Balaji Dharma Jnana Yoga

  

I like Balaji - I find them to be one of the best Indian incense houses. They make a wide range of incenses - wet and dry dhoops, perfumed, and masala. The perfumed incense is acceptable, professionally made everyday room freshener, often sold in bargain basement zipper packs. But it is the masala where the company - with just a couple of exceptions - really shine for me.  After reading the blog, the company sent me a big box of samples last year, and I've been making my way through them - starting with the perfumed, and now I've moved on to this series of five Dharma branded masalas, where each pack is named after a yoga - this is named after Jnana yoga, a Hindu spiritual path to knowledge.  The Dharma range is not widely available, though the decent German online shop, Ephra-World, sell them, and other Balaji, at good prices. 

While I am attracted to the romance and organic nature of haphazardly made incense, such as made by small, traditional outlets such as Shroff and HMS, I tend to prefer on the whole when incense is more consistent and reliable. It's more convenient and satisfying. There is a sense of fun and exploration in lighting up a Shroff or HMS in that you don't quite know what you're going to get, or if the scent will bear much relation to the name or description. It's like opening a Christmas present. But I find that's fun once in a while rather than everyday. I'm more comfortable and satisfied on a daily basis lighting up an incense by a company that I find have been reliable and trustworthy, and who clearly pay attention to quality control. I think that a mix of the two experiences makes for a happy life. 

I am delighted by the scent on the stick. It's reasonably bold without being too strong, and is alert, lively, and interesting. Sandalwood, fruit, cat pee, sweet tobacco, cedarwood shavings, wet sand, warm leather - a wonderous melange of fresh, natural scents. Some lambs wool, which I tend to associate with the use of halmaddi. Halmaddi is not a scent ingredient - it's use is as a perfume fixative: it binds together and amplifies the fragrance ingredients; however it does have a scent display of its own. Though the scent is not strong nor divine - it is mostly neutral, it does display camphor, citrus, and mostly, for me, warm wool.  

I like the little sharp notes, reminiscent of cat pee, in the scent -  it makes the accord present as  natural and complex and interesting. Chanel No 5 was one of the first perfumes to make use of the cat pee scent (from the sex glands of the civet); these days it has been synthesised as  5-Cyclohexadecenone  and sold as Ambretone. There is a compelling animalistic quality to this scent - a musky sexuality. Yet it also presents as refined and intelligent. It's a profound scent, discretely covering a wide range, and so engaging body, brain, and hormones in a subtle and seductive manner.  

The scent profile on the burn is a little darker than on the stick (and, after experimenting, is clearer and more complex at the conventional 20 degree angle obtained on most flat incense burners), yet still fruity and lively. Fruits are mango, soft citrus, with some coconut. Then it delves into the woods, and eventually out comes the soft, sexy musk. It's great. I love this. 

Date: July 2024    Score: 42

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Balaji Agarbatti Company