When clicking on some of the images I see that they are not in the original packets, but are in packets by The Indian Connection. I recall people mentioning them to me. I may even have bought a pack to check them out - but can't quite recall. Anyway. Those may well be fakes. On the other hand, they could come from the same source. It is possible that Paul told a few people about his sources toward the end. Perhaps sold the information to a few people.
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