I'm curious about resin or sambrani cups. I first noticed them a few years ago, and reviewed my first, Raj Guru Vandana Sambrani Cup, back in 2018. I think I got this pack around the same time, and I've burned a few of the cups, but hadn't reviewed it until now. So this is just my second resin cup. While curious, I was a little put off with my experience of the Raj Guru Vandana. The cups take a long time to light, and the Raj Guru Vandana was rather smoky when burning - setting off the fire alarm in the house. They require a lot of ventilation. I found it best to use them as a smudge in the house - walk around the house as the cup burns, allowing the smoke and fragrance to spread in each room before moving on to the next. And then I put the cup in our outhouse. The house does feel cleansed, energised, and well fragranced afterwards, and the scent remains for hours. So I've come round to liking them, despite there being a bit of awkwardness in their use. However, I'm not yet seeing the real advantage over burning resin on a burner. And for convenience, I'd rather have one of the resin-on-a-stick type incenses I've been exploring recently - such as Pure Yemen Dragons Blood and Inca Aromas Pitanga.
The incense is named after Navagraha, the nine planets which, according to Indian tradition, influence our lives - similar to Western astrology. There is no real scent from the cups before being lit. The resin is covered in a resin which holds them in place, and I assume this also hold the fragrance, so it is only released when warmed. There is a resin aroma during the burn, though it is a little blurry and smoky. There is a crisp citric quality inclining to lemon and bergamot, a touch of vague floral, and some mild resinous wood inclining toward pine. While the scent is that of a resin, I wouldn't have picked frankincense as the resin - for me it inclines more to benzoin, but is more of a generic wood resin than any one in particular. As with the Guru Vandana, the experience is best when the cup is no longer burning, and improves with time - the residual smoke scent diminishing while the resin scent begins to hold its own. There is a pleasant moment of warmth and brightness when the smoke smell has diminished completely, and before the resin scent fades completely.
I burn incense for the pleasure of the scent, and how it fragrances our home. I don't really want to be fussing with it too much. I put plants in the garden which thrive in our local conditions, and which require little intervention from me. I don't want to be using fertilisers or pesticides or fussing too much with water and pruning. It's the same with my incense. I want the incense to look after me and bring me joy rather than stress. As such I can't see me using these resin cups too often. I'll keep an open mind, and am willing to try a couple more, but I'm not going to be seeking them out.
